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Sdsana D6yaka is pure traditional Buddhist Pali words. Sdsana means the teaching or teaching of the Buddha or the
life time of the teaching of ihe Buddha, and likewise. Ddyaka means a donor, helper, supporter or a sponsor. In Femi-
nine form the words become Ddyika. At once, S6sana Ddyaka means a person who supports, helps or sponsors the
teaching of the Buddha, His Dhamma, and Sangha. In general belief one who offers one's son
or daughter to the Buddha's teaching or in the name of the Buddha can only be called the S5-
sana Ddyaka or DSyika.
This is also the tradition, that if a male child is born into a Buddhist family, it is the family's moral
and social responsibility to let him be ordained as a monk at least one time in his life. There are
some families that can be found in the societv who have no sons or even no children. Or a!l of
them are grown up, or they don't want to become a monk and live in a temple. In this situation, if some one wants to
become a Sasana Dayaka, they can sponsor someone else's son who wants to be ordained as a monk.
There are some families that can be found in the society who are poor and economicaily unstable, whose sons want to
become a monk, but the family can't afford the expenditures of the cerernonies. ln this case everyone can sponsor the
boy-to-be-ordained and both can earn a lot of merits.
Among the Theravada Buddhist countries in this world, Myanmar is the country where Sdsana Ddyaka words are used
in many occasions. In their native tongue they pronounce it as "Thadana Ddyaka". ..... (Please, continue to pageri
Read it in internet www.savesociety-bd. blogspot.com
My True Understanding of Buddhism
The Editorial
The first time I heard about the Save the Society Organization, Nanda was talk-
This is a home made so
ing about it as a project that he wanted to do himself as a moral obligation to
called newsletter. lt's very
help his society. This idea came to him as he travelled around, studied and re-
ordinary, maybe you can
call it organic. The core ceived help from the Buddha's teaching and different communities after becom-
purpose of issuing this ing a monk.
newsletter is to inform mv
As a donor and sponsor of one monk, I have watched this organization go from
lovely friends and all the
sponsors who helped me
an 'idea' to reality in less than a year. My fellow classmate and friend, Prag-
and my Kulaputta project. I gannanda or'Nanda'to his friends, wanted to help the younger generation in
wanted to say thanks and his home country, Bangladesh, to be aware of a better way of life and how to
mention the narnes with help society. Nanda's constant effort to get support for his organization was an
gratitude for their generos- admirable thing to observe. He began by asking his
ity. The pictures are awe- friends to sponsor a monk for one week. I was one of
some, telling you the story. those friends. He asked a temple in Thailand that has a
l'm a kind of person who branch in Perth, to donate some robes. They donated 35
believes in work rather
sets of robes for this project. This seemed to get the ball
than words. I want to say
to everybody that we did a
rolling. Soon he had many donors from the Thai commu-
great job, and we want to nity in Perth and from different pafts of the world that visit
keep it up. his website. Within weeks of receiving these donations
the date was set for the ordination. The call went out to
I wish I could continue with
allthe surrounding villages within 120 kilometres of his
this newsletter in the fu-
home town, Comilla, for anyone interested in being a
ture. I want to make it just
not oniy an information monk, to live in the temple for one week to experience
centre but good food for what this is like and to go to school. Nanda organized
our minds, and organic. every detail of this project and worked tirelessly as did his
Organic stuff became a family and relatives in Comilla, carrying out his instruc-
fashion in materialtic so- tions.
cieties; iet us make it a
way of living. Despite the robes being held up in customs, where they siill
are to this day, to havrng to change the date twice, the day finally arrived. De-
Please. read the article
cember 25th through the 31"'was the time. Seeing the first pictures come
written by Linda Gann, and
through from the ordination day made me cry with a mixture of joy and sadness
the other article Sasana
Dayaka by me. Please, that Nanda couldn't be there to ordain them himself. Even I wanted to be there
also look for the informa- to be a part of the ceremony and enjoy the fellowship. There were 22 monks in
tion about the monk life in total and they looked so wonderful in their robes that were donated from the
Samannaphala Sutta. En- surrounding temples. I can't wait for this coming years' project. lt is a great
joy the pictures. feeling to be a small part of such a great thing. I feel that in a small way I am
helping the younger generation to carry on the Buddhist way of life.
With the best gratitude of Seeing this project from beginning to.completion was a wcnderful thing. lt
attitude- made me aware of the needs of this country and many other developing coun-
tries in a way that I never would have understood otherwise. Just sponsoring
one monk and seeing the results have changed me and my understanding of
-<Al* Buddhism. Thank you Nanda for the opportunity to be of help.
Praggananda Linda Gann
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Sisana Diyaka Samartfiaphala,Fruit of a Monk Life
(from page 1)......About4 years of my present life, I lived in 35. What do you think, Sire? Suppose there were a
Myanmar, had uncountable opportunities to attend different man, a slave, a labourer, gefting up before you and go-
kinds of ceremonies. "Shin Pyu" is one of the remarkable ing to bed after you, willingly doing whatever has to be
ones. Every year in almost every temple and village, they done, wel!-mannered, pleasant-spoken, woHng in your
celebrate the Shin Pyu ceremonies. Shin Pyu is a kind of presence. And he might think: 'lt is strange, it is wonder-
ceremony where a boy (or a girl) is initiated to monk or nov- ful, the destiny and fruits of meritorious deeds! This Kng
ice monk. Another ceremony is called Dull6va, DullSva Ajatasattu Vedehiputta of Magadha is a man, and I too
means rare. According to the Buddha, to become a monk, am a man. The Kng is addicted to and indulges in the
and to live as a monk, is a rare opportunity among humans. fivefold sense-pleasures, lusf like a god, whereas I am a
So, the men in the families always take the opportunity to s/ave ... wofuing in his presence. I ought to do
become a monk for at least a week (or more). They live in meitorious. Suppose I were to shave off my hair and
the temple, practice meditation, and all kinds of social and beard, don yellow robes, and go forth from the house-
moral conducts. There are even many government holidays hold life into homelessness/" And before long he does
available for this occasion. so. And he, having thus gone forth might dwell, re-
strained in body, speech and thought, satisfied with the
In Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia, I think they have the same
minimum of food and clothing, content, in solitude. And
social and religious systems and traditions. The country of
then if people were to announce to you: "Sire, you re'
Sri Lanka, is a bit different, maybe because of the different
member that slave who worked in your presence, and
cultures and traditions.
who shaved off his hair and beard and went forth into
So, yes, this kind of ordination is very important for the Bud- homelessness? He is living restrained in body, speech
dhist families, for every Buddhist. This can be called the and thought,... in solitude" - would you then say: "That
heart of Buddhist culture. man must come back and be a slave and work for me
before"?'
Without the presence of monks, the Buddha's Sisana would
not survive. So the world needs monks, good monks, to pro- 36. /Vo indeed, Lord. For we should pay hamage to him,
tect the Sdsana in this world. [61] we should rise and invite him and press him to re'
ceive from us robes, food, lodging, medicines for sick-
Historical Background- ness and requisites, and make anangements for his
Having attained enlightenment the Buddha paid a visit to proper protection."What do you think, Sire? Is that one
Kapilavatthu the capital city of King Soddhodhana. That fruit of the horneless life visible here and now?'
year, (His) son Rdhula was 7 years. Yosodhara , the mother 'Ceftainly, Lord.' 'Then that, Sire, is the first such fruit of
of Rdhula, saw the Buddha was coming to the palace. Then the homeless life.'
she told Rihula," go to your father and ask for your inheri- (The Sutta continues to the end with the clear explana-
tance." flhe purpose was to have the Buddha back in the tion how one (monk) get benefits from a mank life, be'
family as father and husband). Then the Buddha said to R5- come holy, and finally heads to the ultimate happrness
hula there is only one way to inherit the Buddha, (me), and Nibbaba
that is taking the vow of the triple gem, and receiving ordina-
tion'. D i gha n i kaya, Sa m a fi fi a phal a S utta
There are some criticisms among the societies. For me it is a A Rare Opportunity
shame that I have to mention it at this point. lt is said that Now you know what a rare opportunity is it to become a
there are some people in the society that think and say now- monk or soonsor someone who wants to become a monk. lf
a-days, peoples families ordain their children as a monk to you want to become a true Sasana Dayaka, take a chance.
live in the temples because they can't support them in the Leave your message, name and phone number, I will con-
family. In the temple they can get benefits from donations tacl you as soon as possible. Thank you. Long live the Bud-
and so on. This kind criticism comes from people who are dha Sasana, Buddha Sisanam dTgham ti$hatu.
in number, but they are the rich and the leaders. The End
Kulaputta Ordination Day
Dhammapada,363