The statistics in 2006 reveal that there are 134 monastics—including
104 monks, 3 novices, and 27 female monks (sikhamatu)—in
the Santi Asoke movement. In all the communities combined, there
are eighteen hundred residents, eight hundred students, nine thousand
active supporters, and tens of thousands of members at the vegetarian
clubs within the network.15 According to the Santi Asoke philosophy,
sila or ethical purity has central importance on the path toward
enlightenment whereas a self-sustained economy is crucial for the economic
survival of the community and the country within the context
of contemporary transnational capitalism. Bodhiraksa and the Santi
Asoke movement represent the ethical dimension—both personal and
social—of contemporary Thai Buddhism.