Abstract
Buddhism can conjure distinctive ideas and images for different groups of people, especially travelers to a Buddhist majority country like Thailand. Discussing three different modes of Buddhist tourism— meditation, magic, and mega statues— this article illuminates the varieties of Buddhist tourism in contemporary Thailand. While foreign visitors from Western countries are assumed by Thai Buddhist practitioners to favor engagement with Buddhism related to meditation, Chinese and Thai Buddhists are seen to appreciate Buddhism for its magical protective powers. Chinese tourists in particular are now being targeted to purchase products and experiences related to mutelu, which is a term for objects and rituals that aid in creating good luck and fortune. Lastly, this article investigates the role of mega-statues within Buddhist tourism in Thailand. Focusing on domestic tourism, I offer four examples of mega-statues: two inspired by East Asian Mahayana forms of Buddhism and two statues of local Buddhist heroes. I contrast these types of mega-statues with implications for domestic tourism markets. These three types of attractions within Thai Buddhist tourism reveal the complexities of the religion. Using ideas of ‘multiple Buddhisms’ and ‘strategic secularity,’ this article centers the malleability of Buddhism across different tourist groups. At the same time, these varying tourist avenues foreclose opportunities for unexpected groups to take part in forms of Buddhist tourism that they are assumed to be uninterested in.
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Recommended Citation
Schedneck, Brooke
(2025)
"From Meditation to Magic: The Spectrum of Buddhist Tourism in Thailand,"
International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage:
Vol. 13:
Iss.
3, Article 6.
doi:https://doi.org/10.21427/ggr7-2v86
Available at:
https://arrow.tudublin.ie/ijrtp/vol13/iss3/6
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21427/ggr7-2v86