Piyadassi Maha Thera
Encyclopedia
Piyadassi Maha Thera is best known as a great preacher of the Dhamma both in Sinhala and in English and it was in this field that his popularity was foremost. He was born on 8 July 1914 at Kotahena in Colombo
, Sri Lanka
and was educated at Nalanda College Colombo, thereafter at the University of Sri Lanka
and the Center for the Study of World Religions at Harvard University
, as a research student.
At the age of twenty he entered the Buddhist Order and mastered the religion and philosophy of Buddhism under the erudite scholar monk Venerable Pelene Siri Vajiragnana Nayaka Thera, founder of the Vajirarama Bambalapitiya. Later he received his higher ordination under the tutorship of Venerable Vajiranna, founding superior of the Vajirarama Colombo, a most well-known authority on Buddhism.
Venerable Mahathera Piyadassi was one of the world's most eminent Buddhist monks having traveled widely carrying the message of the Buddha-Dhamma, both to the East and to West, he was able to write in a style that has universal appeal.
Ven. Piyadassi Maha Thera was the Sinhala editor at the Buddhist Publication Society
until his death. Along with Ven. Nyanaponika Thera
, he was one of the chief kalyana mittas of well-known American scholar-monk Bhikkhu Bodhi
.
Venerable Piyadassi Maha Thera lived to the age of 84 years and died on August 18, 1998.
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
and was educated at Nalanda College Colombo, thereafter at the University of Sri Lanka
University of Sri Lanka
The University of Sri Lanka was the only university in Sri Lanka from 1972 until 1978. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced the University of Ceylon with the University of Sri Lanka. In 1978 it was separated...
and the Center for the Study of World Religions at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, as a research student.
At the age of twenty he entered the Buddhist Order and mastered the religion and philosophy of Buddhism under the erudite scholar monk Venerable Pelene Siri Vajiragnana Nayaka Thera, founder of the Vajirarama Bambalapitiya. Later he received his higher ordination under the tutorship of Venerable Vajiranna, founding superior of the Vajirarama Colombo, a most well-known authority on Buddhism.
Venerable Mahathera Piyadassi was one of the world's most eminent Buddhist monks having traveled widely carrying the message of the Buddha-Dhamma, both to the East and to West, he was able to write in a style that has universal appeal.
Ven. Piyadassi Maha Thera was the Sinhala editor at the Buddhist Publication Society
Buddhist Publication Society
The Buddhist Publication Society is a charity whose goal is to explain and spread the doctrine of the Buddha. It was founded in Sri Lanka in 1958 by two Sri Lankan Buddhist laymen, A.S. Karunaratna and Richard Abeyasekera, and a European-born Buddhist monk, Nyanaponika Thera...
until his death. Along with Ven. Nyanaponika Thera
Nyanaponika Thera
Nyanaponika Thera or Nyaniponika Mahathera was a German-born Sri-Lanka-ordained Theravada monk, co-founder of the Buddhist Publication Society, contemporary author of numerous seminal Theravada books, and teacher of contemporary Western Buddhist leaders such as Bhikkhu Bodhi.-Chronology:*1901: born...
, he was one of the chief kalyana mittas of well-known American scholar-monk Bhikkhu Bodhi
Bhikkhu Bodhi
Bhikkhu Bodhi , born Jeffrey Block, is an American Theravada Buddhist monk, ordained in Sri Lanka and currently teaching in the New York/New Jersey area...
.
Venerable Piyadassi Maha Thera lived to the age of 84 years and died on August 18, 1998.
Literature
- Piyadassi Thera - The Book of Protection - Paritta