A presentation originally given at a Dhammakaya Peace Meeting, which took place at the Quaker Meeting House on 23 March 2017. These slides recount the early days of the Dhammakaya tradition coming to the UK, focusing on Fuengsin Trafford (née Sarayutpitag). The file download includes presenter notes.

1. Featuring Fuengsin Trafford
Related by Paul Trafford

2. “Yet it is just within this fathom-long
body, with its perception & intellect,
that I declare that there is the world,
the origination of the world, the
cessation of the world, and the path
of practice leading to the cessation of
the world.”
*Rohitassa Sutta, AN 4.45

4. Luang Pu Wat Paknam
1916 – 1959
Kapilavaddho Bhikkhu
1954 - ?
Khun Yay Chan
1935 - 2000
Ajahn Gaew
195? - 1986Fuengsin
1960? - 1995

5. * 1955–56
* Vijjavaddho Bhikkhu (George Blake)
* Saddhavaddho Bhikkhu (Robert Albison)
* Pannyavaddho Bhikkhu (Peter Morgan)
[Ordination ceremony: http://youtu.be/SZwxJyfJ3Oo ]
* 1958-
Terry Magness (Suratano Bikkhu, 1970-201?)
* 1963-64
Ananda Bodhi (a.k.a. Leslie Dawson, Namgyal
Rinpoche)

8. *‘Ang’ [1 year old]

10. “Throughout their married life, Fuengsin’s
parents had monks to come to the house for
meals every day. ... In fact the welcome
became widely known and also attracted
monks on thudong — wandering monks, who
camped for a while in their garden before
moving on without settling anywhere.
Sometimes there were as many as 15 to 20
novices and monks, who were free to pop in
any time, and they knew that there would be
food and shelter for them.”
Thursday’s Lotus, p.26

11. Plan of action: Go often to the market to buy fish —
live fish — and free them.
Before releasing into river, say to the fish:
Now may all this good karma enable me to be free;
in future, may I be free like you, may I be let out of
the house. I hope one day I will go away and never
come back to this house!

15. “The nun that I studied with was a frail
looking lady, small. [She] came from a farming
community, without much education. 20 years
later a lot of people went to study with her
and she founded one of the largest centres in
Thailand — the most famous centre in Thailand
— and her biography was printed. I spent a lot
of time with her, meditating, listening to her
teacher’s tapes.”
Thursday’s Lotus, p.69

16. “You have a big Buddha within
you!”
Ajahn Gaew to Fuengsin
Thursday’s Lotus, p.69
Kapilavaddho
Bhikkhu

21. “Before I returned to England, Ajahn made a
prediction that in future I was to go and
spread the Buddha’s teachings in England; and
Ajahn brought me to prostrate myself in front
of Luang Phor [Wat Paknam] in order to ask
that he give his blessing to help me succeed in
this mission…
He asked me to pay respect and he lit
candles and incense and he said he would like
the power of communication and teaching be
transferred to me…
He said, ‘You go . . . you are ready to
teach now. You will have to teach one day.’”
Thursday’s Lotus, p.93

22. “A large white Buddha rupa was placed
prominently on a shrine that was beautifully
decorated. There were very small Buddha rupas
arranged neatly around the side. There were
photos of monks, well known in Thailand for their
research in Samadhi and Vipassana, including Phra
Maha Boowa, Wat Pah Baan Taad, in Udon province,
where Mrs Browne had been a disciple of Tan
Acharn during a visit to Thailand. I hurried straight
over to pay respects to the Buddha with great
delight and gladness.”
(Fuengsin describing the shrine room, c.1966)
Thursday’s Lotus, p.100

24. ‘This is the transmission to you of
my knowledge. It’s all in the book.’

25. “I wasn’t well. My eye ached and there was a
lot of phlegm. It seemed I had a cold and fever.
…I quickly got up and went upstairs and
meditated for 45 minutes. I perspired a lot. At
first it seemed there was no peace, but after
15 minutes things improved and it seemed very
good. The mind was cool and calm, one-
pointed. The kilesas [defilements] tried to
enter, but the mind did not stray from the
feelings.”
From personal diary
Thursday’s Lotus, p.120

27. . . . Your behaviour is only a reflection
of your mind. When you meditate you
become single-minded — that doesn’t
mean narrow-minded, merely that your
mind is opening up and you are more
capable of appreciating and
understanding things.
Fuengsin in County Express interview
Thursday’s Lotus, p.164

30. “Before you teach, give compassion to the whole
class and think of them as your own body, as if they
are one with you. Visualise them in you and fix here
and try to visualise their five aggregates at one
spot. The visualisation that we do — each of the
aggregates condensed like a crystal — tiny spot like
a crystal — and it gets so everybody’s aggregates
condensed to one point, here at the centre of the
body. ... So they will understand more.”

32. “From encountering these situations,
I was able to see that Ajahn had a
very powerful mind and was really
able to predict things that will occur
in the future. Whenever I went to
give a talk, when it came to giving
instruction, I tried to spread the
honour of Ajahn on a regular basis by
making the British and people from
other countries understand.”
From Fuengsin’s Tribute to Ajahn
Gaew at his passing.

33. Phra Bhavana-Kosolthera Veera Ganuttamo, Luang Na San Tippasanto
Taken whilst on a visit abroad

34. “. . . Dr A. Keightley at King Edwards,
Stourbridge wanted me to teach meditation
there next [academic] year. He is very pleased
with my performance.
. . . Next month there will be 17 students to
attend the class. There are at least 40 students
who are waiting to learn to meditate.”

38. A Woman child, O Lord of Men, may prove
even a better offspring than a man.
Verse 16: The Daughter, Samyutta-nikaya 1.3.

40. Chulalongkorn
University
Faculty of Arts
Alumni (2497-
2501)
50th Anniversary.