Preliminaries & Author’s Foreword: The True Profit of Life and the Mission to Preserve Lanna’s Vanishing Heritage
The Preliminaries of "Kao Dee": Exploring the true profit of life, clerical critiques of modern hedonism, and the mission to save Lanna's oral lore.
The Philosophy of "Life's Profit": A Critique of Modern Hedonism and Filial Debt
Phra Khru Sophon Kittiyan (Maha Singh) opens the preliminary pages of this volume with a concise, piercing essay entitled "The Profit of Life" (Kamrai Chiwit), serving as a moral critique of modern consumer culture. In contemporary society, people are routinely deceived into believing that engaging in novel sensory intoxicants—such as habitual drinking, gambling, or nocturnal revelry—constitutes the ultimate "profit of living."
Reinterpreting capitalist economic terminology through a Buddhist lens, the author redefines "capital" and "yield": The life of every child is the fundamental capital invested by their parents. When parents pour their physical sweat, emotional labor, and life savings into nurturing an offspring, a child who subsequently succumbs to vice, ruinous addictions, or premature sickness brings absolute bankruptcy to their parental investors. Conversely, "true life profit" is realized through diligence, moral restraint, frugality, and the continuous cultivation of new merits through giving (Dāna), moral discipline (Sīla), and mental cultivation (Bhāvanā)—the only dividends that yield enduring peace of mind to both progenitor and progeny.
This ethical foundation is reinforced by the inclusion of King Rama VI's classical poem, Muang Dai Rai Tham ("A Realm Bereft of Virtue"): "A city lacking righteous virtue shall inevitably plunge into ruin," underscoring that no society, however economically prosperous, can endure without a bedrock of ethical wisdom.
Testimonials from the Clerical and Cultural Hierarchy
The formal commendations (Anumodanākathā) and critical appraisal (Kham Niyom) from senior northern monastic leaders and cultural authorities establish the urgent cultural necessity of this work:
- Phra Khru Wimonthammanusat (Ecclesiastical Chief of Phrao District): Praises the author's scholarly perseverance in synthesizing fragmented ancient manuscripts into lucid, accessible prose capable of educating both laymen and future scholars.
- Phra Khru Wichitthammaninant: Employs a vivid culinary metaphor: just as a savory broth requires ingredients to enter the pot in precise culinary sequence, religious rites performed carelessly or out of mere convenience lose their sanctity and spiritual flavor. A definitive procedural manual dispels widespread confusion among modern worshippers.
- Prakhong Thammachai (Senior Cultural Officer, Chiang Mai Cultural Office): Emphasizes that Buddhism is an epistemic tradition grounded in analytical wisdom; codifying Lanna's oral liturgies and Jataka parables into print provides a tangible foundation for cultivating ethical discernment in civic life.
"Let Us Talk First": The Vision behind the Sixth Volume
In the personal foreword (Khui Kan Kon), Phra Khru Maha Singh articulates the founding ethos behind this publication—the sixth monograph in his lifelong cultural preservation series:
- The Transformative Power of Reading: "Books are the wellspring of knowledge." Reading awakens empathy, broadens human comprehension, and bridges the past, present, and future.
- The Vulnerability of Oral Tradition: Innumerable northern traditions were historically transmitted purely by word of mouth (Pak To Pak). With the passing of generations, unwritten customs inevitably distort, lose their cosmological coherence, and fade away. Furthermore, existing canonical texts are locked within voluminous Pali-Lanna palm-leaf manuscripts inaccessible to the general public.
- The Uniqueness of Lanna Patrimony: Practices such as the Khan Kaew Tang Sam (the Triple Gem offering tray) and Khan Suma Khrua Tan are distinct, singular cultural inheritances of Northern Thailand, necessitating an authoritative guidebook (Pakkaduen) to preserve their authenticity.
- The Excellence of Dhamma-Dāna: The publication was realized through the philanthropic patronage of Phra Khru Winai Dhammawon Chayavuddho (Abbot of Wat Pha Ngam, Mae Taeng) and his lay congregation, fulfilling the canonical adage: "Sabbadānaṃ dhammadānaṃ jināti"—The gift of Truth excels all worldly gifts.