 |
| Act Normal | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Olaf de Fleur |
Release date |
|
Running time | 80 minutes |
| Country | Iceland |
| Language | Icelandic |
Act Normal is a 2006 Icelandic documentary by Olaf de Fleur. The film revolves around Robert T. Edison who at 18 years of age left Britain for Thailand to become a Buddhist monk. Five years after he moves to Iceland in 1994 to form the first Buddhist sect in the country, he decides to disrobe and get married only to return later to Thailand to become a monk again. [1] [2]
Theravāda, lit. 'School of the Elders') is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed Theravādins, have preserved their version of Gautama Buddha's teaching or Buddha Dhamma in the Pāli Canon for over two millennia.
A bhikkhu is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics are members of the Sangha.
Kappiya is a Buddhist lay manciple who resides in a monastery (vihāra) and assists Buddhist monks.
Dhammayuttika Nikāya, or Dhammayut Order is an order of Theravada Buddhist bhikkhus (monks) in Thailand, Cambodia, and Burma, with significant branches in the Western world. Its name is derived from Pali dhamma + yutti + ka (group). The order began in Thailand as a reform movement led by a prince who would later become King Mongkut of Siam, before also spreading to Cambodia and Burma. The movement became formally recognized as its own monastic order by the Thai government in 1902, with any Thai Theravada bhikkhus not within the order being referred to as part of the Maha Nikaya order. The Dhammayuttika Nikaya plays a significant political role in Thailand. The order has historically been favored by the Thai government and monarchy, with the order holding the majority of all royal monastic titles in Thailand and most of the Supreme Patriarchs since its founding having come from the Dhammayuttika Nikaya, despite the order making up less than ten percent of all bhikkhus in Thailand.
Sulak Sivaraksa is a Thai social activist, professor, writer and the founder and director of the Thai NGO "Sathirakoses-Nagapradeepa Foundation", named after two authorities on Thai culture, Sathirakoses and Nagapradeepa. He initiated a number of social, humanitarian, ecological and spiritual movements and organizations in Thailand, such as the College SEM.
Sangharaja is the title given in many Theravada Buddhist countries to a senior monk who is the titular head either of a monastic fraternity (nikaya), or of the Sangha throughout the country. This term is often rendered in English as 'Patriarch' or 'Supreme Patriarch'.
Vajirananavarorasa was the tenth Supreme Patriarch of Thailand from 1910 to 1921. He helped to institutionalize Thai Buddhism.
Buddhism in Thailand is largely of the Theravada school, which is followed by 95 percent of the population. Thailand has the second largest Buddhist population in the world, after China, with approximately 64 million Buddhists. Buddhism in Thailand has also become integrated with folk religion (Bon) as well as Chinese religions from the large Thai Chinese population. Buddhist temples in Thailand are characterized by tall golden stupas, and the Buddhist architecture of Thailand is similar to that in other Southeast Asian countries, particularly Cambodia and Laos, with which Thailand shares cultural and historical heritages. Thai Buddhism also shares many similarities with Sri Lankan Buddhism. Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Laos are countries with Theravada Buddhist majorities
The Kammaṭṭhāna Forest Tradition of Thailand, commonly known in the West as the Thai Forest Tradition, is a lineage of Theravada Buddhist monasticism.
Mun Bhuridatta was a Thai bhikkhu from Isan region who is credited, along with his mentor, Ajahn Sao Kantasīlo, with establishing the Thai Forest Tradition or "Kammaṭṭhāna tradition" that subsequently spread throughout Thailand and to several countries abroad.
Maechi or Mae chee are Buddhist monastics in Thailand who have dedicated their life to religion, vowing celibacy, living an ascetic life and taking the Eight or Ten Precepts. They occupy a position similar to sāmaṇerī.
Buddhism in Cambodia or Khmer Buddhism has existed since at least the 5th century. In its earliest form it was a type of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Today, the predominant form of Buddhism in Cambodia is Theravada Buddhism. It is enshrined in the Cambodian constitution as the official religion of the country. Theravada Buddhism has been the Cambodian state religion since the 13th century. As of 2013 it was estimated that 97.9 percent of the population are Buddhists.
Buddhism is a minority religion in Switzerland. According to the 2000 census, 21,305 Swiss residents self-identified as Buddhists. About a third of them were born in Thailand.
Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu is an American Buddhist monk and author. Belonging to the Thai Forest Tradition, for 10 years he studied under the forest master Ajahn Fuang Jotiko. Since 1993 he has served as abbot of the Metta Forest Monastery in San Diego County, California—the first monastery in the Thai Forest Tradition in the US—which he cofounded with Ajahn Suwat Suvaco.
Luang Pho Daeng was a Thai Buddhist monk who died while meditating in 1973.
Olaf de Fleur is an Icelandic film director, scriptwriter and producer.
Ajahn is a Thai- and Lao-derived term that translates as "professor" or "teacher". The term is in turn derived from the Pali word ācariya and is a term of respect, similar in meaning to the Japanese sensei. It is used as a title of address for high school and university teachers, and for Buddhist monks who have passed ten vassa – in other words those who have maintained their monastic precepts unbroken for a period of ten years. The term Luang Por, "Venerable father", signifies an ajahn of acknowledged seniority in Thai Buddhism.
Somdet Phra Sangharaja Chao Krommaluang Vajirañāṇasaṃvara, né Charoen Khachawat and dharma name Suvaḍḍhano, was the 19th Supreme Patriarch of Thailand. He was appointed to the position in 1989 by King Bhumibol Adulyadej. He turned 100 in October 2013, and died later the same month.
A bhikkhunī or bhikṣuṇī is a fully ordained female in Buddhist monasticism. Male monastics are called bhikkhus. Both bhikkhunis and bhikkhus live by the Vinaya, a set of rules. Until recently, the lineages of female monastics only remained in Mahayana Buddhism and thus were prevalent in countries such as China, Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam, but a few women have taken the full monastic vows in the Theravada and Vajrayana schools over the last decade. From conservative perspectives, none of the contemporary bhikkuni ordinations in Thailand or Tibet are valid.
The Kammatthana meditation tradition originally grew out of the Dhammayut reform movement, founded by Mongkut in the 1820s as an attempt to raise the bar for what was perceived as the "lax" Buddhist practice of the regional Buddhist traditions at the time. Mongkut's reforms were originally focused on scriptural study of the earliest extant Buddhist texts, revival of the dhutanga ascetic practices, and close adherence to the Buddhist Monastic Code. However, the Dhammayut began to have an increasing emphasis on meditation as the 19th century progressed. During this time, a newly ordained Mun Bhuridatto went to stay with Ajahn Sao Kantasīlo, who was then the abbot of a small meditation-oriented monastery on the outskirts of Ubon Ratchathani, a province in the predominantly Lao-speaking cultural region of Northeast Thailand known as Isan.
 | This article related to Icelandic film is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article about a religion-related documentary film is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |