reserved space
A Mini Index to Dhammakaya


A few personal highlights (mainly ceremonies I have attended in Thailand):

Highlight for 2007
3 January 2007: I participated in the Inaugural World Peace Ethics Contest (WorldPEC), based on the teachings of the Mangala Sutta (38 Blessings of Life), this was an international initiative to apply Buddhist principles to our daily lives. I posted some reflections and further thoughts after the results were announced. A new format has been set for the 2008 WorldPEC.

Highlight for 2006
11-17 December, 2006: Inaugural International Samadhi Forum, a gathering of "meditating scholars" organised jointly by the University of Sydney and the Dhammakaya Foundation, was a very special conference that addressed the theme of "Pathways to the Centre - Purity and the Mind."

Highlight for 2005
10 October, 2005: 121st Anniversary of the birth of Luang Pu Wat Paknam was marked by the casting of a golden image, which will become the focus of pilgrimage. I was able to be present as a representative of Wat Charoen Bhavana, Woking, UK, now Wat Phra Dhammakaya UK or the Dhammakaya Centre for Buddhist Meditation. Also was interviewed for dmc.tv

Highlight for 2004
22 April: Earth Day and 60th Birthday of most Ven. Dhammajayo Bhikkhu, Abbot of Wat Phra Dhammakaya, was marked by the casting of 300,000 Buddha images to sit atop the dome of a very special meditation workshop building designed for 24x7 non-stop meditation for world peace. The site has been redeveloped and so the original links no longer work :-( So am linking to an archive. This will follow in the tradition of the meditation workshops established by Luang Phor Sodh.

Highlight for 2002
Cremation Service for Khun Yay Upasike Chandra Khonnokyoong, the founder of Wat Phra Dhammakaya, took place on 3 February 2002, a unique occasion in which hundreds of thousands celebrated the life of an exemplary practitioner. 
* a photo of her coffin on the resplendant peacock (that I took).  Please read the explanation of the design, which was derived from meditation. [archived references as original links have stopped working].

Dhammakaya (Dhamma + kaya) means body of reality.

A system of meditation based on Dhammakaya was (re-)discovered in the early decades of the 20th century by the late abbot of Wat Paknam, Chao Khun Phra Mongkol-Thepmuni (Sodh Candasaro), reverently and affectionately known as 'Luang Pohr Wat Paknam'.

Dhammakaya is practised throughout much of Thailand by a large number, and information on this Central Way is slowly becoming available abroad. I've provided here a brief index, mainly to those resources in the English language. The majority of information is in Thai, as is the case for the temple where dhammakaya practice was first rooted: Wat Paknam, Bhasicharoern (another site that's not available, but at least is archived by the Wayback machine). One of the few sites that is in English and contains teachings relating to the time of the great Abbot is the Mongkol Dharma Centre in Singapore, which are teachings that have been interpreted by Terry Magness (Ven. Suratano).

The largest organisation is the Dhammakaya Foundation at Wat Phra Dhammakaya, which was founded by the Late Khun Yay Upasika Chandra Khonnokyoong, an exceptional disciple of Luang Phor Sodh. The site is now in both English and Thai, and provide a good overview of the various activities. It is the centre with most international presence: for instance, it has hosted an international conference entitled Buddhism into the year 2000 and worked very generously in the production of a Pali text CD_ROM, which was made available from 1996. It now has a full scale multimedia site called DMC, accessible via the dmc.tv web site. It broadcasts on a daily basis, especially the Dream in Dream Kindergarten School, streaming audio and video normally running from about 19.30 to 22.00 Thai time, i.e. 12.30 to 15.00GMT. The abbot gives teachings, especially about the Law of Kamma, including many case studies. It really is excellent listening/viewing and now there are translations into English by Ven. [Nicholas] Thanissaro Bhikkhu. If the schedule doesn't suit, then you can make use of a media archive available on demand.

By browsing the links to the two mains sources mentioned above and other links below, a number set up by committed individuals, I hope you may gain a feel for the Dhammakaya tradition. Unfortunately, the connection to one or two sites may not always be available. Sorry if that happens.

  • About the founder A short biography of Luang Pohr Wat Paknam is available on-line from the Dhammakaya Buddhist Meditation Institute. A more detailed life story has been published by the Dhammakaya Foundation entitled, The Life and Times of Luang Phaw Wat Paknam (2nd edition, 1998), part of a substantial repository of books called Repository Zero, a site overflowing with eTexts, kindly provided by the Dhammakaya International Society of Belgium!  I highly recommend this account.

    You can see some pictures of this great master at the Wat in an on-line collection of photos. (It includes photos taken of the Bhikkhu ordination of three British disciples of Kapilavaddho Bhikkhu).

  • Meditation Guides
    • Meditation for beginners. Plenty of information at dmc.tv to get you started with meditation, presented in a variety of media formats with instructions from lay and ordained teachers.
    • Meditation in Action - getting to know, produced by Wat Phra Dhammakaya, provides clear step by step illustrated guide to get you started with investigating your mind.
    • An Introduction to Vijja Dhammakaya from the Dhammakaya Buddhist Meditation Institute includes meditation instructions for beginners and advanced practitioners. It is based on the book, The Heart of Dhammakaya Meditation. This site supersedes one that was listed previously on this page at http://www.dhammakaya.org which the Institute uses as a Thai site only.

  • Centres and Monuments
  • Publications There are a number of books starting to come out that cover the history and practice of Dhammakaya. The North-West Centre for Buddhist meditation lists quite a few titles. The Dhammakaya Foundation used to produce a bimonthly magazine called the Light of Peace which reports on Buddhist events throughout the world, especially with the respect to the promotion of peace. A brief description is available here. Nowadays much more is communicated through the Internet.
  • Some Practitioners (UK related) The practice of Dhammakaya can give rise to many benefits, especially penetration and clarity of mind as the following exponents amply demonstrated.
    • Fuengsin Trafford, actively involved in Inter Faith Dialogue, was a practitioner of Dhammakaya for almost 40 years.
    • You can read about the experiences of an Englishman, William Purfurst (later Richard Randall), who became one of Luang Pohr's disciples, in Life as a Siamese Monk, published by Aukana. He received ordination at Wat Paknam in 1954, and was given the title Kapilavaddho, meaning something like 'He who spreads and increases the Dhamma." He subsequently returned to the UK, where he made efforts to set up an English Sangha, teaching the Dhamma with great courage, including the provision of meditation instruction. You can read a review I have written if you'd like more information.
      There is also a tribute to Ven Kapilavaddho by Terry Shine, called Honour Thy Fathers, available as a PDF file from BuddhaNet's eBook library.
  • Events
    • Tsunami Memorial Services were held in the South of Thailand in January 2005 and involved thousands of people from around the country and abroad.
    • Upcoming events at the Dhammakaya Foundation
    • Cremation Service for Khun Yay Upasike Chandra Khonnokyoong, the founder of Wat Phra Dhammakaya, took place on 3 February 2002.  It was a very special event in many ways, preparations have been made over the course of a year and a half, culminating in a splendid gathering involving senior monks, from most of Thailand's Wats, many thousands of bhikkhus, and hundreds of thousands of lay people.  It was worth travelling there just for a long weekend :-)
  • News and Views
    • Venerable Dhammajayo Bhikkhu's Mahatama Gandhi Peace Award, 2005. A special award from the confederation of all Gandhi-related organizations in India. As someone who has been involved in interfaith quite a bit, I'm personally delighted to see this award, recognition for the Abbot's unstinting efforts for world peace.
    • Crisis support to temples in the South - Phrarajbhavanavisudh (Luang Phor Dhammajayo) and Dhammakaya Foundation, in cooperation with the government sectors in the 3 border-provinces of southern Thailand, have provided over an extended period relief to more than 200 temples in the crisis area...
    • Venerable Dhammajayo Bhikkhu's WHO award, 2004. The World Health Organisation has recognised Ven. Dhammajayo's superb contribution to the anti-tobacco campaigns in their awards for 2004 in the SE Asia region which has helped thousands and thousands of people. You can see the Foundation Web site for details about his efforts.
  • Personal Pages
    • to be updated ...
  • Other sites
    • Dhammakaya Open University - the Dhammakaya Foundation has established the seeds of a University to make the Buddhist teachings universally available. It is a great opportunity to read such insightful presentations that relate modern scientific thought to the Lord Buddha's teachings.
    • Middle Way Meditation Retreat - the Dhammakaya Foundation offers retreats in some wonderful locations!
    • DMC Web Ring contains further sites, some with English sections, including some that contain various Multimedia files.

 

The Dhammakaya is the body of enlightenment of the Lord Buddha.
[ Join Now | Ring Hub | Random | << Prev | Next >> ]

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

[ Paul's Buddhist Index ] | [ Interfaith Page ] | [ Homepage ]

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

- Paul Trafford Paul's home page

Last modified: 22 December 2007