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pressure of having family and friends watch them undergo the ceremony. And certainly they must felt strange with their newly shaved heads and eyebrows and wearing the ordina- tion robes. Nevertheless, all three men exuded enviable calm in the face of these pressures, thereby setting an excellent example to those of us who have yet to take such a momentous step. It seemed that they had been spiritually trans- formed, even before the ceremony was complete. Without proper attitude, ritual is meaningless. But ritual can be most powerful force when it is conducted with the appropriate mindfulness. As I watched the cer- emony, I developed an acute aware- ness that I was witnessing a process of renewal, the very process that has sustained the Sangkha over the centuries. After all, it is partly the incredible longevity of the Sangkha tradition that coninues to give strength to the Buddha's teachings. Those who enter the Holy Order set an example for all of us by setting the highest moral standards and by sacrificing the luxuries of the world in order to attain spiritual refine- ment. Also, as teachers, the monks spread the priceless wisdom of the Dhamma. Without Bhikkhus, Bud- dhism might long ago have become a mere philosophy rather than a religion that continues to be practiced by millions of people across the world. The Venerable Siridhammo Bhikkhu (Supakij Nantarojanaporn) was kind enough to allow me to interview him. I asked him why he decided to ordain: "First and foremost, I wanted to improve myself as a person. I wasn't satisfied with who I was and where I was heading. Throughout my life I had searched all over for a refuge where I could learn more about myself. The last place I ever thought I would turn to was Bud- dhism. But now I figure that Bud- dhism offers me the best opportu- nity to learn about myself and correct the flaws. Another reason was that I felt illiterate about Buddhist practices. What better way to learn about Buddhism, I thought, than to ordain as a monk? Yet another reason for my ordination was that I wanted to 30609 30 thank my mother in one of the grandest ways possible for all her patience and sac- rifices. Ordaining is one of the best ways of thanking your parents for raising you. My final reason for ordaining was to set a founda- tion for my life in the future. Through Bud- dhism could set a middle path for myself to follow. These were the four main reasons I decided to ordain. I must admit that at first. I had many doubts about my decision. I wasn't sure if I was ready for such a commitment." As I listened to Venerable Siridhammo I realized that I shared many of his sentiments. His com- ments made me think about the many spiritual benefits of ordaining clearly, as a monk, one could make tremendous progress. But what about all those rules? I came to the conclusion that rather than viewing the 227 Precepts as restrictive, we should see them as liberating. Ob- serving the Precepts frees monks from the burden of making daily decisions about hair style, clothing, when and what to eat, and so forth. The daily routine is set. With these many distractions removed, monks are able to narrow their focus to meditation and other spiritual prac- กัลยาณมิตร ๘๘ ธนวาคม ๒๕๓๙