Dhamma Wheel Buddhist Forum

Is the Thai forest tradition the most stripped down version of the Theravada? I.e less emphasis on the pali canon and more emphasis on meditation?

One could argue that but the details depend on the particular stream of the forest tradition you are referring to. The various followers of Ajahn Chah, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, Ajahn Maha Bua (to name a few "streams" of forest monks that are well-known in the West) have rather different flavours.


Mike

It depends on from which side you start the stripping. You can strip off the Pali canon and only have meditation left. Or you can strip off meditation and only have the Pali canon left. My view is that in both cases you are left with a reduced and impoverished version of the Dhamma.