Animism
The belief in spirits and all possible supernatural aspects is widely spread. This is also not at unusual in the upper social classes. However, educated Thais will usually say that this only practiced by uneducated groups of society when speaking with Farangs. Man kennt eben die Denkweise der westlichen Welt und möchte nicht als rückständig erscheinen. Due to the fact that no one has an absolute understanding of religions and supernatural powers, discussions about the feasibility are pointless.
I believe that any attempt to qualitatively assess this completely foreign mentality to western people is objectionable. It is simply different and has advantages and disadvantages in individual situations in everyday life. The Thai way of life is established in Thailand. Permanent comparisons are pointless and do not help anyone. Our education and life in the respective cultural circles has made us the people who we are but we can learn from follow societies throughout the full course of our lives.
Final word
I believe that any attempt to qualitatively assess this completely foreign mentality to western people is objectionable. It is simply different and has advantages and disadvantages in individual situations in everyday life. The Thai way of life is established in Thailand. Permanent comparisons are pointless and do not help anyone. Our education and life in the respective cultural circles has made us the people who we are but we can learn from follow societies throughout the full course of our lives.
I do not claim to have found the one and only truth with my remarks; I simply want to reflect my personal points of view which have developed in my 40 years of experiences with Thailand.