Exploring How to Construct Buddhist Temples in Sacred Forests: A Critical Ethnography in Northeast Thailand

While there is a growing body of literature on the Buddhist landscape, we know little about how to construct temples in sacred forests. Hence, this study draws on a qualitative critical ethnographic design to explore how to construct Buddhist temples in sacred forests in northeast Thailand. Purposive sampling was used to conduct interviews with 20 stakeholders in Sakon Nakhon province, the results of which were analyzed using pragmatic horizon analysis (initial codes; developing themes; objective, subjective, and normative categories). The critical ethnographic interviewees identified six themes—monastery construction, values, customs, traditions, cultural settings, and ideology—relating to the construction of Buddhist temples in sacred forests. This study provides evidence of the religion-associated landscapes for constructing Buddhist temples in sacred forests in northeast Thailand.