Tipiṭaka Acceptance Speech
His Excellency Mahinda Rajapaksa
President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
On the occasion of
The Presentation of the Royal Donation
The Buddhist Era 2500 Great International Council Pāḷi Tipiṭaka
40 Volumes in Roman Script
for
The Parliament of Sri Lanka, Colombo
March 6, B.E. 2549 (2006)
Rear Admiral His Serene Highness Prince Pusarn Swasdiwat,
Delegation of Royal Tipiṭaka Pilgrimage from Thailand,
Honorable Speaker,
Members of the Parliament,
Distinguished Invitees, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Delegation of Royal Tipiṭaka Pilgrimage from Thailand,
Honorable Speaker,
Members of the Parliament,
Distinguished Invitees, Ladies and Gentlemen,
On behalf of the People of Sri Lanka, let me first express my sincere appreciation and heart-felt gratitude to Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana, elder sister of His Majesty the King of Thailand for the goodwill gesture extended to my people and country through the generous presentation of the very first inaugural edition of the Buddhist Era 2500 Great International Council Pāḷi Tipiṭaka Edition in English Script to the President of Sri Lanka a year ago and to the Parliament of Sri Lanka today, the first anniversary day.
This royal presentation comes as a blessing to my country at a time my country is seriously engaged in finding a sustainable and peaceful political settlement. This year, we celebrate the 2550th year of Buddha-jayanti. This royal presentation reminded me and my government the centrality of the study and practice of the Tipiṭaka, the supreme teachings of the Buddha, in all our undertakings and negotiations. For me, this royal gift also marks the celebration of the 2550th year of Dhamma-jayanti of the first compilation of the Tipiṭaka at the first Great Council held in ancient India just after the Buddha's passing away.
From its inception, the Tipiṭaka, the universal and sacred scriptures of the Buddasāsana, and Pāḷi, its sublime language, enlightened the Asian civilization. It is through the Tipiṭaka and the bearers of the Tipiṭaka that both South Asia and Southeast Asia learned to read and write, found peace and prosperity, and developed cultural and friendly ties among civilized countries of the world.
It is at the fourth Great Council held in Sri Lanka in the first century BC that the Tipiṭaka was first committed to writing. The written Pāḷi Tipiṭaka continued for several centuries under the patronage of the kingship of Sri Lanka and it is through the dedicated effort of our forefathers that Sri Lanka was able to present the greatest Dhamma gift, the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka in Sinhalese script, to the world. This greatest gift resulted in the preservation of the supreme Tipiṭaka in its completeness and purity in Sri Lanka, Thailand and Burma. Out of all Great Councils, the first international council that was held in Burma (Myanmar) from 1954 to 1956 was really the international council in the true sense of the word for it is at this council the erudite Buddhists from all Theravāda countries participated in producing the Universal Tipiṭaka, popularly known as the Chaṭṭhasaṅgīti Edition which was originally printed in Burmese script.
After 50 years, at this technologically advanced modern world of ours, we are participating in a globally significant event. Today both Sri Lanka and Thailand turned a new chapter in the religious history of Buddhism and also in the profound political history of the world. Her Royal Highness, the Princess Galyani Vadhana of the Kingdom of Thailand, through her royal envoy His Serene Highness Prince Pusarn Swasdiwat, presented the first Universal Pāḷi Tipiṭaka Edition in the international script of English alphabet to the Parliament of Sri Lanka. This symbolic act made Sri Lanka the first country in the world to incorporate the greatest wisdom of the Tipiṭaka to the modern-day political institution of Parliament.
The Pāḷi Tipiṭaka that is presented and enshrined at the august assembly of this Parliament is the internationally agreed Tipiṭaka Edition of the Buddhist Era 2500 (1956) and here it comes in 40 volumes, and also as the most perfect and complete version. The Dhamma Society Thailand has successfully endeavored not only to find and publish the actual resolution of the Great International Council of 1956 but also to proof-read thoroughly to remove all printing and editorial errors by employing the recitation, the Buddhist method of proof-reading, as well as the most advanced Information Dhamma Technology. A period of six years has been utilized to complete the proof-reading task and the preparation of the standard electronic database. This alone shows the magnanimity of the project.
Therefore, on behalf of the people of Sri Lanka and the Buddhists all over the world, I highly appreciate this generous gift on the part of the Royal Family of Thailand and extend my and my country's fullest support for the preservation and the presentation of this greatest wisdom of the supreme Buddha to the world at large. I also assure this audience that, in cooperation with the Kingdom of Thailand and the rest of the world, my government and I will do our best to declare this day, March 6, as the "World Tipiṭaka Day".
May the world find sustainable peace and prosperity through the study and practice of the supreme teachings of the Buddha !
