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The World No Tobacco Day
The World No Tobacco Day was firstly held on May 31st, 1888 since WHO organization realized the hazard of smoking and concerned the smokers’ health including the nonsmokers’ health when they sniffed the tobacco. They held the World No Tobacco Day to encourage the smokers stop smoking and the governments and the world to realize the importance of this activity. They also promoted the special campaign named “World Spidemic” to communicate that smoking is like the epidemic spreading around the world. The slogans of this special day are various each year.
However, the Thai government had realized about the health problems and losses of the populations from smoking, they released the campaign to stop it and defined the regulations and rules, under the authority of the Ministry of Public Health, to reduce the smoking.
The WHO organization has been established since April 7th, 1948. The main objective is to improve the health of people in the world as much as possible. The meaning of good health is the individual has healthy mind and body, good living in the good society. There are 192 countries attending this organization to draft the policies, make the plans, and raise the operation funds for the people’s better health. One of the important works of WHO organization is to promote the smokers to stop or quit smoking. This activity has been arranged since 1987 and the committees agreed to appoint every May 31st to be the World No Tobacco Day.
About the No Tobacco Campaign, the Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh (Dhammjayo Bhikkhu), the abbot of Dhammakaya Temple, has arranged the activities and campaigns to stop or quit smoking for 34 years, since the time of building the temple. The temple always inserts the hazard of tobacco and arranges the activities including to building the White Network to announce the hazard. The Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh is the initiator and has issued the policies and directions of the activities to preach the attitude of non–smoking. He teaches the monks, novices, laypeople and staffs in the temple not to smoke first and turn them to be the non–smoker models for the congregations and teaches in the moral camps as well. The temple makes the new popularity “Go to the temple without smoking.” This is to reduce the chance of smoking when they are performing the Buddhist ceremonies or trained in the temple. It also increases the amount of smokers who intend to stop or quit smoking. The trainees or congregations who understand this concept well will arrange this activity in their families or workplaces further. You can see that the Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh has developed the popularity of non–smoking before the government has issued the laws.
The rules of the temple
The rules have been announced since the time of building the temple that “No smoking and not allow everyone to bring any drugs into the temple.” It is one of the “must” rules and the obvious standpoint of the temple about non–smoking for everyone.
The customs cultivation of “Go to the temple without smoking”
Among the monks, novices and laypeople who always gather to perform the Buddhist ceremonies every Sunday, the holy days or the big merit days, the temple has built the popularity of non–smoking until it is common for every people who go to the temple either the weekdays or weekends. On the First Sunday of each month, there are about 50,000 people going to the temple. On the other Sundays, there are about 20,000 people going to the temple. On the holy days or big merit days such as the Magha Puja Day, the Dhammakaya Cetiya Celebration Day, the Master Nun Chand Khonnokyoong’s cremation day, etc, there are 100,000–300,000 people. On these days, when the temple asked for the cooperation, it helped the smokers who had gone to the temple and the newcomers not to smoke in the temple and reduced the chance of smoking among the mass people effectively.
The training for monks, novices and laypeople
The training for monks and novices: The Kalayanamitra Monks Training has been held since 1999 and there were 45 times of training. The 8,656 monks were trained. There are 3 levels of training which are the abbot, the assistant abbot and the monk levels. All of them have been cultivated about non–smoking. It is one of the main activities that all monks have to pass and able to quit smoking to be the good models for their communities. The temple also supports the other temples to participate in the “No Tobacco Temples” project as well.
The campaigns on media and satellite TV channel “The Inner Dream Kindergarten program”
The non–smoking campaigns need the suitable and powerful media. Dhammakaya Temple, directed by the Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh, has disseminated the attitude “Quit smoking at once” to the monks and people around the country by promoting in many media and model people. The temple strengthen this attitude by publishing in the print and electronic media such as the Kalayanamitra, Tawandham, Sahadhammic, Phrasanghadhikarn magazines (in Thai), the Light of Peace magazine (in English), brochures, the blessing cards, multi–vision slides, Dhamma videos (in Thai, English, Chinese and Japanese) and the radio program named “Dhamma for People.”
Moreover, the temple has introduced the new media which is on the internet and the temple has its own websites. The latest media is the satellite TV program broadcasting 24 hours a day. The Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh always teaches in the “Inner Dream Kindergarten” program on Mon. – Sat. during 7.30 – 9.45 p.m. Now the total audience amount is about hundred–thousand.
When the No Tobacco No Alcohol activity has been held, the smokers and drunks have to vow in front of the Buddha image and the monks that they will not return to smoke or drink again. This is to stimuli them to realize the value and sacredness of their words and vows. Then, they come together to create the new and better environment by persuading one another to go to the temple. This has caused the non–smoking effective and increased the amount of non–smoker continuously.
The non–smoking campaigns initiated by the Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh are effectively and satisfied. There were over 75,000 participants in the No Tobacco No Alcohol activities and over 10,000 smokers announcing to quit smoking. The estimated amount of total smokers who can quit smoking now is about hundred–thousand. However, the Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh still keeps doing this project and stresses that the temple must arrange this project even if he passes away and keep doing it until the tobacco is out of Thailand and the world. The abbot always confirms and encourages everybody that “You can quit it whenever you do it (or vice versa).”
From this strong intention, WHO organization has determined his works that he has cultivated people to quit the paths of ruins for over 30 years and arranged the No Tobacco No Alcohol activity to promote Thai and foreigners to stop or quit all kinds of paths of ruins, especially alcohol, tobacco and drugs. This activity has been held via many networks such as schools, universities, temples and Kalayanamitra network including the religious networks – Christian, Islamic, Hindu, and Sikh – and expanded around the world. It is the activity which passes over the geographic and religious borders.
This activity makes the world realize the hazard of alcohol, tobacco and drugs widely which effects positively on the healthy mind and body of the people around the world. So WHO organization agreed to bestow the World No Tobacco Day Awards 2004 to the Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh on May 31st, 2004.
Her Royal Highness Princess Soamsavali offered the World No Tobacco Day Awards 2004 to the Most Ven. Phrabhavanaviriyakhun, the Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh's representative
The Most Ven. Phrarajbhavanavisudh unveiled about this award in the Inner Dream Kindergarten program that he thought that this award was for everyone who participated in this activity. He was just the representative to receive this honorable award from WHO organization. It would be our willpower to keep doing this activity until the tobacco is out of the world.
Translated by Chadawee Chaipooripat
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