Wat Dhammakaya

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gavesako
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by gavesako »

It seems their latest attempt to occupy the Don Sawan tourist island in the lake at Sakon Nakhon and turn it into DMC center has failed due to the massive protests of locals which could not be simply ignored:
http://2bangkok.com/forum/showthread.ph ... tion/page5" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Bhikkhu Gavesako
Kiṃkusalagavesī anuttaraṃ santivarapadaṃ pariyesamāno... (MN 26)

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appicchato
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by appicchato »

http://2bangkok.com/forum/showthread.ph ... tion/page5" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Wow...
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gavesako
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by gavesako »

Good news: The Governor of Sakon Nakhon announced that he has given Don Savan Island to the public, which means no one can occupy this island anymore. They will have to try somewhere else... :alien:
Bhikkhu Gavesako
Kiṃkusalagavesī anuttaraṃ santivarapadaṃ pariyesamāno... (MN 26)

Access to Insight - Theravada texts
Ancient Buddhist Texts - Translations and history of Pali texts
Dhammatalks.org - Sutta translations
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appicchato
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by appicchato »

All right Gov...
helparcfun
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by helparcfun »

Do you think that Wat Dhammakaya will endure? Judging by the amount of people (and money) involved it doesn't look to me like it's going away!

It looks very much as though they would like to 'take over' Thailand, if not the whole world, religiously speaking (and who knows, maybe politically too).
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Kim OHara
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by Kim OHara »

helparcfun wrote:Do you think that Wat Dhammakaya will endure? Judging by the amount of people (and money) involved it doesn't look to me like it's going away!

It looks very much as though they would like to 'take over' Thailand, if not the whole world, religiously speaking (and who knows, maybe politically too).
Everything that arises, passes away ...
That's particularly true of religious groups which come from nowhere and centre on individual leaders. Look at (for instance) Transcendental Meditation, the Moonies (Unification Church), Hare Krishna and Heaven's Gate - very different from each other but sharing a boom-and-bust trajectory.

:namaste:
Kim
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gavesako
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by gavesako »

The Dhammakaya has organized a second season of the "tudong" on marigold petals through the streets of Bangkok. Not all residents are happy with it:

http://2bangkok.com/forum/showthread.ph ... tion/page8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

:rolleye:
Bhikkhu Gavesako
Kiṃkusalagavesī anuttaraṃ santivarapadaṃ pariyesamāno... (MN 26)

Access to Insight - Theravada texts
Ancient Buddhist Texts - Translations and history of Pali texts
Dhammatalks.org - Sutta translations
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Benjamin
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by Benjamin »

gavesako wrote:The Dhammakaya has organized a second season of the "tudong" on marigold petals through the streets of Bangkok. Not all residents are happy with it:

http://2bangkok.com/forum/showthread.ph ... tion/page8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

:rolleye:
The plagiarized costume from Victoria's Secret is about the weirdest thing i've seen related to Buddhism so far.
:candle: :buddha1: :candle:
mahaviro
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How do you feel about Wat Dhammakaya?

Post by mahaviro »

In my opinion, I think it's relative through shrewd marketing and recruitment.
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GraemeR
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How do you feel about Wat Dhammakaya?

Post by GraemeR »

mahaviro wrote:In my opinion, I think it's relative through shrewd marketing and recruitment.
I couldn't agree more

Graham
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Kumara
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by Kumara »

robertk wrote:I watch their chanel on Thai TV sometimes but the monk who is usually on has a soporific voice and is very repetitive. That is about as much praise as I can manage of Dhammakaya.
It's supposed to be hypnotic, though it obviously didn't work on you. :-)
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Kumara
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by Kumara »

Kim OHara wrote:
helparcfun wrote:Do you think that Wat Dhammakaya will endure? Judging by the amount of people (and money) involved it doesn't look to me like it's going away!

It looks very much as though they would like to 'take over' Thailand, if not the whole world, religiously speaking (and who knows, maybe politically too).
Everything that arises, passes away ...
That's particularly true of religious groups which come from nowhere and centre on individual leaders. Look at (for instance) Transcendental Meditation, the Moonies (Unification Church), Hare Krishna and Heaven's Gate - very different from each other but sharing a boom-and-bust trajectory.
I agree, but Dk is advancing quite successfully. They are making inroads in Malaysia. Besides having 2 centers now in major cities, it has also manage to recruit (by means of effective "undue influence") a group of Chinese students in a medical university. The students' situation and cultural background make them vulnerable to cult methods, and their position as doctors when they graduate will be used for further advancement.

To curb their advancement is not as easy as telling people it's a cult. Usually, the recruiter will even try to conceal that they are from Dk. I think a more effective approach is to educate people about cult methods in general. Then people would be more immune to not just Dk, but all other cults too.

You can read a good summary of methods here:
Mind Control – The BITE Model http://www.freedomofmind.com/Info/BITE/bitemodel.php
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Kumara
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Donating large sums of money (Re: Wat Dhammakaya)

Post by Kumara »

helparcfun wrote:Some time later I discovered by accident that my wife had been donating money to the temple. Okay nothing unusual about that you may say but what I discovered was that she had been donating large sums of money (hundreds mostly and sometimes thousands of pounds). I was a little shocked to say the least at the time. She tried to placate me by telling me it was for our future together. I assume she meant that by doing this 'so called' good deed she would in return get rewards later, or in the next life etc etc.
I've been informed that relatives of Dk followers in Thailand report the same situation.
The reasons for posting this are firstly to find out if there are many other like-minded people out there concerning DMC (and religion generally) and if anyone has any helpful advice on how I might persuade my wife that she should forget about DMC.
As you've probably notice, trying to reason with her even with reliable evidence, is not working. She herself needs to see that she's been conned. A good way is for her to read about mind control techniques,.

To all Dhammakaya followers, if you believe that you have not be induly influenced to join the group, you should have no problem reading this: http://www.freedomofmind.com/Info/BITE/bitemodel.php
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Kumara
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by Kumara »

tiltbillings wrote:Look at the imagery of the massive regimented ceremony. That has nothing to do with the Dhamma, but it has everything to do with the aggrandizement of Dhammakaya organization, and where would you find anything comparable in imagery to those photos?
I must first say that I can't verify the following matters that I've been informed about, but I certainly wouldn't be surprised if it's true. To hold ceremonies of such grandeur,
1. For every temporary monk you recruit, you'd get 500Bt. (A nice little sum for a villager.)
2. Loads of villages are brought in by buses to be dressed and made to stand/sit there, enduring the heat. (Not sure about any payment.)

Btw, some of the "monks" in the photo seems to be dozing off...
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Kumara
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Re: Wat Dhammakaya

Post by Kumara »

SeerObserver wrote:Wat Paknam is on "good terms" with the Dhammakaya movement. As a matter of fact the preceptor of Phrarajbhavanavisudh, the abbot of Wat Phra Dhammakaya, is the current abbot of Wat Paknam.
Update: I'm told that there's an internal split into 3 groups now: the LP Sodh group, the Dhammachayo group and the Khoon Yai group. It's a matter of time.
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