Dhammakaya Foundation
From Buddhist Encyclopedia
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- Thai : ธรรมกาย
The Dhammakaya Movement was founded in Thailand in the 1970s, by the Thai meditation master Phra Monkol Thepmuni, and is primarily represented today by its non-profit foundation, the Dhammakaya Foundation, and the Wat Phra Dhammakaya temple in Pathum Thani Province, Thailand. The movement is characterized by a literal interpretation of many Buddhist teachings, the teaching and practice of meditation, and by attempts to reform monastic discipline among ordained monks.
Contact Info
Address :
- Dhammakaya Temple, 23/2 Mu 7, Khlong Sam, Khlong Luang, Pathum Thani 12120, Thailand
Telephone :
- +66 2 831 1000
- +66 2 524 0257
- +66 2 524 0258
- +66 2 524 0259
- +66 2 524 0260
- +66 2 524 0261
- +66 2 524 0262
- +66 2 524 0263
Fax :
- +66 2 524 0270
- +66 2 524 0271
Email :
- webmaster@dhammakaya.or.th
Website :
Works
The Dhammakaya Movement has been known through its work of propagating Buddhism among Thai intellectuals, but behind the modern adaptations of the Dhammakāya school of practice lies an oral tradition motivated by the intricate teaching of founder Phramonkolthepmuni (1885-1959): a celebrated meditation master and the late abbot of Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen, Thonburi.
This meditation school, even though it has many doctrinal elements to distinguish it from the convention Theravāda Buddhism and in some respects resembles schools of Mahāyāna Buddhism, has not been taken as heterodox by most Buddhists in the country. The Dhammakāya school of meditation is marked by its literal interpretation of Buddhist technical terms, (including the term dhammakaya) in their physical meaning, as described by Phramonkolthepmuni. Many sermons of Phramonkolthepmuni himself can be traced back to some schools of meditation in Southeast Asia preserved only in ancient meditation manuals.
The word dhammakaya (or dharmakāya in Sanskrit) means the 'body of dharma' or the 'dharma body', and is most commonly encountered as part of the trikaya in Mahāyana Buddhist thought. The teachings of the Dhammakaya movement interpret the Dhammakāya as the essence of the being free of defilements above the level of the mundane, and thus the body of enlightenment, in the form of a crystal-clear living Buddha sitting in meditation at the centre of the body. This Dhammakāya as source of wisdom and true happiness, exists in all human beings and can be attained through the process of self-refinement and purification. The enlightenment of the historical Buddha is explained in this tradition as his mind becomes perfectly refined and purified to the same level of the refinement and purity of the Dhammakāya, and thus attains the body of enlightenment. The Dhammakāya is therefore seen as central to the Teaching of the Buddha.
Personalities
One factor which catalyzes this Foundation is the personality of Phra Monkol Thepmuni himself. The biography of his attaining dhammakaya in 1916 through the willingness to lay down his life in order to attain the Dhamma that the Lord Buddha knew, brought back the image of 'self-sacrifice' to the minds of his disciples. He thus inspires his disciples to overcome every obstacle blocking the progress of their spiritual life.
Under the leadership of president Phra Rajbhavanavisudh (Luang Phaw Dhammajayo)(b.1944) the image of the Dhammakāya Foundation has made a strong recovery and in 2004-5 had received further recognition for its contribution to world peace from organizations such as the World Health Organization, the Thai Senate and several peoples' associations in the South of Thailand.
Dhammakaya Foundation
The Dhammakaya Foundation is presently one of the most important organizations representing the Dhammakaya movement[citation needed]founded in 1916 in Thailand by Phra Monkolthepmuni, the abbot 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. The Dhammakaya Foundation was particularly interested in encouraging the study of meditation, which was not widely practiced by Theravada monks in the early 20th Century, and was virtually unknown to most lay Buddhists. In 1970, a temple was constructed to house the movement, called Wat Phra Dhammakaya. Located in Khlong Luang, Pathum Thani Province, the temple was intended to become an international center for the study of meditation.
Wat Phra Dhammakaya
Wat Phra Dhammakaya is a Buddhist temple (wat) in Khlong Luang District, Pathum Thani Province north of Bangkok, Thailand. 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.
Controversies
Since the establishment of this temple in 1970, the group of disciples of pioneer Chandra Khonnokyoong(1910-2000) have achieved many successes with recognition for its work from the Thai Palace, the World Fellowship of Buddhists and the World Fellowship of Buddhist Youth. Apologies to the Dhammakaya Foundation were published in full after the Thai newspapers and DMC.TV channels concerned were successfully sued for slander in the period 2003-2004.
The Dhammakaya has always been a subject of controversy as there have been reports of many devotees donating their entire saving to the organization despite the plea of their family. The donation was used to expand buildings and purchase the land, which has an area of a small airport, complete with its own transportation systems, visitor centers, and broadcasting and audio system to accommodate the meditators.
