Basing his book on fieldwork from 1967 to 1970, Barend J. Terwiel's revised edition of Monks and Magic is a refreshing reminder of the high-quality, detail-oriented ethnographic fieldwork that characterized an earlier generation of anthropologists who conducted village studies in Thailand. Terwiel frames his core argument around the once hot debate among anthropologists and religious studies specialists that centered on the “Great Tradition” and “Little Tradition.” Emerging from the work of Robert Redfield and others, the debate sought to explain the relationship between a broader religious tradition and its local manifestations. Terwiel describes two opposing views, those he calls “syncretists who maintain that the religion in Theravada Buddhist countries is a harmonious blend of Buddhism and local creeds” and those who distinguish “between two or more distinct strata” (p. 1). Terwiel suggests that the opposition can be resolved by recognizing the differences in the practices of Buddhism between villagers and urban elite. In contrast to urban intellectuals, Terwiel argues that “[t]he religion of the farmer is basically magico-animistic” (p. 4). Although the debate has never been resolved (and likely never will be), the strength of Terwiel's book is not in reintroducing this old debate to a new audience, but in his careful analysis of the integration of magico-animism in village Buddhism.

Foreshadowing his subsequent more historical anthropological writing, Terwiel's introduction reintroduces the question of how Buddhism entered into mainland Southeast Asia, suggesting that very different reasons may account for its spread among urban elites and villagers. While spirit propitiation continued in state rituals, Terwiel suggests that Buddhism spread to Thai villagers desiring “primarily to acquire magical powers.” Terwiel continues, “The ritual code of behaviour of the Sangha was considered efficacious in bringing about increased chances of prosperity and Pali texts were used as spells to ward off danger and illness” (p. 17). As a result, as Terwiel writes, “Though the farmer uses the same Buddhist institutions, concepts and ideas with which the elite are familiar, he gives them a different meaning” (p. 4).

Terwiel conducted his fieldwork in a central Thai village about 5 kilometers from the capital city of Ratchaburi Province, a village that has now become a suburb. His initial fieldwork spread over three periods, the main period lasting from April 1968 to March 1969. Having chosen religious practices as his focus, Terwiel divided his village experience into two distinct phases; in the first phase he ordained as a monk for just over six months and later lived with a village family for another five months. His prior linguistic training in Sanskrit and Pali provided Terwiel with a strong foundation for his research into monastic life. In his chapter describing the village setting, Terwiel provides an interesting discussion of both the advantages and disadvantages of his decision to ordain as a Buddhist monk in the village temple. In this new edition of this classic village study, Terwiel adds a postscript explaining how he came to study Thailand and this village in particular; he also provides some sense of the changes in this village in the intervening decades.

Terwiel organizes his book over the course of a villager's life, exploring how a villager's understanding of Buddhism changes from childhood to adulthood and paying attention to gender differences. In chapter 3, Terwiel considers village beliefs regarding conception, rebirth and karma, arguing that karma and magic are complementary systems. He provides rich details regarding birthing ceremonies, naming ceremonies, early socialization and formal education. In chapter 4, Terwiel explores adolescence, providing wonderfully detailed descriptions of protective amulets and the practice of tattooing. In chapter 5, he describes the experiences of village novices and monks, showing that, despite the expansion of the Thammayut order, for villagers “monks and magic belong to the same religious norm complex” (p. 130). In chapter 6, Terwiel considers village courtship and married life, arguing against scholars who have suggested that monastic life is antithetical to married life by showing that monks may help create magical potions to help in courtship and other occasions. In the following chapter, Terwiel provides details regarding housebuilding, noting the positive power of monks needed to offset potential pollution. In chapter 8, Terwiel provides a subtle analysis of the village interpretations of the Buddhist Precepts, suggesting that the functions of taking five, eight or ten precepts emerge from different historical trajectories. He then provides a particularly careful analysis of merit making, with a description of the major annual ceremonies that includes a recognition of changing historical contexts. His penultimate chapter addresses the role of the elderly and funeral rites. The book concludes by restating his overall argument about the integration of Buddhism with magico-animist practices in village life.

Terwiel's meticulous descriptions of village beliefs and rituals remain an invaluable resource for everyone interested in village Buddhism. His rich account of village religious life at a specific historical moment gains in importance given the dramatic changes villages have undergone in the intervening decades. His careful research also makes it possible to mine his account for comparisons with village practices in other regions.

While Terwiel's analysis of the interaction between magico-animism and Buddhism in village life is well-argued, his contrast between village and urban religious life is over simplified. As Terwiel himself concedes in his conclusion, his is “an incomplete model that probably could be developed further with research in the provincial capitals and in the capital city” (p. 268). Indeed, a body of scholarship is emerging that shows that Terwiel's insights into the importance of magico-animistic religious beliefs and practices among villagers are relevant for understanding urban populations as well.