Ārambhakathā
The Royal Preface of the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka.
(ต้นฉบับภาษาไทย - Original Thai Version)
This Preface was written in the Thai language announcing the royal wish of King Chulachomklao of Siam to publish the first Siamese-script edition in 1893. The original of this speech was delivered earlier by the King in a grand audience at the Assembly Hall of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha in the Grand Palace, Bangkok, in 1888 or the Buddhist Era 2431.
“Faustum Sit. Dated Saturday, the first day of the fortnight of waning moon in Magha month of the Mouse year, 2431 years since the Buddha entered Nibbana.
“His Majesty King Chulalongkorn Chulachomklao, son of King Maha-Makuta, be-thought him how all the teachings of the Buddha, which the followers of the Buddha have learned and fulfilled from earliest times till now, have all sprung from the Tipiṭaka.
From the beginning it has ever been the wont of royal kings who were Buddhists and professed Buddhism, to maintain the faith, to support the Order, and to aid successive Great Buddhist Councils, first to purify the Canon (such has been the royal custom uninterruptedly), and thereafter to compile a book of the scriptures as the authoritative exemplar and accepted standard for all Buddhist lands.
“In early times Buddhist kingdoms were still independent; the king of each was a Buddhist, and both endowed and supported Buddhism. This was the case in many countries, to wit, Siam, Ceylon, Burma, Laos, and Cambodia. When accident or injury befell the sacred books, so that portions of the Canon were lost, each kingdom was able and was wont to borrow from others, and so to restore its own copy to a complete state; and such exchange was mutual. But in the present time Ceylon and Burma have come under English dominion; the governors of those countries are not Buddhists; they take measures to foster the secular rather than the spiritual welfare of the people; and they do not maintain Buddhism as did the old Buddhist kings. Thus it has come to pass that Buddhist priests have from time to time set up different sects according to their own lights; and, as the bad naturally outnumbered the good, the faith has been perverted, now in one direction, now in another, as seemed good to each one in turn. Cambodia came under French dominion, so that the people there could not maintain the faith in its full vigour. As regards the country of Laos, which is in the kingdom of Siam, the princes and people there professed a distorted form of the faith, which included such errors as the worship of angels and demons, and therefore cannot be regarded as having authority.
“Thus, if the text of the Tipiṭaka is in doubt, there is nowhere to be found that with which to compare and amend it as before. Hence it is only in Siam that Buddhism stands inviolate. It follows, then, that the present is a fitting time to look into the scriptures, to purge them, and to multiply copies of them for circulation, so as to form an immutable standard of true Buddhism for future times. Any word or precept which the Buddha taught is indeed precious and conducive to salvation from suffering; it is very truth and beyond price; this it is that the wise seek after in order that they may learn it, ponder it, follow it, and profit thereby, according to the measure in which they master it. Assuredly, too, learners will not be lacking in times to come. Wherefore the Buddha's teachings ought to be preserved for posterity.
“It has been the custom in Siam, in past times, to issue the sacred books as manuscripts written on palm-leaves to make them durable. But the task was laborious; even a single volume took a long time to complete; and it was difficult to multiply copies for distribution. Furthermore, it has always been the Siamese custom to employ the Cambodian character, which has thus come to be regarded as the essential vehicle for Buddhist writings, whereas, in fact, the character in which the texts are written is immaterial; any character can be used. Indeed, the various other Buddhist countries —Ceylon, Burma, Laos, Cambodia— have been accustomed to use each its own character.
“Such, then, were the considerations which led His Majesty the King of Siam to conceive the plan of examining and purifying the text of the Tipiṭaka, with a view to printing it in Siamese character, some books in a single volume, some in two or more. For His Majesty failed not to see that such a plan must command greater advantages than the writing on palm-leaves. With a single setting-up of type, many hundreds of copies can be struck off; and such printed copies are more easy to carry and more convenient to consult, since many fasciculi can be comprised in a single printed volume. While it is true that paper is less durable than palm-leaves, yet with a single setting-up of type the printing-press can strike off a great number of copies, and these with care can be preserved for centuries; multiplication of copies can, therefore, readily be ensured. By these means the scriptures can be diffused throughout Siam, and this was seen by His Majesty to be a great advantage. Consequently, His Majesty gave orders to print and circulate the Tipiṭaka, feeling that this was a great service to render to the Buddhist faith for the future,
“Moreover, it was in contemplation to complete the printing by the close of the twenty-fifth year of the King's reign, and so to mark that Jubilee by celebrating the happy consummation of so pious an undertaking. It was beyond human foresight to know whether His Majesty would survive until the date in view; but the plan of collating, printing, and distributing the Tipiṭaka seemed to His Majesty to be conducive to the good of mankind, and to be a meritorious work rightly conceived and calculated to ensure the fulfilment of his hope.
“So there came a Royal Order to His Royal Highness Prince Bhanurangsi-svangvamsa to be President of a Committee to arrange for the printing of the Tipiṭaka, and orders were given to issue invitations to the Princes who were in the priesthood, and to Abbots, and to the learned in each degree of the clergy, to assemble and hear the King's wishes, and then to divide among them the work of examining and settling the text for the press.
“That work has now been done, as the King desired, and may the merit which has been gained by the fulfilment of the work of issuing these scriptures be shared by all mankind. Long may the work endure”
(Original translation by Robert Charmer 1898 with some corrections by Dhamma Society 2007.)
