The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of the practice method of Dhammaya temple in Thailand, which modified the method of early Southern Buddhism. I tried to suggest this research as an alternative way of seeking happiness and mental stability of life in modern stressful society.
In order to maximize the activities of meditation based on the way of performing the Dhammaya meditation in Thailand, it consisted of Buddhist meditation activities program for 15 days. Morning and afternoon meditations were practised and the afternoon prayers were strictly followed according to the southern Buddhist rule. In order to investigate the effects of the Dhammakaya meditation activity program, I used the following measurement instruments : scale of four immeasurable minds, spirituality scale, Symptom Check?list 90-Revisions, blood pressure monitor, pulse monitor, thermometer and recorder.
Dhammakaya meditation (Vijja Dhammakaya) is based upon the idea that Dhammakaya meditation was the method through which the Buddha became enlightened, It is a method which was forgotten but has been revived by Luang Pu Sodh Candasaro. The tradition stands out from other Thai Buddhist traditions for its teachings on the Buddhist concept of Dhammakaya, its emphasis on meditation for laypeople, its active style of propagating meditation, and its focus on reviving traditional Buddhist values.
The Dhammakaya meditation opposes traditional magical rituals, superstition, fortune telling, and other folk religious practices. Features of the tradition include teaching meditation in a group, teaching meditation during ceremonies, teaching meditation simultaneously to monastics and lay people, teaching one main meditation method, and an emphasis on lifelong ordination.
The Dhammakaya Meditation is a systematic practice for concentrating or emptying consciousness and is a transformed meditation method of southern Buddhism. Samatha''s method of calming our mind and concentrating our consciousness on here and now shows that we do not react to past memories and obsess over the anxiety of the future. This meditation is to be integrated with Western medicine and Buddhist philosophy in terms of modern psychological treatment or stress management. The Dhammakaya Meditation is to be transformed into various forms such as transcendental meditation, applied Buddhist meditation, or mindfulness meditation.
Based on the meditation method of the Dhammaya temple in Thailand, this study presented the theoretical and practical basis by examining the effect of the meditation program on the four aspects: the four immeasurable minds, spirituality, simplified mental health and body physiology through empirical analysis. It is hoped that these kinds of researches will be accumulated and promote the mutual effects between Korean Buddhism and Thai Buddhism in south-eastern Asia country.