From these young women's point of view, the hijab crisis arose from the fact that the Muslims are now conscious of Islam and want to follow its tenets to the best of their abilities in a state chiefly constituted by nonbelievers. Their reaffirmed sense of religiosity within the larger context of Islamic resurgence portrays the limitation of the Thai state's legitimacy. It is therefore important to analyze the dynamics of legitimation reflected from the interaction between the Muslims and the Thai state.
Moments of Legitimation
A Buddhist philosopher explained that according to the Buddha, dhamma is to be used like a raft to cross over to the safety of nibbana (nirvana) but not to carry as a burden, identifying oneself with it and becoming obsessed with a sectarian identity. Dhamma is universal, and the religious community or samanabrahmana is an essential ingredient of society because it turns people away from evil. As a result,Brautkleider Für Große Größen , a Buddhist can neither disparage nor discriminate against a follower of another religion without violating the fundamental principles of the Buddhist doctrine. Thus,brautkleid billig , he concludes: "Within a polity governed by Buddhist principles, the problem of minority rights should not exist at all" ( Premasiri 1988:56).
The Thai state is sometimes characterized as a political manifestation of all Buddhist values and ideals based upon Buddhist cosmology. Its rulers are "the very essence and best exponents of Buddhist teachings. The blessings that permeate the land flow from the baramee (charisma) of the highest ruling institutions, which are the earthly images of the ideal Buddha himself" ( Surin Pitsuwan 1988:188). If such is the case, how can the problems of religious minority rights in Thai society, such as the hijab crisis, be explained? A common answer is to point to "the gap between the ideals cognitively acknowledged and how individuals and groups professing these ideals behave in actual life situations." ( Premasiri 1988: 55). Perhaps a more enlightening question is not to measure Buddhist society against a set of principles derived from the canon of Buddhism but to examine the way in which Buddhism or its doctrines are partially used in a state that claims Buddhism as one of its revered pillars.
In a study attempting to investigate the interactions of the sangha (order of monks) with politics in a situation of sociopolitical change, Somboon Suksamran argues that Buddhism "has long served as one of the most important sources of political legitimation for political rulers." In fact, because of the kind of influence Buddhism has over Thai society in its various dimensions, political rulers "may make use of religious ideas and the sangha to legitimate their rule and to facilitate social control" (Suksamran 1982:6).