A Statement from Special Guest of the World Tipiṭaka Council

His Excellency the Honorable W.J.M. Lokubandara
Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka

The International Tipiṭaka Hall,
Maha Chulalongkorn Building, Chulalongkorn University,
Bangkok, Thailand
January 15, 2006 at 17.30 Hrs.

Your Serene Highnesses Prince Pusan and Princess Malinee
The Most Venerable Members of the Mahāsaṅgha
Professor Theraphan, Professor Annop, Maj Bunnag
Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen

Sabbadānaṃ dhammadānaṃ jināti

The gift of Dhamma excels all other gifts

My humble greetings to all the distinguished guests present in this august assembly . I am extremely happy to be present here with you because I have felt that it is my duty to express the heart-felt appreciation of the people of Sri Lanka to the members of the Dhamma Society Thailand and to its Royal Patron, Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana of Thailand for having presented the first inaugural International Tipitaka edition to H.E. the President of Sri Lanka last year, on March 6, 2005.

As Buddhists who understand fully the value of your generous gift of Dhamma, we deeply welcome this noble gesture shown to our people and our country by the Royal Family of Thailand.

Sri Lanka, Thailand and Myanmar are Theravada Buddhist countries because they all accept the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka as their main scriptures by which these three nations have developed a culture of peaceful and happy living.

It is Sri Lanka that put the whole Pāḷi Tipiṭaka into writing on palm leaves for the first time nearly 2000 years ago, and it is Thailand that published in modern book form the complete Pāḷi Tipiṭaka for the first time in world history. King Chulalongkorn Chulachomklao the Great or Rama the V of Siam, printed the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka and presented five hundred sets of this edition in Thailand and 260 sets to the leading institutions worldwide in 1893, one set of which is still preserved in the Holy Tooth Relic Temple in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is this Siam-script edition that triggered the publication of the whole Tipiṭaka in Burmese and Sinhala scripts in subsequent years.

Now the aim of the Dhamma Society Thailand, as I have learned, is to present the new International Tipiṭaka edition in Roman script to one-thousand leading institutions worldwide. It will certainly open up a new era of Tipiṭaka studies and practice around the world. It is indeed a blessing and exceptional Kusala for us to have participated in this great project.

The Pāḷi Tipiṭaka transcends all local boundaries. It has no ethnicity, nationality, or a script of its own. It is not limited to one nation or one country. It is really universal and a world heritage treasure to be learned, examined and practiced by anyone interested.

It is the duty of the Theravāda Buddhist nations who have preserved the Tipiṭaka in its pristine form for over 2000 years to make this Dhamma gift available to the world by modern means and techniques. Needless to say, I am extremely impressed by the manner in which you have used the latest developments in electronic technology to realize this project. The Dhamma Society edition comes out in both printed book form and the electronic medium which ensure perfect accuracy and completeness. As such I am certain that this edition will make a big impact on the Tipiṭaka learning and practice worldwide in the future.

As Buddhists, all our endeavors must lead towards peace and harmony within and outside ourselves. The Dhamma Society's approach, as I came to know, is to combine the Tipiṭaka studies with Vipassanā meditation. Through the practice of meditation, peace and freedom could be attained and experienced by anyone.

What we are doing today is to follow the foot-steps of the great tradition of building a peaceful world by doing and making others carry out the well-intended pure actions as taught by the Buddha. Therefore, I sincerely admire and highly commend your activities carried on so far and hope you continue and expand your services still further for the benefit and well-being of the many in the whole world.

I thank you very much.