The Dhammakāya Movement is a Buddhist movement founded in Thailand Thailand (pronounced /ˈtaɪlænd/ TYE-land or /ˈtaɪlənd/; Thai: ราชอาณาจักรไทย Ratcha Anachak Thai, IPA: [râːtɕʰa ʔaːnaːtɕɑ̀k tʰɑj]) (formerly Siam Thai: สยาม) is an independent country that lies in the heart of Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos in the 1970s.

Contents

Origins

It was founded by the Thai meditation master Phramongkolthepmuni(1885-1959) - a celebrated meditation master and the late abbot of Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen, Thonburi. The movement is primarily represented today by its non-profit foundation, the Dhammakaya Foundation, and the Wat Phra Dhammakaya temple in Pathum Thani Province Pathum Thani is one of the central provinces (changwat) of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Ayutthaya, Saraburi, Nakhon Nayok, Chachoengsao, Bangkok and Nonthaburi, Thailand.

Identifying features

This meditation school formally belongs to the ancient Maha Nikaya tradition of Thai Theravada Theravada ; literally, "the Teaching of the Elders" or "the Ancient Teaching", is the oldest surviving Buddhist school. It was founded in India. It is relatively conservative, and generally closest to early Buddhism, and for many centuries has been the predominant religion of Sri Lanka (about 70% of the population) and most of Buddhism.[1], being correctly regarded as revivalist rather than a new movement or fundamentalist.[2][3] It supposedly has many doctrinal elements to distinguish it from conventional Theravāda Buddhism[citation needed] and in some respects resembles schools of Mahāyāna Mahāyāna is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice. Mahāyāna Buddhism originated in India Buddhism,[citation needed] has not been taken as heterodox by most Buddhists in the country.[citation needed] The Dhammakāya school of meditation is marked by its literal interpretation of Buddhist technical terms, (including the term dhammakāya The Dharmakāya is a central idea in Mahayana Buddhism forming part of the Trikaya doctrine that was possibly first expounded in the Aṣṭasāhasrikā prajñā-pāramitā (The Perfection of Insight In Eight Thousand Verses), composed in the 1st century BCE. It constitutes the unmanifested, "inconceivable" (Sanskrit: acintya) aspect of) in their physical meaning, as described by Phramongkolthepmuni. Many sermons of Phramongkolthepmuni himself can be traced back to some schools of meditation in Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic and volcanic activity preserved only in ancient meditation manuals.

Personalities

One factor which catalyzes this Foundation is the personality of Phramongkolthepmuni. The account of his attaining dhammakāya in 1916 through his willingness to lay down his life evoked the image of 'self-sacrifice' in the minds of his disciples.

Dhammakaya Foundation

The Dhammakāya Foundation was founded in 1916 in Thailand by Phra Monkolthepmuni, the abbot The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery. The female equivalent is Abbess of Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen. Following the death of Phra Monkolthepmuni, the Foundation's work was continued by his disciple, Khun Yay Mahā Ratana Upāsikā Chandra Khonnokyoong, a Buddhist mae chi. In 1970, a temple, called Wat Phra Dhammakaya, was constructed as a home for the movement. Located in Khlong Luang, Pathum Thani Province Pathum Thani is one of the central provinces (changwat) of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Ayutthaya, Saraburi, Nakhon Nayok, Chachoengsao, Bangkok and Nonthaburi, the temple was intended to become an international center for the study of meditation.

Wat Phra Dhammakaya

Main article: Wat Phra Dhammakaya The Memorial Hall of Phramonkolthepmuni

Wat Phra Dhammakaya is a Buddhist temple (wat A wat is a monastery temple in Cambodia, Thailand, or Laos. The word "wat" (Khmer: វត្ត, Thai: วัด, sometimes rendered "vat" when referring to Laos) means "school") in Khlong Luang District, Pathum Thani Province Pathum Thani is one of the central provinces (changwat) of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Ayutthaya, Saraburi, Nakhon Nayok, Chachoengsao, Bangkok and Nonthaburi north of Bangkok, Thailand Thailand (pronounced /ˈtaɪlænd/ TYE-land or /ˈtaɪlənd/; Thai: ราชอาณาจักรไทย Ratcha Anachak Thai, IPA: [râːtɕʰa ʔaːnaːtɕɑ̀k tʰɑj]) (formerly Siam Thai: สยาม) is an independent country that lies in the heart of Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos. It was established on Magha Puja Day, 20 February 1970, on an eighty-acre (320,000 m²) plot of land donated by Lady Prayat Phaetayapongsa-visudhathibodi. The site, sixteen kilometres north of Bangkok International Airport, was originally called 'Soon Buddacakk-patipatthamm'. From acidic paddy fields, a woodland was created: a parkland for meditators. The foundation stone for the main chapel laid by H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn on behalf of H.M. the King in December 1977 marked the official foundation of the centre as a temple—Wat Phra Dhammakaya. The movement produced a CDROM[4] of the Pali Buddhist Scriptures in cooperation with the Pali Text Society The Pali Text Society was founded in 1881 by T.W. Rhys Davids "to foster and promote the study of Pali texts" in 1995 and by the year 2000 its monastic students were the most successful Pali students in Thailand.[5]

Public accusations of 1999-2002

The Dhammakāya Foundation has been subject to its share of controversy. In 1999[6][7] and again in 2002,[8][9] leaders of the organization were accused of charges ranging from fraud and embezzlement to corruption. At that time social critic Sulak Sivaraksa has criticized the Dhammakaya Movement for promoting greed by emphasizing donations to the temple as a way to make merit. Widespread negative media coverage a this time was symptomatic of the movement being made the scapegoat Scapegoating is the practice of singling out one child, employee, member of a group of peers, ethnic or religious group, or country for unmerited negative treatment or blame. Related concepts include frameup, whipping boy, jobber, sucker and fall guy for commercial malpractice in the Thai Buddhist temple community[10][11] in the wake of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis The Asian Financial Crisis was a period of financial crisis that gripped much of Asia beginning in July 1997, and raised fears of a worldwide economic meltdown due to financial contagion.[12][13]

In 2006 The Thai National Office for Buddhism cleared the Dhammakaya Foundation and Phrarajbhavanavisudh of all accusations[14] when Phrarajbhavanavisudh agreed to return all the allegedly embezzled funds to name of his temple. Phrarajbhavanavisudh was subsequently restored to the position of abbot of Wat Phra Dhammakaya.[15]

Present

Under the leadership of president Phrarajbhavanavisudh (Luang Phaw Dhammajayo, b.1944), the image of the Dhammakāya Foundation has made a recovery, and in 2004-5 had received further recognition for its contribution to world peace from organizations such as the World Health Organization The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health Organization, which had been an agency of the, the Thai Senate, and several peoples' associations in the South of Thailand. The Dhammakaya Movement continues to influence millions of people in Thailand and worldwide to practice Dhammakaya meditation. The movement has set up Dhammakaya Open University in Azusa, California in 2003 to offer degree courses in Buddhist studies. It has also encouraged Thais to quit drinking An alcoholic beverage is a drink containing ethanol . Alcoholic beverages are divided into three general classes: beers, wines, and spirits and smoking Tobacco smoking is the practice where tobacco is burned and the vapors either tasted or inhaled. The practice began as early as 5000–3000 BC. Many civilizations burnt incense during religious rituals, which was later adopted for pleasure or as a social tool. Tobacco was introduced to the Old World in the late 1500s where it followed common trade through the activities of Anti-Drinking and Anti-Smoking program. World Health Organization The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health Organization, which had been an agency of the (WHO) presented the 2004 World No Tobacco Day Award for this work on 31 May 2004[16] [4]

The movement has expanded branches to over eighteen countries worldwide and is promoted via a Buddhist satellite network or Dhamma Media Channel (DMC.TV) with a 24 hour-a-day Dharma and meditation teachings broadcast to the audience worldwide.

References

  1. ^ Swearer, D. K. (1991) Fundemantalistic Movements in Theravada Buddhism, in: M. E. Marty & R. S. Appleby (Eds) Fundamentalisms Observed (Chicago & London, University of Chicago Press), p.656
  2. ^ Cousins, L. S. (1996) The Origins of Insight Meditation, in: T. Skorupski (Ed) The Buddhist Forum: Seminar Papers, 1994-1996 (London, University of London School of Oriental and African Studies), p.39.
  3. ^ Heikkilä-Horn, M-J (1996) Two Paths to Revivalism in Thai Buddhism: The Dhammakaya and Santi Asoke Movements, Temenos 32, pp.93-111
  4. ^ Dhammakaya Foundation (1995) Palitext Version 1.0: CD-ROM Database of the Entire Buddhist Pali Canon (Bangkok, Darnsutha) ISBN 978-9748235875
  5. ^ Trainor, Kevin (2004) Buddhism: The Illustrated Guide (London, Duncan Baird), p.216.
  6. ^ "'I Will Never Be Disrobed' says Thai abbot of Dhammakaya Temple", and "Between Faith and Fund-Raising", Asiaweek 17 September 1999
  7. ^ David Liebhold (1999) Trouble in Nirvana: Facing charges over his controversial methods, a Thai abbot sparks debate over Buddhism's future Time Asia 28 July 1999 [1]
  8. ^ Yasmin Lee Arpon (2002) Scandals Threaten Thai Monks' Future SEAPA 11 July 2002 [2]
  9. ^ Controversial monk faces fresh charges The Nation 26 April 2002
  10. ^ Wiktorin, Pierre (2005) De Villkorligt Frigivna: Relationen mellan munkar och lekfolk i ett nutida Thailand (Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International) p.137 ISSN 1653-6355
  11. ^ Julian Gearing (1999) Buddhist Scapegoat?: One Thai abbot is taken to task, but the whole system is to blame Asiaweek 30 December 1999 [3]<
  12. ^ Bangkokbiznews 24 June 2001 p.11
  13. ^ Matichon 19 July 2003
  14. ^ Bangkok Post 23 August 2006
  15. ^ Yuwa Song News Today 23 August 2006
  16. ^ Tawandhamma Foundation (2007) The Sun of Peace (Bangkok: New Witek), p.180

Further reading

External links

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