Saṅgharāj Jyotipāl Mahāthēro (1914–2002) was the 10th supreme patriarch of Bangladesh and one of its most prominent Theravāda teachers. Thanks to his deep knowledge of Buddhism and his altruistic work in social welfare and education in postcolonial Bangladesh, Jyotipāl Mahāthēro is revered by devotees, followers, seekers, and monastics worldwide. Jyotipāl Mahāthēro taught the Dhamma to the Bengali and global Buddhist communities for more than seven decades, and since his passing his legacy of teaching and preaching has been taken up by his students and devotees.
Jyotipāl Mahāthēro was born with the lay name Dbarika Mohan Singh on 5 January 1914, in the village of Baraigaon, in Comilla District. His father was Chandramuni Singh and his mother was Droupadi Bala Singh. At the age of 16, young Dbarika Mohan lost his loving mother in 1930. After her death, he began to contemplate the origins of his grief and sorrow and how he could transcend his hardships. At that time, Dbarika Mohan met Śrīmat Guṇālaṅkāra Mahāsthabīr (1894–1962), one of the famous Theravāda teachers of what was then undivided Bengal: West Bengal in present-day India, and East Bengal in present-day Bangladesh. Despite being so young, Dbarika Mohan was attuned to the essence of the Buddha’s teachings, and Śrīmat Guṇālaṅkāra Mahāsthabīr’s noble Dhamma talk (Dhammadesana) deeply impacted him. He therefore decided to enter the monastic life.
When Dharika Mohan expressed his interest in renouncing worldly life to Guṇālaṅkāra Mahāsthabīr, the master decided to support his monastic journey. In 1933, Dharika Mohan Singh became a novice (sāmaṇera) under the preceptorship (upajjhāya) of Guṇālaṅkāra Mahāsthabīr at Āliśbara Shantinikētana Bauddha Bihār, a monastery in Baraigaon. After becoming a monastic, Dharika Mohan was given the Dhamma name Jyotipāl Sraman (sāmaṇera).
Five years later, in 1938, Jyotipāl Sraman received higher ordination and became a full bhikkhu under Guṇālaṅkāra Mahāsthabīr at Jobra Sugata Bihār, a monastery in the village of Jobra in Chattogram District. Thereafter, he was known as Jyotipāl Bhikkhu. Well-known Theravāda teachers attended Jyotipāl’s ordination ceremony, including Śrīmat Dharmanandha Mahāsthabīr, Śrīmat Gyaniswer Mahāsthabīr, Śrīmat Aryabongsha Mahāsthabīr, and Śrīmat Bishuddhanandha Mahāsthabīr.
Jyotipāl Mahāthēro also was rigorously schooled outside of the monastery. He began his education at Cumilla District’s Harishchar English Medium School. His transition to a monastic life did not deter his pursuit of knowledge. After Form 6, he continued his studies at the Aryameitreya Institution at Raozan Subdistrict, Chattogram, where his teachers recognized his academic excellence. Jyotipāl was admitted into Mahāmuni Pāli College at Raozan, where he completed his high school education.
While engaged in secular education, Jyotipāl was also learning Buddhist literature and Pāli and Sanskrit texts under the guidance of Śrīmat Dharmādhār Mahāsthabīr (1901–2000) at Mahāmuni Pāli Institution, which was affiliated with the Mahāmuni Mahānandha Bihar, Chattogram. In 1934, Jyotipāl successfully passed the prestigious Pāli course named “Sutra Adya.” In 1935, he moved to Kolkata (West Bengal in India), where he was admitted into Nālanda Bidyabhavan, which was affiliated with Bauddha Dharmāṅkūra Bihār.
As a student at Nālanda Bidyabhavan, he learned under the renowned Buddhist scholars Dr. Benimadhab Barua (1888–1948) and Śrīmat Banśadīp Mahāsthabīr (1881–1970). In 1936, Jyotipāl passed the “Vinaya Madhya,” a prestigious Pāli course. Continuing his studies into Buddhist scriptures, he passed “Sutta Upādi” in 1942 from Mahāmuni Pāli College. In 1946, Jyotipāl obtained a degree in the “Abhidhamma Upādi” course from Suryamoni Pāli Pariben of Cumilla, which was affiliated with the Sanskrit Department of the University of Calcutta. He also received a gold medal award from the University of Calcutta for his outstanding results in the “Buddhadatta Upādi” examination in 1946.
After completing his Buddhist education, Jyotipāl Mahāthēro began to found his own institutions at Cumilla, such as Alokadiya Bouddha Bihar and Suryamoni Pāli Pariben. Apart from becoming a Pāli teacher at Laksam High School. He also founded Harishchar High School in 1948. Furthermore, he founded a girl’s educational institution named Baraigaon Girl’s High School in 1969. This was particularly important as women during Jyotipāl Mahāthēro’s time were unable to enjoy a formal education in Cumilla.
Jyotipāl also spent a great deal of his time spreading Theravāda Buddhism in Bangladesh. As noted above, he had established Alokadiya Bouddha Bihar, and here he provided accommodation for monastics and a space for seekers and disciples. On the grounds of Alokadiya Bouddha Bihar, he founded the institute of Suryamoni Pāli Pariben. In the 1960s, Jyotipāl founded more Buddhist institutions in his hometown, including Cumilla Kanakstupa Bouddha Bihar, Kachnai Bouddha Bihar, and Naipai Bouddha Bihar.
Jyotipāl Mahāthēro was always seeking to help poor and unprivileged people. In 1942, he established an orphanage called Baraigaon Orphanage Center, one of the pioneering welfare institutions in the Cumilla area of modern Bangladesh. Under Jyotipāl’s leadership, the orphanage began offering vocational training to the underprivileged, enabling them to achieve economic self-sufficiency. Through this institution, Jyotipāl helped students to pursue schooling to attain better jobs and to support their families and futures. To this day, the Baraigaon Orphanage Center continues its support for the unprivileged community in Bangladesh.
Another service provided by Jyotipāl Mahāthēro was his diplomatic skill during the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971. He liaised with world leaders during the war so that major nations would consider offering support to halt the genocide in Bangladesh. Risking his life, he traveled to India, Sri Lanka, and Japan to meet senior government officials and tried to draw the attention of world media to stop the genocide.
As a scholar-monk of modern Bangladesh, Jyotipāl Mahāthēro compiled 17 Buddhist texts, a project that elevated Buddhist scholasticism in Bengal. His groundbreaking Bengali-language translations consist of Śāntideva’s Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra (A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life), Puggalapaññatti (Designation of Person), and Charyapada (A Collection of Mystical Poems and Songs of Realization), among others.
With all of Jyotipāl Mahāthēro’s accomplishments, the ninth Saṅgharāj of Bangladesh at the time, Bhikkhu Mahāsabha, appointed him as his heir and the 10th Saṅgharāj on 18 January 2001. In countries with Theravāda Buddhist communities such as Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, “Saṅgharāj” or “Saṅgharāja” (supreme patriarch) is an honorific title of the highest honor.
Jyotipāl Mahāthēro passed away on 12 April 2002 at Mumbai J. J. Hospital, India. With the support of his disciples and devotees, Jyotipāl Mahāthēro’s body was returned to his birthplace, Cumilla. Many disciples, relatives, and devotees from Bangladesh and worldwide mourned the loss of their beloved spiritual leader.
Because of his immense contributions to stopping the genocide of 1971, the People’s Republic of Bangladesh posthumously conferred on Jyotipāl Mahāthēro the highest civilian award, the Independence Day Award in 2011 and the second-highest civilian award, Edushey Padak in 2010.
Although this master is no longer with us, his legacy of teachings continues to inspire many in Bangladesh and around the world. May the legacy of Saṅgharāj Jyotipāl Mahāthēro inspire us on the path to liberation. May he attain the bliss of nibbāna.
References
Prashanta Kumar Barua. 2003. Jyotirmoy Jyotipal. Chattogram: Package Corporation Limited.
Phra Sujit Sugato. 2019. “An Analytical Study of the Impact of Life and Work of His Holiness Supreme Patriarch Jyotipal Mahathero,” in Journal of Graduate Studies, Mahamakut Buddhist University 16 (2): 238–45.
Sunandapriya Bhikkhu (ed.). 2003. Saṅgharāj Jyotipāl Jarmasarak. Cumilla: The 10th Saṅgharāj Jyotipāl Mahāthēro National Funeral Committee.
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Buddhism in Modern Bangladesh: A Brief History of Lineages and Cultural Practices
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