A few words
About Us
History
The Bauddha Dharmankur Sabha has many branches in other parts of India.
BDS AT A GLANCE
- Established : - 5th October 1892.
- Founder: - Ven. Kripasaran Mahathavir.
- Objective: - Resuscitate the Buddhist culture and religious practice and to propagate the principles of Buddhism.
- Address: - Nalanda Square, 1 Buddhist Temple Street, Kolkata – 700012, India
- President:- DR.RATANASRI MAHATHERO
- General Secretary:- SRI AMALENDU CHOWDHURY
They are in Shillong (Meghalaya), Darjeeling (West Bengal), Lucknow and Sarnath (Uttar Pradesh)and Rajgir (Bihar). In Kolkata where its Head Office is situated we run a School for the children named the Kripasaran Continental Institution established in the year 1967.
We also run the Dharmankur Free Medical Centre here for the benefit of the people established in the year 1990.
The Bauddha Dharmankur Sabha also publishes a Journal name the Jagajjyoti – the Light of the World since the year 1908 and has a wide readership.
OUR ACTIVITIES
- DHARMANKUR VIHARA (estd. 1903)
- JAGAJJTYUOTI – JOURNAL ON BUDDHISM (published since 1908)
- GUNALANKAR LIBRARY (estd. 1909)
- KRIPASARAN CONTINENTAL INSTITUTION (estd. 1967)
- DHARMANKUR FREE MEDICAL CENTRE (1973)
- DR. B. M. BARAUA SCHOLARSHIP FUND (1996)
- DHARMAPAL MAHATHERA WELFARE FUND (2003)
- HUMANITARIAN SERVICES & Dana to Venerable Monks
FOUNDER
Ven.Kripasaran Mahathavir was born on 22nd June 1865 in the district of Chittagong in the then undivided Bengal and was ordained as a monk in the year 1885 under the preceptorship of a renowned monk Ven’ble Sudhanchandra Mahathavir. That was a period when Buddhism was being practiced in a very corrupt form with the practice of esotericism and tranticism. To bring about a reform in the society Ven. Kripasaran established the Bauddha Dharmankur Sabha on the 5th October 1892 in the metropolis of Bengal. The main objective of this was to resuscitate the Buddhist culture and religious practice and to propagate the principles of Buddhism. He established the first Temple / Vihara in eastern India named the Dharmankur Vihara in the year 1903 where Buddhists ware able to perform the religious ceremonies. It was an effort to bring the people together who otherwise led scattered lives. He was not only concerned with the religious re-awakening but showed concern for the educational and cultural awakening. He established branches of the Bauddha Dharmankur Sabha (Bengal Buddhist Association) in many other parts of the country for the propagation of Buddhism. His efforts helped facilitate the establishment of the Department of Pali in the University of Calcutta in the Year 1907. It was at his initiative that the renowned indologist Dr. Beni Madhab Barua was sent of the University of London for higher studies in Pali and obtained his D. Litt degree in 1917 and thus becoming the first Asian recipient of that honour.