U Pannya Jota Mahathera
 | This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages)
|
U Pannya Jota Mahathera | |
|---|---|
ဦးပညာဇောတမဟာထေရ်
| |
 Ven. U Pannya Jota Mahathera in 2015 | |
| Personal life | |
| Born | U Saw Hla December 22, 1955 |
| Died | April 13, 2020 (aged 64) |
| Nationality | Bangladeshi |
| Parents |
|
| Education | L.L.B, L.L.M, B.C.S |
| Known for | Founder of Buddha Dhatu Jadi, Rama Zadi, The World Buddha Sasana Sevaka Sangha, etc. |
| Other names | Guru Bhante |
| Occupation | Ex. SR. ASSTT. JUDGE |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Buddhism |
| Sect | Theravada Buddhism |
| Senior posting | |
| Based in | Pannya Passanara Buddhist Monaster, Ujani Para, Bandarban, Bangladesh |
Ven. U Pannya Jota Mahathera (Burmese: ဦးပညာဇောတမဟာထေရ်, Template:Lang-bn), locally known as Guru Bhante (December 22, 1955 – April 13, 2020) was a Bangladeshi Theravada monk. He was born in the Royal Bohmong family[1][self-published source?] at Bandarban, East Pakistan. He served the government of Bangladesh as a judge and magistrate for about eight years prior to becoming a Buddhist monk.
Biography
Early life
U Pannya Jota (Birth name: U Saw Hla, Template:Lang-bn) was born in Bandarban, East Pakistan, on December 22, 1955 to father Hla Thowai Prue and mother Aung Mra Ching. His grandfather, Kyaw Zaw Than, was the late King of Royal Bohmong family.
At the early age of six or seven, he began to attend school in Bandarban. After high school and college, he was admitted to Dhaka University in the Law department.
_as_an_Assistant_Judge_and_Magistrate_of_Government_of_the_People%E2%80%99s_Republic_of_Bangladesh.jpg)
University
_in_eye-catching_heroic_pose.jpg)
During his university life, he has led several organizations in promoting education among the students. He has joined many organizations and worked for the promotion of indigenous cultural heritage. He used to sing traditional songs at functions and many popular Marma songs like “Sangrai ma” [2] were composed by him. He also formed a music band named The Royal Artists Group (Template:Lang-bn). After his graduation, he served Bangladesh Government as a judge and magistrate for about 8 years. As a judge, he has worked towards justice and peace for society. At the second time of ordination, he grew a strong determination to become a Buddhist monk forever. He resigned from his job as a judge and became a monk in 1990 at Ching Mrong Bihara.[3] From that day he became known as U Pannya Jota Mahathera. Since then, he has been working tirelessly for Buddhasasana.
Life as U Pannya Jota
U Pannya Jota was very keen on learning and practicing Buddhism in depth. He believed Buddhism has the potential to bring peace to the minds of all people. The teaching and meditation in Buddhism were how he served society in peace building. He visited various places and taught Dhamma to the laypeople. He was one of the social reformers who worked on the scientific understanding of Buddhism and denied the superstitious beliefs that many people in Bangladesh had used to believe. Outside of preaching, he spent most of his free time practicing meditation. He has visited various countries and met many world popular meditation teachers like S.N. Goenka. He learned meditation from many great meditation masters from India and Burma.
Publications
U Pannya Jota was not only a practitioner, but a Buddhist scholar as well, publishing many books on Buddhist topics. His books were highly successful among Bangladeshi Buddhist readers.
| Name of Books | Series | Years | Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sadhana Paddhati O Dikkha | 1990 | Bangla | |
| Bidorshon Darpon | Vipassana Mirror | Bangla | |
| Poncha Guno Ananta Bandana | 2003 | Bangla, Marma | |
| Deshona Kolpotoru | Part-1 (Nirvana for Them) | 2005 | Bangla |
| Deshona Kolpotoru | Part-2 (Is Buddhism a religion?) | 2005 | Bangla |
| Deshona Kolpotoru | Part-3 (Reincarnation and Science) | 2005 | Bangla |
| Deshona Kolpotoru | Part-4 (Nation, Dhamma, Buddha Sasana) | 2015 | Bangla |
| Deshona Kolpotoru | Part-5 (Four Saint Dhamma) | 2018 | Bangla |
Establishment
U Pannya Jota built several temples inside and outside of Bangladesh. These are some of his temples built by him. Some are under construction. [citation needed]
- Zin Mara Jayi Dhatu Zadi | Bandarban, Bangladesh. (Reconstruction, more than 250 years old)
- Khyaungwa Kyaung Raja Vihara (Chief priest) | Bandarban, Bangladesh.
- Pannya Passanara Buddhist Monastery | Bandarban, Bangladesh.
- Buddha Dhatu Naundawgree Zadi | Bandarban, Bangladesh.
- Maha Shuka Chutongbrae Buddha Dhatu Jadi | Bandarban, Bangladesh.
- Rama Naundawgree Pagoda | Bandarban, Bangladesh.
- Rama Zadi | Bandarban, Bangladesh.
- Bangladesh Buddhist Monastery | Yangoon, Myanmar.
- Bangladesh Buddhist Monastery | Maung Daw, Arakan State, Myanmar.
- Kyaukmalaung Zadi | Bandarban, Bangladesh. (under construction)
- The Holy Jaghat Santi Sukha Zadi | Chimbuk, Bandarban, Bangladesh. (under construction)
- Buddha Gaya Temple | Buddha Gaya , India.(under construction)
Buddha Dhatu Jadi
One of the most famous temples founded by U Pannya Jota is the Buddha Dhatu Jadi. Also known as the Bandarban Golden Temple, the temple features a golden bell set on a dragon statue along with the second biggest Buddhist statue in Bangladesh. The Buddha's dhatu (relic), which is enshrined in the temple, was a gift given to Ven. U Pannya Jota Mahathera in 1994 by the State Sangha Maha Nayaka Committee of Myanmar. The dhatu of Golden Temple is believed to provide peace and contentment for mankind.
Rama Zadi
Rama Zadi is the largest and tallest Buddhist temple of Bangladesh, which is located in Hoda Babur Ghona area of Rohangchhari Upazila Road, 3 km away from the Bandarban district town. Its height is almost 175 ft.
Participation
These are some of international conferences he attended in promoting world peace by exchange of ideas and also to keep connection with the Buddhist countries around the world.
- The World Buddhist Summit, Yangon, Myanmar 2004.[4][5]
- UN Day of Vesak, Bangkok, Thailand, 2007.
- UN Day of Vesak, Hanoi, Vietnam, 2008.[6]
- World Religions Conference, Seoul, 2015.[7][8]
Social welfare
 |
All of his organizations were for the purpose of social welfare. He built schools and learning centers especially for children and monks. His aim was to educate the young generation of the society because he believed that the future lies in the hands of the youth. Consequently, he thought the cause of tyranny and conflicts in the society is due to education: people with improper education were the ones creating problems in society in his eyes. They would do foolish things because they hadn't been taught otherwise. The most venerable of his aims was to build an educated society by providing secular and religious studies to all.
He also hoped that the children in his institutions would be examples and contributors to society. In his documentary, he said that he wanted to provide education for poor children whose parents are not able to pay education fees to send their children to schools. He also mentioned that some of these children are far from remote and hill areas of Chittagong Hill Tracts where there is not access to modern schools and facilities. Listed below are some of his social institutions for children.
- Sasana Vaddhana Pariyatti Kyaung (Religious school)
- Be Happy Learning Centre (Orphanage & Free school)
- Kyaukmalaung Girl Hostel (Orphanage & Free school) (under construction)
References
- ^ The Royal Family. "Bohmong Kingdom".
- ^ "Story Behind Sangrai Ma". Documentary by Khola Chokh.
- ^ "Ching Mrong Bihara". rangamati.gov.bd.
- ^ "World Buddhist Summit in Myanmar". Retrieved 9 December 2004.
- ^ World Buddhist Summit (4th : 2004 : Yangon, Burma). Myanmar: World Buddhist Summit. 9 December 2004.
- ^ "United Nations Day of Vesak 2008".
- ^ "Religious Conference for World Peace". Retrieved 16 May 2015.
- ^ "World Religions Conference, Seoul, 2015".
External links
- U Pannya Jota Mahathera on Facebook
- Check in at Buddha Dhatu Jadi and Rama Zadi on Facebook
- Dhamma Speech by U Pannya Jota Mahathera on YouTube
| Part of a series on |
| Theravāda Buddhism |
|---|
 |
| Buddhism |
.svg){kind=small}
