From karma to sin: a kaleidoscopic theory of mind and Christian experience in northern Thailand

In this essay, I argue for a 'kaleidoscopic' theory of mind implicit in people's common-sense awareness of themselves, others, and reality in northern Thailand. Phenomenal experience is here generally understood as contingent on a host of factors, from personal habits to the influence of others, such that sensory perceptions themselves are in part a consequence of prior action (karma) with moral import. When Thai people convert to Christianity, they reject karma in favour of a God who will absolve a believer of all offence. Drawing on both neo-Pentecostal and Buddhist Thais' rich descriptions of their encounters with the divine and a host of other 'supernatural' experiences, I show how many Thai Christians maintain an abridged sense of karmic contingency. With attention to local theory of mind, non-monotheistic knowledge formations come into focus, highlighting the unique nature of the individualism emerging among Thai congregants and the stakes such individuation has for them.