The World Tipiṭaka Recitation Address
(An intorduction briefing before the arrival of the Princess)
by Maj. Suradhaj Bunnag
Chancellor and President of the World Tipiṭaka
Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen :
Welcome to Bangkok City Hall !
On behalf of the organising committee and the Dhamma Society which published the World Tipiṭaka in the Roman Script, let me introduce briefly the magnanimity as well as the importance of the World Tipiṭaka Recitation organized today by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration together with the Dhamma Society, in conjunction with the Royal Cremation of Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana Krom Luang Naradhivas Rajanagarindra, the Royal Patron of the World Tipiṭaka.
What is recited today is from the World Tipiṭaka which is the Heritage of Humanity Enlightenment preserved in Asia in Pāḷi, a non-national language adopted to preserve the words of the Buddha. The Pāḷi Tipiṭaka, for three thousand years, has been the abode and embodiment of the Buddha's wisdom and peace.
Tipiṭaka Recitation is thus a wisdom-based activity through which all participants could derive wisdom, as well as, happiness and peace by reading and reciting the words of the Buddha while reflecting on their meanings.
Today, in memory of the late beloved Princess, over one million people in the Bangkok city alone will join this recitation, not to mention the millions that participate in all regions of Thailand.
To be used at this Recitation Ceremony, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration has published one million copies of the World Tipiṭaka Recitation Manual, entitled "Preserving the Pāḷi Sound", consisting of twelve selected Tipiṭaka Quotations. As you see, these quotations are in the Roman Script for they are taken from the World Tipiṭaka Edition which is printed in the Roman Script.
I believe that this magnanimous World Tipiṭaka Recitation will definitely be a revolution --a revelution of the mind. All those who join this recitation will read from the World Tipiṭaka, not in the Thai script, but in the Roman script, a universal script of the world. It is our expectation that through this meritorious act, millions of people in Thailand and the Tipiṭaka patrons from various countries will realize that the Tipiṭaka is not limited to Thailand, Sri Lanka or Japan but is a world heritage, and that it could be recited together in Pāḷi, --the language of Dhamma-- transcending all national and other parochial confines imposed by local languages, national scripts, and belief systems.
This was the vision of Her Royal Highness Princess Galayani Vadhana and also her grandfather, King Chulachomklao of Siam, who published the world’s first printed set of the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka Siam-script edition in 1893. This is also the mission of the World Tipiṭaka Council whose members are represented here.
Later this afternoon, in memory of Her Royal Highness, ten special sets of the latest 40-volume Tipiṭaka edition in the Roman script will be presented as a royal gift to ten leading institutions from ten countries as a fulfillment of their requests. Also representing here are representative of these countries are Bangladesh, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Norway, Netherlands, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Sweden.
Your Excellencies, to bring in sustainable peace and wisdom for the world communities today is the immediate goal that we should collaborate and work together to accomplish through the World Tipiṭaka in the coming years. I wish this mission great success.
For all these meritorious deeds, I thank the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration for organising the Recitation Ceremony in memory of Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana.
Thank you!
