Poson Poya - Arrival of the Dhamma in Sri Lanka

Ajahn Dhammasiha relates the story how more than 2,000 years ago Ven Arahant Mahinda and his 6 companions met King Devanampiya Tissa at Mihinthale mountain, and introduced the Dhamma first to him and his entourage, and then to ever larger numbers of the population in the royal capital of Sri Lanka, Anurādhapura.Ajahn focuses on those points of the story which are particular relevant for us today in our efforts to introduce the Dhamma to Australia.Naturally, as we're so much further away from the Buddha in time and space, the task is much tougher, and our levels of Pāramī just can't compare. But there is still a lot for us to learn from the events:When the monks explained to the king that the Nandana Garden is too close to the city and not suitable for them to stay over night, the king offered the Mahāmeghavana and build the very famous Mahāvihāra monastery there. And for the rains retreat, the monks moved even further away from the capital and returned to MihinthaleSimilarly, even nowadays a Forest Monastery needs to be located in sufficient distance from the suburbs to ensure seclusion and quiet, but not too far, so that it can still be reached for almsoffering and teaching every dayThe location of Dhammagiri was choosen with exactly these considerations in mind, and was appreciated by so many for the last 13 years for exactly these reasons :-)www.dhammagiri.org.auwww.vimeo.com/dhammatalkswww.tinyletter.com/dhammagiri/archive.