TEMPLES

ACCOMMODATION

For the last thirty years Phra Ratpariyatmethee, Abbot of Wat Thaton,  has worked to improve and continue the tradition and philosophy begun here hundreds of years ago. There are fantastic temples and quiet places of natural solitude so that one may practice vipassana meditation in the environment of natural beauty.

Phra Ratpariyatmethee

ABBOT OF WAT THATON

As early as the time of King Asoke of India, around 2,000 years ago, Buddhist monks were sent to Thaton to spread the Buddha's teachings. Thaton was a trading centre of southern Burma. However, from the first century C.E. onwards, trade between India and Burma expanded and there was increased contact with the Indian traders and their religious beliefs. Buddhism was widely accepted by the people in Thaton as more Buddhist missionaries arrived from Indian Buddhist centres. Thaton soon became an important centre for Theravada Buddhism.

Click here for more on King Asoke and the spread of Buddhist philosophy and some of the basic teachings directly translated from Pali, the language Buddha spoke.

A western interpretation of Buddhist philosophy........

"A human being is part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. They experience themselves, their thoughts, and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of their consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of love and compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."

Albert Einstein

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