Buddhist Instruction Care for Thai Elderly in the Upper Northeast

Abstract

The paper aimed to clarify the Buddhist instruction care for planning Thai elderly to have well-being in the sociocultural settings concerning the elderly development project in Thailand. The objectives of this study were: 1) to clarify the management policy of the elderly development within the upper northeastern locale; 2) to discover conceivable thoughts of instruction care standards for the elderly through the principles of Buddhism, and 3) to create guidelines of Buddhist learning administration for planning the development of elderly well-being. The research methodology regarded the interpretive paradigm while the management of Buddhist learning was interpreted through participant observation, interviewing, focus-group discussion, and documentary investigation. The content analysis was performed to critically study the obtained data. In this research, there were 60 participants, including monks, elderly, government officials, community leaders, local philosophers, and villagers in Khon Kaen and Roi-et provinces. The findings indicate the Thai government policy provided the direction and budget allocation for developing the quality of life, welfare, and health of the elderly and also preparing younger generations to enter the elderly age. According to the document analysis and focus group discussion, it suggested the possible ideas of education care principles for the elderly through the Buddhist principles, particularly Bhavana 4. It also found that many projects have been organized for taking care of the elderly in collaboration with government agencies and communities. Those projects have been allocated budgets by the Thai government. The study suggested that Buddhist doctrine Bhavana 4 consisting of 1) physical development, 2) moral development, 3) mental development, and 4) intellectual development should be provided as the core content of the elderly’s education care essentially affecting to the elderly life quality. The study indicates that the guidelines for Buddhist learning management for preparing elderly well-being, allowing the elderly to access the Bhavana 4 as it trains them to be endowed with Tisikkhā including moral discipline, mindfulness, and wisdom. Then, they could follow the Noble Eightfold Path that orients them to develop their well-being in Thailand's socio-cultural context