Buddhadasa Bhikkhu

Buddhadasa Bhikkhu (Thai: พุทธทาสภิกขุ, May 27, 1906 - May 25, 1993) was one of the most influential Theravada Buddhist monks of the 20th century. Known as an innovative interpreter of Buddhist beliefs, Buddhadasa helped reform Buddhism in his home country of Thailand and inspired persons such as Pridi Phanomyong, leader of that country's 1932 revolution, and the Thai social activists of the 1960s. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (556x882, 256 KB) Ajarn Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, Thai Theravada Monk, Wat Suan Mokkh, Southern Thailand Courtesy of Santikaro, Liberation Park File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Buddhadasa Metadata... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (556x882, 256 KB) Ajarn Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, Thai Theravada Monk, Wat Suan Mokkh, Southern Thailand Courtesy of Santikaro, Liberation Park File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Buddhadasa Metadata... May 27 is the 147th day (148th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 218 days remaining. ... 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... May 25 is the 145th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (146th in leap years). ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Theravada (Pali; Sanskrit: Sthaviravada) is one of the eighteen (or twenty) Nikāya schools that formed early in the history of Buddhism. ... A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. It had subsequently been accepted by... A “Monk” is a person who practices asceticism, the conditioning of mind and body in favor of the spirit. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... Pridi Phanomyong Pridi Phanomyong (May 11, 1900 - May 2, 1983) was a Thai politician. ... 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will take you to a full 1932 calendar). ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1961 to 1970, inclusive. ...

Early Years

Born in 1906 as Nguam Panid in Phumriang (Chaiya district) in southern Thailand, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu became a bhikkhu or Buddhist monk in 1926. As was expected of young monks at the time, he went to Bangkok to study. However, he found the wats (temples) there dirty, crowded, and, most troubling to him, corrupt. As a result, he returned to his hometown and moved into an abandoned temple. 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Chaiya (Thai: ไชยา) is a small town in southern Thailand in Surat Thani province. ... A Buddhist Monk in Sri Lanka In Pāli, a bhikkhu (male) or bhikkhuni (female) is a fully ordained Buddhist monk. ... The Bangkok Skytrain at sunset on Thanon Narathiwat Ratcha Nakharin with Empire Tower at the back. ... Inside of the bot at Wat Chedi Liem near Chiang Mai in Thailand A Wat in Bangkok A wat is a Cambodian, Lao or Thai Hindu or Buddhist temple. ...

At the temple, Buddhadasa practiced a simple or pristine form of Buddhism by getting to the heart of the Buddha's message of doing wholesome actions, avoiding harmful actions, and purifying and training the mind. As such, he tried to avoid the ritualism and internal politics which dominated Thai Buddhism at the time. His ability to explain complex philosophical and religious ideas in the Thai vernacular soon attracted many people to his temple. In general, the term, Ritualism can be used to describe an outlook which places a great (or even exaggerated) emphasis on ritual. ... The vernacular is the native language of a country or locality. ...

Wat Suan Mokkh

In 1932, Buddhadasa founded Wat Suan Mokkh ("The Garden of Liberation"), a forest Dhamma Center and Buddhist temple in Chaiya, Southern Thailand dedicated to vipassana or insight meditation. Buddhadasa focused especially on anapanasati or meditation through mindfulness of breathing. Buddhadasa based his practice on extensive research of the Pali texts, the Buddha's discourses (Sutta Pitaka), and personal experiment and practice. The word dharma (Sanskrit; धर्म in the Devanagari script) or dhamma (Pali) is used in most or all philosophies and religions of Indian origin, Dharmic faiths, namely Hinduism (Sanatana Dharma), Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. ... Chaiya (Thai: ไชยา) is a small town in southern Thailand in Surat Thani province. ... Vipassanā is a Pali word meaning insight. ... Ānāpāna Sati, meaning mindfulness of breathing (sati means mindfulness, ānāpāna refers to breathing) is a basic form of meditation taught by the Buddha. ... A stone image of the Buddha. ... The Sutta Pitaka (or Sutra Pitaka) is the second of three divisions of the Tipitaka, the great Pali collection of Buddhist writings. ...

In his later years, Buddhadasa's teachings attracted a number of foreign students to his temple. He also held numerous conversations with leading scholars and clergy of other religions, such as Christianity. His aim with these talks was to show that when one cuts to the heart of each religion, all religions are the same. Shortly before his death in 1993, he established an International Dhamma Hermitage Center at his temple to aid in the teaching of Buddhism and vipassana meditation to foreigners. Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recounted in the New Testament. ...

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Buddhadasa's books literally take up an entire room in the National Library of Thailand. Among the translations in English of his more well-known books are: Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Buddhism is a religion and philosophy focusing on the teachings of the Buddha Śākyamuni (Siddhārtha Gautama), who probably lived in the 5th century BCE. Buddhism spread throughout the ancient Indian sub-continent in the five centuries following the Buddhas death, and propagated into Central, Southeast, and East Asia... The cultural elements of Buddhism vary by region and include: Buddhist cuisine Buddhist art Buddharupa Art and architecture of Japan Greco-Buddhism Tibetan Buddhist sacred art Buddhist music Buddhist chant Shomyo Categories: Buddhism-related stubs ... The history of Buddhism spans from the 6th century BCE to the present, starting with the birth of the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama. ... Contents: Top - 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z The following is a List of Buddhist topics: A Abhidharma Ahimsa Ajahn Ajahn Chah Ajanta Aksobhya Alexandra David-Néel... Buddhist beliefs and practices vary according to region. ... The percentage of Buddhist population of each country was taken from the US State Departments International Religious Freedom Report 2004 [1]. Other sources used were CIA Factbook [2] and adherents. ... There are many divisions and subdivisions of the schools of Buddhism. ... The Buddhist temple Wat Chiang Man, in Chiang Mai, Thailand, which dates from the late 13th century Buddhist temples and monasteries, sorted by location. ... Several Buddhist terms and concepts lack direct translations into English that cover the breadth of the original term. ... There are a great variety of Buddhist texts. ... 563 BCE: Siddhārtha Gautama, Buddha-to-be, is born in Lumbini, Ancient India. ...

• Handbook for Mankind Buddhadasa's most well-known book.
• No Religion
• The A,B,Cs of Buddhism
• Mindfulness With Breathing: A Manual for Serious Beginners, ISBN 0861711114
• Heart-wood from the Bo Tree

External links

• Wat Suan Mokkh
• A Thai-language site dedicated to Buddhadasa.
• A Buddhist center in Illinois founded by one of Buddhadasa's students.