CONGRATULATORY MESSAGE From Venerable Prof. Dr. Khammai Dhammasami DPhil, Thailand
CONGRATULATORY MESSAGE
From Venerable Prof. Dr. Khammai Dhammasami DPhil, Thailand
This year we celebrate the 11th United Nations Day of Vesak at the great Bai Dinh Temple, Ninh Binh, Vietnam, the second time we do so in the country, the first being in 2008. So, a Very Happy and Blessed Vesak to all Buddhists in Vietnam and beyond.
These celebrations demonstrate the good work of the International Council for the Day of Vesak (ICDV) and the strength of the community spirit it has fostered.
The International Association of Buddhist Universities (IABU) has been one of the good outcomes of the ICDV; in return the IABU has strengthened the community spirit and dharma brother-sisterhood within the international Buddhist academia. Indeed, the since its inception the IABU has been tasked with two flagship projects of the ICDV: (1) the compilation of a common Buddhist book by Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana schools called Common Buddhist Text (CBT) and (2) the creation of a union electronic catalogue for all Buddhist canonical CDs called Union Catalogue of Buddhist Texts (UCBT).
The Vietnamese Buddhist Sangha, along with their Thai counterpart and others, has been deeply involved in all those projects. As the chair of the Compilation Committee of the CBT and the Co-Convener for the UCBT, I have been working closely with our Thai and Vietnamese colleagues as well as others in the teams. It has been a great privilege to do so.
The CBT is nearing its completion, expected this year, now with the final editing being undertaken under the competent guidance of Prof. Peter Harvey PhD, an experienced editor for Cambridge University Press. When the CBT is complete the whole Buddhist communities worldwide will have an opportunity to celebrate another milestone under the auspices of the ICDV. The UCBT, however, will take a bit longer to complete as it is a more sophisticated project technically.
The IABU has also advanced numerous regional collaborations between Buddhist universities and colleges since it was formed during the United Nations Day of Vesak in 2007 in Bangkok. It is a common sight now to witness in most Buddhist conferences in Asia and Europe many IABU members leading or contributing by example. Its member-institutions have now spread beyond Asia to Western and Central European as well as North and Latin American countries. While it has met twice through its general conferences and expects to meet for the third time probably next year, the IABU as always is ready to support the ICDV in whatever capacity it can.
The IABU wishes to applaud and express gratitude to our host, the Vietnamese Buddhist sangha and laity, for their generosity and leadership in staging this outstanding event of the United Nations Day of Vesak again.
Venerable Prof. Dr. Khammai Dhammasami DPhil (Oxford)
Executive Secretary, IABU; Chairman, Compilation Committee of the CBT; Co-convener, ICBT & Executive Member, ICDV
