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Prof. Dr. Bikiran Prasad Barua
Bangladesh
Dear Professor Dr. Bikiran Prasad Barua,
Thank you for your email of 1 January 2003. Your New Year blessings and best
wishes are thankfully received by Anita and I and all at our Centre.
The other parts of your message I will respond to in future email replies.
Thank you for your guidance and support to our delegates at the WFB
conference.
I am greatly honoured to provide and enclose a message to be published in
the cremation souvenir for the Most Venerable Sasanasree Sanghaguru
Dharmapal Mahathera.
I wish your family and our friends a happy and prosperous New Year.
With Metta
John & Anita Hughes
Message for the Cremation Souvenir of the Most Venerable Sasanasree
Sanghaguru Dharmapal Mahathera.
Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Sammasambuddhassa
I write on the occasion of the cremation ceremony on 16 and 17 January 2003
C.E. of the Most Venerable Sasanasree Sanghaguru Dharmapal Mahathera.
He was the most senior Monk in Bangladesh.
He propagated the Buddha Dhamma for nearly 79 years.
He was born in the Dhamma Village Aburkhil in a traditional Buddhist Family.
One of the great pleasures of this life for me, was to visit his birth
place, the Dhamma Village Aburkhil as the guest of the Mother of Professor
Dr. Bikiran Prasad Barua.
Such places of like minded persons have nearly vanished from what was the
continent of India. Such places were common in Lord Buddha's day, a place
where many generations of Buddhist disciples were born, practised and passed away.
Such places are under the protection of heavenly bodhisattvas and these
heavenly protectors are called Dharmapal.
Occasionally a heavenly Dharmapal protector decides to take rebirth in such
a village as a freeman to help the people of the land.
The Most Venerable Sasanasree Sanghaguru Dharmapal Mahathera came to birth
at a time before Bangladesh had gained its independence.
He lived through the fairly long war of liberation that involved many
sacrifices for the people including in some cases the sacrifice of life
itself.
Through such historic times, the Most Venerable Sasanasree Sanghaguru
Dharmapal Mahathera used his many bodhisattva good qualities from the heaven
realm, to help the people.
As you know, his name Sanghaguru means teacher of the Monks.
With all his many good qualities displaying many forms he was like the eye
of Bangladesh.
During his long and fruitful life he opened many good hearts with his
propagation of the sublime Buddha Dhamma.
He has now returned to the heavenly place from where he was born and from
there he will continue to protect the people of Bangladesh and surrounding
areas as a Dharmapal.
This occasion is not the time of grief, but for celebration of a great life
well spent.
This publication of the cremation souvenir will help us all remember what
one person can do to help the many.
It is a souvenir of a life spent in Buddha Dhamma.
The Most Venerable Sasanasree Sanghaguru Dharmapal Mahathera has showed us
the way, let us follow his example until our time comes to pass away.
Saddhu Saddhu Saddhu
May the Dhamma flourish.
With all the blessings of the Triple Gem to my family of brothers and
sisters in the Dhamma in Bangladesh.
With Metta
Yours in the Dhamma
John D. Hughes Dip. App. Chem. T.T.T.C. GDAIE
Former Vice President, World Fellowship of Buddhists
Council Member and Advisor, World Buddhist University
Founder, Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd.
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