Bodhiraksa, whose original name was Monkol Rakphong, was ordained in 1970 at the age of thirty-six in the Thammayut tradition14 at Wat Asokaram in the central province of Samut Prakan. He observed a strict vinaya (discipline) by being vegetarian, eating only one meal a day, wearing no shoes, and living a simple life. Being ascetic and pious, he gained a great deal of support and followers among serious Buddhists who helped set up the Santi Asoke movement. Bodhiraksa puts the Thai Buddhist reformist rationality, such as the teachings of Bhikkhu Buddhadasa, into practice on the institutional and organizational levels by announcing independence from the Thai Sangha Hierarchy (Mahatherasamakama) in 1975, which makes his movement radical within the Thai Sangha.