The Origins and Impact of the Dhammakaya Foundation : หน้า 20/91

The Dhammakaya Foundation itself was established on 20 February 1970. Buildings were kept to a minimum and emphasized finesse, easy maintenance, cleanliness and durability. The foundation stone for the main chapel laid by H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn on behalf of H.M. the King in December 1977 marked the official foundation of the centre as a temple. In the present day Khun Yai's leading students have ordained and are respectively Abbot and Vice-abbot of Wat Phra Dhammakaya (President and Vice-president of the Dhammakaya Foundation) namely: Phrarajbhabhanavisudh (Ven. Dhammajayo Bhikku) (b. 1944) and Prabhavanaviriayakhun (Ven. Dattajevo Bhikku) (b. 1941). While the temple was under construction, the Dhammadayada ordination programme gave training to hundreds of university students, a steadily increasing number of whom swelled the number of residents in the temple community, numbering 652 monks and 263 novices, a 116 laymen and 359 laywomen in the present day. At the same time congregations on Sundays and major religious festivals grew steadily over the course of twenty-nine years to the order of 100,000 necessitating the construction of the first thatched and later Great Sapha Dhammakaya Hall, presently the centre for ceremonies. Although recognizing the importance of constructing facilities, the Foundation has always put people and their training first. Thus, during more than quarter of a century since the establishment of the Foundation, its activities have attracted devotees both Buddhist and non-Buddhist alike, from Thailand and all over the world. The pioneering work of the Dhammakaya Foundation has addressed the spiritual needs of modern society by using novel combinations of old and new. Modern technology has been applied to present traditional teachings in a way that responds to the need expectations of those in contemporary society. Modern administrative practices have been applied to the traditional charitable framework of and monastic community alike that has a scope much broader than that usually possible for traditional temples. In 1986, the Dhammakaya Foundation was accepted as a member of World Fellowship of Buddhist and World Fellowship of Buddhist Youth. In August 1986, the Dhammakaya Foundation became the United Nations- accredited Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) associated with the Department of Public Information (DPI).