2009 World Tipiṭaka Presentation in USA
The Library of Congress, Washington DC, USA
One of the institutional recipients of the King of Siam's historic Tipiṭaka edition in 1895
 |  |
King of Siam Tipiṭaka (1893) 39 Volume | World Tipiṭaka in Roman Script (2009) 40 Volume |
 |  |
The World Tipiṭaka 2009 in USA:
From Sacred Pāḷi Text to Wisdom Heritage of Humanity
Theravāda or Doctrine of Elders is a school of Buddhasāsana, a Pāḷi-language term typically often translated as Buddhism. Theravāda Buddhasāsana draws profound scriptural direction from the Pāḷi Canon or Tipiṭaka, acknowledged to be the oldest authenthic record of Buddha's words. Theravāda Buddhasāsana is the predominant religion of South and Southeast Asia, prevailing from the 1st century BC. The sangha or Buddhist order of monks is one of the Three Jewels of Buddhasāsana (the other two being the Buddha and the Dhamma or the Doctrine).
In 2002, the M.L. Maniratana Bunnag Dhamma Society Fund under the Patronage of His Holiness Somdet Phra Ñāṇasaṃvara the Supreme Patriarch of Thailand published for the first time in Roman-script edition the complete Pāḷi Tipiṭaka in 40 volumes, based on the resolution of the Great International Tipiṭaka Council which was convened five decades earlier in Yongoon, Myanmar, by 2500 erudite Buddhist monks worldwide.
In 2005, Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana, the Royal Matriarch of Thailand and Her Excellency Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, President of Domocratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka jointly inaugurated the World Tipiṭaka Edition in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Since then, this Roman-script canon -- the World Tipiṭaka Edition in Roman Script -- has been presented as a Royal Gift of Wisdom & Peace from Thailand to various libraries and leading institutions around the world. By 2008 over 18 countries, including Sri Lanka, Sweden, Thailand, Netherlands, India and Japan, have received the World Tipiṭaka as royal gift.
While we, the Patrons of the World Tipiṭaka, are making available the Pāḷi text of the Buddhist canonical scriptures which are the objects of religious veneration and belief, it is not our purpose to advocate the position of a sectarian doctrine or religious system in any institution. Rather, we hope to provide a means of access to the Buddhist scriptures as a wisdom heritage of humanity, based on the most accurate historical research and latest technology available. It is our intention to provide a new ground of knowledge towards wisdom in the Tipiṭaka for sustainable peace and inner security for the international community worldwide.
The Tipiṭaka WebService (www.tipitakaquotation.net), also developed by the Dhamma Society, has been available online since 2008. The World Tipiṭaka Database is currently being developed as a Wisdom Heritage Repository Online and will soon be connected to the digital cultural heritage of European Union and North America.
The Library of Congress, Washington DC
In 2009, Patrons of the World Tipiṭaka will organise the first Tipiṭaka Presentation in the United States of America. This commemorative presentation will follow the historic trails of Siam-script Tipiṭaka which was presented in 1895 by King of Chulachomklao of Siam (Thailand) to no less than 50 institutions in USA , including, the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., and leading universities across USA.
King of Siam Edition has been preserved in Asian Reading Room
 | The World Tipiṭaka Presentation 2009 is supported by THAI Airways International's “Miles for Merit” |  |
