poem

Found on e-bay while searching for something else. Written by an internet merchant who sells silver jewelry and other Thai exports:

"Hi, all. between 3 may 2004 to 3 july 2004 I am offline

I'm going to be monk

i'm going into monkhood. According to Buddism beliefs, mothers whose sons stay in monkhood for a few month will go to heaven after death.

I'm going to become a monk for a brief period. According to Theravada Buddhism teachings, a rite of passage, once a boy reaches manhood, is to become a monk, at least for a short time. He does this to create alms (good karma) for his mother because she herself cannot become a monk. This is one of the filial duties of a good son."

You can tell it is a good poem because it holds up to so many readings, from so many perspectives. Read it as the young man going into monkhood for a while and then returning (perhaps) to sell silver trinkets on e-bay. Read it as the mother who cannot become a monk herself, but is fortunate to have a clever and dutiful son. Read it as the Buddhist teacher who finds himself faced with endless waves of temporary monks who miss their cell phones and their computers and their e-bay customers. Read it as any woman of any religion who doesn't know why certain privileges and sacraments are only available to men. Read it as someone who wonders about the translation of the word "alms" as "good karma." Think about how your own country might be different if all the young men had to take a three-month sojourn into monkhood in order to cross the threshold to true manhood and to assure their mothers a place in heaven.