Luang Por Dattajivo
| Phadet Dattajivo | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Religion | Buddhism |
| School | Theravada, Maha Nikaya |
| Dharma names | Dattajivo |
| Personal | |
| Nationality | Thai |
| Born |
21 December 1940 Kanchanaburi, Thailand |
| Senior posting | |
| Based in | Wat Phra Dhammakaya, Thailand |
| Title | Most Venerable, Luang Por |
| Religious career | |
| Teacher | Chandra Khonnokyoong, Luang Por Dhammajayo |
Luang Por Dattajivo (Thai: ทตฺตชีโว, rtgs: Thattachiwo; Pali: Dattajīvo; born 21 December 1940), also known by his layname Phadet Phongsawat (Thai: เผด็จ ผ่องสวัสดิ์) and former ecclesiastical title Phrarajbhavanajahn (Thai: พระราชภาวนาจารย์, rtgs: Phra Rat Phawanachan), is a Thai Buddhist monk. He is the former deputy-abbot of Wat Phra Dhammakaya and the vice-president of the Dhammakaya Foundation, and has been the caretaker abbot of the temple from 1999 until 2006, and again from 2011 until 2016. Mae chi (nun) Chandra Khonnokyoong and Luang Por Dhammajayo have been his teachers throughout his life.
He was born with the lay name Phadet Phongsawat in 1940 in Kanchanaburi, to Vietnamese-Thai parents. He graduated in agricultural science from Kasetsart University and studied in Australia at post-graduate level.
Phadet was a very curious young man, and as part of his wide curiosity he became involved in black magic (Thai: ไสยศาสตร์) since he was seventeen years old. In his student years at Kasetsart University, he would often hold organized public demonstrations of black magic to his fellow students. In Wat Phra Dhammakaya's biographies it is told,that every time a junior student Chaiyabun joined to watch one of Phadet's demonstrations, the magic would not work. Phadet therefore become curious about Chaiyabun's mental powers, and decided to test Chaiyabun by bringing him to his black magic teacher. But even the teacher could not use his powers in Chaiyabun's presence. Phadet therefore wanted to learn more about Chaiyabun and the meditation he practiced. He felt inspired by Chaiyabun's sincerity in meditation and his adherence to the Buddhist five precepts. This was a turning point in his life, and from that moment on he has always been Chaiyabun's student and assistant, and they developed a solid friendship. He gave up the practice of black magic and through Chaiyabun met Mae chi Chandra. He trained in meditation with Mae chi Chandra for years. In 1971, he ordained and became known as Luang Por Dattajivo, which means "He who offers his life to Buddhism". By that time, Chaiyabun had already ordained as Luang Por Dhammajayo. In the 1960s and 1970s, a university degree in Thailand was a guarantee someone would get a good position in society, which made their decision to ordain instead stand out.
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