Are there any good histories of the Thai Forest Tradition?
I’m aware of a few biographies (and a lot of hagiographies) on specific monks, as well as some short papers and remarks on the tradition as a whole, but I realized today I know of nothing that gives the overall story. Am I missing it, or does such a book really not exist?
This was recommended by a friend a couple of years ago:
Review
An unusual, enjoyable, thought-provoking and important book Source: Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute
Kamala’s book is a noteworthy, readable contribution to Buddhist studies and belongs in every university library. Source: Religious Studies Review
What [Kamala] sets out to do, with magnificent success, is to use the (auto)biographies of ascetic monks, her own interviews and other conventional historical materials to reconstruct their lifestyle, their gradual subsumption into the nationalist culture of the Bangkok elite, and their final near-elimination through the destruction of forests which were their main habitat. Source: Times Literary Supplement
I really enjoyed this book. When I read it around 1998, it was one of the only books commercially available on Thereavada Buddhism. I actually took it with me on my first (and only) trip to Thailand and found it really inspiring. Her other books are good too.