Buddhadasa: A Dhammaduta Bhikkhu Who Pioneered to Revive Buddha Dhamma in India

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Born in Imphal, Manipur, graduated as an engineer in Kolkata, having participated in the Indian Freedom Movement, this extraordinary person joined the army and saw enough violence of the II World War. That led him to renounce everything and he went in search of peace and truth. At last through reading the holy Dhammapada, he came to the path of the Buddha and got ordained in Kushinagar under the most Venerable Chandamani Mahathera and came to be known as Venerable Acharya Buddharakkhita.
A visionary and hard working Buddhist monk, he scarified his whole life in study, practice and teaching of the Buddha's words and putting that compassionate teachings into practice by establishing Maha Bodhi Society, Bengaluru in 1956. Since then he worked tirelessly in the field of spirituality, education, medical and social services and established meditation centers, hospitals and educational institutions in India and abroad. He had the distinction of being a member of the Editorial Board of the Sixth Buddhist Synod (Chattha Sangayana) in Yangon, which brought out a complete edition of the Buddhist scriptures in the original Pali language.
This is the centenary year of his birth and Mahabodhi organizations and his countless disciples are celebrating the Birth Centenary with meaningful activities as mark of paying respect to the great teacher Most Venerable Acharya Buddharakkhita. We feel privileged to present this book as a part of this centenary celebrations series.

Venerable Acharya Buddharakkhita was born in Imphal, the capital of Manipur State of India on 12th March 1922, on the Phagguna Full Moon Day. This entire year of 2021-22 we are celebrating the Birth Centenary of this great personality who had sacrificed everything to revive the Buddha Dhamma in India. His dedicated service of 67 years to promote harmony, peace and understanding at deeper levels has left a mark in the episodes of Buddhist history of modern times.
His life is a great book for us which is dotted with life lessons, inspiring events and incidents throughout and it is a saga of clarity of vision. struggle, determination and success. This visionary monk renounced home at the age of 25 after having gone through the turmoil of the Second World War as an army personnel. His quest for truth and meaning for life took him to many corners of India and then at last the beacon of the Supreme Buddha gave him the ultimate path of freedom and happiness. His honest, unprejudiced exploration of truth kept him ever dedicated to the study, practice and realization of the Dhamma.
He was ordained by the Most Venerable Candamani Mahathera of Kushinagar and was named as Buddharakkhita on the Vesakha full moon day of 1949. He was very fortunate to get the dhamma lessons under preeminent teachers of his time in Sri Lanka and Myanmar. Most significant part of his life was his participation as anuvisodhaka in the Chattha Sangayana - the Sixth Buddhist Council held in Yangon, a rare privilege of immense historical value.