ABSTRACT

      The thesis had three main objectives : (1) to study the concept of peace, (2) to analyze the creation of peace in the Savathi village, Naimueang sub-district, Mueang district, Khonkaen province and in the Phue village, Phralab sub-district, Mueang district, Khonkaen Province, and (3) to analyze the base of creation of  peace by means of the five precepts. This study was a qualitative research based on the study of Tipitaka, Buddhist books, Buddhist documents, researches, and collected details from the field work by observation  and  interview  by  applying  the  descriptive  analysis  method.

      From the results of this study it was found that peace was a state without any violence and all ways of using violence both towards oneself or others and environment. There were many types of peace but the Buddhist scholars stressed on mental peace without any violence. However, people in the social movement considered the peace as the state of being free from tyranny and exploitation. Similarly, people in the social management considered that peace was the state without violence both in the direct way and an indirect way as well as both in the structure and culture. The creation of peace was done with controlling the defilement in mind of each person, no use of violence both in the direct and indirect way, the controlled behaviour with following the social rules, and the adjustment of the structure and social value  in order to be free from all types of violence.

      In the case of the Savathi village and the Phue village it was found that people at Savatthi village had the external conflict: a historical conflict and a cultural conflict. Their external conflict was resolved with stopping violence, giving true details, accepting the personal characteristics, praising old people, reducing a number of doubts, and giving the good help. On the other hand, their internal conflict were the political conflict that was resolved with observing rules, justice, transparency, and the struggle among many groups of people in the village that was resolved with a process of close relationship. Similarly, people at the Phue village had the struggle about natural resources that could be resolved with speaking of close relationship rather than speaking of the benefits in order to classify justly the natural resources. Both of these villages got knowledge from the conflict in order to issue rules and establish the committee of resolving the conflict in the form of the senior council. Similarly, good aspects of these villages depended upon the religious, cultural leader, especially the use of five precepts as a base of a way of life and sustainable resolution of the prevalent conflict.

            Five precepts could be brought as a base of peace to develop the social structure in the horizontal direction, i.e. the culture with loving kindness and the culture with peace. Similarly, these five precepts could be used to develop the social structure in the vertical direction, i.e. the use of five precepts as a base of societies in the pyramid to produce the structure of politics, economics, societies, justice and education in order to support both the microsociety and the macrosociety. It was to make the social structures and institutes follow the five precepts that were a base of peace. The other way was to use the five precepts for valuable peace in a way that the societies were established from mental consciousness of humanity and human right. Generally, the five precepts dealt with equality, justice, brotherhood, relationship, balance and respect to humanhood to make the societies serviceable for equality of human right, conscious of value in life, free from all violence, available to promote life free from it, helpful, safety, prosperous, for all people. Similarly, five precepts could protect people from main causes of conflict and violence, i.e. craving, pride, view, and roots of unwholesomeness: greed, anger and delusion. These five precepts became a structural base to eradicate causes of conflict and violence, and similarly, a valuable base to make people conscious of value of life to live together according to the principle of humanity as a base of human beings. Moreover, the five precepts would eradicate all causes of conflict and violence relating to structure, human value and control of defilement that caused peace and stability both in the microsociety and the macrosociety for an eternity.