The Alchemy of Charity: Of Class and Buddhism in Northern Thailand

This essay focuses on a form of unidirectional giving current in Theravada Buddhism: the institution of merit making as practiced in northern Thailand. Many scholars have noted its centrality in village religious practices but have failed to locate it within the broader context of class stratification. As a result, the prevailing paradigm of merit making misrepresents the character of the recipients, the donors, and their mutual interaction. This essay argues that cross‐class, unidirectional forms of giving such as charity may be important in mediating hegemony and resistance in complex societies.