Dhamma Kamala

Dhamma Kamala, “the Lotus of Dhamma”, is a Vipassana centre in Prachinburi province, about 170 kilometres east of Bangkok and near Khao Yai National Park. It teaches Vipassana as taught by S. N. Goenka in the tradition of Sayagyi U Ba Khin, and it was the first centre of this tradition in Thailand. According to the centre’s own history, it was set up after Goenka, his wife and other senior teachers had travelled to Thailand to conduct several courses outside any centre. Former students then decided to build a permanent one. Development began in 1992, and the first ten-day course began in November of that year. Goenka inaugurated the main building in August 1998. It has a golden pagoda at the top and a large meditation hall.

The centre sits on about six acres in a rural village and is surrounded by lotus ponds, according to dhamma.org.

This is a course centre, not a temple open to casual visits. The standard course is ten days, residential and silent. Dhamma.org says instructions are given in English and Thai. Applying takes a form on dhamma.org and a wait for notification, which the site says can take up to two weeks. Anyone applying is asked to read the Code of Discipline first. Courses are run solely on donations from those who have completed a course, and first-time students can give at the end. Recording devices and cameras are not allowed.

Thailand has a number of other centres of the same tradition. The dhamma.org directory lists, among others, Dhamma Dhānī in Bangkok, Dhamma Sīmanta in Lamphun in the north, and Dhamma Porāṇo in Nakhon Si Thammarat in the south. Each runs its own schedule, so check the directory for the one nearest you.