Dhammakaya Foundation :
The Dhammakāya Foundation was 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. In 1970, a temple, called Wat Phra Dhammakaya, was constructed as a home for the movement. Located in Khlong Luang, Pathum Thani Province, the temple was intended to become an international center for the study of meditation.
Wat Phra Dhammakaya is a Buddhist temple 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, by a group led by the monk Phrarajbhavanavisudh and his teacher Chandra Khonnokyoong. The site, sixteen kilometres north of Don Mueang 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 becoming officially recognized as a temple by the Thai government in 1978[1] originally under the name ‘Wat Voranee Dhammakayaram’. The Main Chapel was completed in 1982 and the ceremony for the allocation of the chapel boundary (sima) was held three years later. While the temple was under construction, the Dhammadayada ordination scheme gave training to hundreds of university students, a steadily increasing number of whom swelled the number of residents in the temple community.
The community living at Wat Phra Dhammakaya now numbers 3,000 monks, novices, laymen and laywomen – making it the largest temple in Thailand in terms of inhabitants. Congregations on Sundays and major religious festivals reach 100,000, which since 1985 exceeded temple capacity and influenced the temple’s decision to expand the site to one thousand acres (4 km²) with the building of the World Dhammakaya Centre project. The temple has also organized a World Peace Ethics Contest in which people from all over the world compete in their knowledge of Buddhist ethics. Part of the World Dhammakaya Centre project is to construct a cloister intended to accommodate Buddhist monks from all over the world.
With the expansion of the temple to one thousand acres in 1985, Wat Phra Dhammakaya stands on the threshold of the development of the World Dhammakaya Centre as a resource to serve the needs of the international community.
Today, it’s maybe the biggest temple in Thailand. Multiple buddhist events are organized and you can meditate 24/7 if you want, with the help of many monks. It is composed nowadays of 6 huge sites : Phramonkolthepmuni’s commemoration room, the Great Sapha Dhammakaya Hall, the Cetiya Dhammakaya, the Grand Meditation Amphitheater, Dining room of Khun Archaraya yay Khonnokyoong Chandra and Khun Yay Archaraya Chandra Khonnokyoong’s commemoration room.
It’s also the temple the most impressive of the country, with the number of sites which can support the affluent of 150 000 people. With the Dhamma Media Channel (DMC TV), the broadcasting of the Dhammakaya movement has been easier and it represents today a powerful organization.
Here is a video of the temple (thai language):
Contact :
Dhammakaya Foundation
Wat Phra Dhammakaya
Khlong 3, Khlong Luang,
Pathumthani 12120, Thailand
Tel. (662) 524-0257 to 63
Website : http://www.dhammakaya.net
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