THE THE STUDY OF A PUBLIC WELFARE NETWORK OF THAI SAHGHA IN THE CORONAVIRUS DISEASE (COVID-19) PANDEMIC SITUATION

Abstract

Objectives of this research article were 1. To study the formation of a public welfare network of Thai Sangha in the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic situation, 2. To study the public welfare operations of the Thai Sangha in the COVID-19 pandemic situation, and 3. To analyze the method of establishing the public welfare network of the Thai Sangha for sustainability. Documentary research was used as the principal methodology by analyzing the data with content analysis from significant academic documents.

The results of the study revealed that there were three factors contributing to the formation of the Thai Sangha public welfare Network: 1. The strategic plan for reforming Buddhist affairs from 2017 to 2021, 2. The reaction to the idea of Somdet Phra Ariyavongsagatanana, the Supreme Patriarch of Thailand, and 3. The purpose to create their own roles in social work. Secondly, the main elements of public welfare operation of the Thai Sangha in the situation of the COVID-19 pandemic could be divided into 1) the activities run by the Office of Public Welfare of the Sangha Supreme Council of Thailand as a core managing centre and 2) the activities run by public training units belonging to sub-district administration as a core managing centre. Finally, the method for establishing the public welfare network of the Thai Sangha for sustainability consisted of 1) developing cooperation with government organization networks, 2) training public welfare operation for monks and 3) gaining lesson-learnt knowledge from Buddhist public welfare.