Sangharaja Saddharmaditya Srimat Gyanashree Mahathero | |
---|---|
জ্ঞানশ্রী মহাথের | |
Born | |
Nationality | Bangladeshi |
Occupation | Buddhist Monk |
Years active | 1944–present |
Parents |
|
Awards | See full list |
Gyanashree Mahathero (born 18 November 1925) is a Bangladeshi Buddhist monk. [1] The government of Bangladesh awarded him the Ekushey Padak in 2022 for his significant contribution to social service. [2] [3]
Gyanashree Mahathero was born on 18 November 1925 in the village of Domkhali, North Gujra, Raozan, Chittagong District. He has been staying at Nandankanan Buddhist Monastery in the Chittagong Hill Tracts since 1958. [4]
Mahathero became a shramana in 1944 and a monk in 1949. He studied till the entrance. He took the initiative to spread the economic, social, religious and educational life of the Buddhist common people in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. He established many religious and educational institutions in the hilly and plain areas. In 1974, he set up a monastery, where residential schools were set up to provide general education to poor, orphaned and helpless children in Buddhist communities. He established several Buddhist educational centers at Joypurhat and Rangpur. [4]
Cox's Bazar is a district in the Chittagong Division of Bangladesh. It is named after Cox's Bazar town. It is located 150 kilometres (93 mi) south of Chittagong. Cox's Bazar is also known by the names Panowa and Palongkee. The modern Cox's Bazar derives its name from Captain Hiram Cox, an army officer who served in British India. It is one of the fishing ports of Bangladesh, and contains one of the world's longest natural sea beaches.
The Chakma people or Changhma people (Chakma:𑄌𑄋𑄴𑄟𑄳𑄦), are an ethnic group from the eastern-most regions of the Indian subcontinent and Western Myanmar. They are the largest ethnic group of the Chittagong Hill Tracts region of southeastern Bangladesh, and the largest in the Chakma Autonomous District Council of Mizoram, India. Significant Chakma populations are found in the northeast Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura and Assam.
Buddhism is the third-largest religious affiliation and formed about 0.63% of the population of Bangladesh. It is said that Buddha once in his life came to this region of East Bengal to spread his teachings and he was successful in converting the local people to Buddhism, specially in the Chittagong division and later on Pala empire propagate and patronized Buddhist religion throughout the Bengal territory. About 1 million people in Bangladesh adhere to the Theravada school of Buddhism. Over 65% of the Buddhist population is concentrated in the Chittagong Hill Tracts region, where it is the predominant faith of the Rakhine, Chakma, Marma, Tanchangya, other Jumma people and the Barua. The remaining 35% are Bengali Buddhists. Buddhist communities are present in the urban centers of Bangladesh, particularly Chittagong and Dhaka.
Naogaon District is a district in northern Bangladesh, part of the Rajshahi Division. It is named after its headquarters, the city of Naogaon in Naogaon Sadar Upazila.
Ekushey Padak is the second highest civilian award in Bangladesh, introduced in memory of the martyrs of the Bengali Language Movement of 1952. The award is given to recognize contributions in a number of fields, including culture, education, and economics. The Ministry of Cultural Affairs administers the award.
Barua is a Bengali-speaking Indo-Aryan ethnic group native to Chittagong Division in Bangladesh and Rakhine State in Myanmar, where they are known as the Maramagyi or Maramagri or particularly the Magh Barua. According to Arakanese chronology, the Barua Buddhists have lived there for five thousand years. Another derivation of 'Barua' is 'Baru' and 'Arya' meaning great aryan. They are commonly identified by their last name, "Barua". Barua is derived from "Baru" meaning "great" and "ua", meaning "noble rulers". In Myanmar, Barua Maghs are classified as one of the seven ethnic groups that make up the Rakhine nation. In West Bengal (India), Barua Magh Buddhist Community is recognized as Scheduled Tribe (ST). The physical characteristics of Barua (Maramagyi) people are Mongolian, their stature is low,face is broad and flat, cheekbones high and wide, nose falt and bridgeless, and eyes small with eyelids obliquely set. Their list of favourite foods invariably includes shnutki machhor(dry fish), sea fish and spicy food prepared with lots of oil and chilli, Gudog with bamboo shoots. Different kinds of shnutki an indication of their origin can be identified. For instance, according to multiple respondents the Siddala and Hangor shnutki are consumed by this particular Arakanese community. Borga(pork) is the most commonly consumed meat by the Barua Magh community.
Many adherents of Buddhism have experienced religious persecution because of their adherence to the Buddhist practice, including unwarranted arrests, imprisonment, beating, torture, and/or execution. The term also may be used in reference to the confiscation or destruction of property, temples, monasteries, centers of learning, meditation centers, historical sites, or the incitement of hatred towards Buddhists.
Chittagong Collegiate School is a government educational institution in Chittagong, the southern port city in Bangladesh. It provides education from 5th to 12th grade. The school was established in 1836, and in 2016 celebrated its 180 years of establishment.
Prajnananda Mahathera is a socially engaged Buddhist monk in Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh.
Sukomal Barua is a Bangladeshi educationist. He is a professor in the Department of Pali and Buddhist Studies at University of Dhaka. He has been awarded the prestigious Ekushey Padak in 2006 by the Government of Bangladesh for his contribution to education. He is a member of advisory council in Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
H H Sanghanayaka Suddhananda Mahathero was a Bangladeshi Buddhist monk. He was awarded Ekushey Padak in 2012 by the Government of Bangladesh for his contribution to social work. He served as the President of Bangladesh Bouddha Kristi Prachar Sangha.
Upa-Sangharaj Satya Priya Mahathero was a Bangladeshi Buddhist pundit, writer, religious leader and social worker. He is mostly known for received the highest honourable national prize of Bangladesh "EKUSHEY PADAK". He was the President of Bangladesh Sangharaj Bhikkhu Mahasava. He was the first translator & writer of 'The Chullyabarga' which is an important part of highest religious book of Buddhist called "TRIPITHAK".
Syed Mohammad Saifur Rahman Nizami is a Bangladeshi Islamic scholar and researcher of Hadith. He was awarded Ekushey Padak in 2020 by the government of Bangladesh.
Jyotipal Mahathero was a Bangladeshi Buddhist monk. He was the 10th Sangharaja of Buddhists in Bangladesh.
MA Malek is a Bangladeshi journalist who is currently the editor of the first Dainik Azadi of Independent Bangladesh. The Government of Bangladesh awarded him the Ekushey Padak in Journalism in 2022 for his significant contribution in journalism.
Shahanaz Sultana Is a Bangladeshi agricultural officer and Scientist. She is the Chief Scientific Officer of the Department of Biotechnology, Bangladesh Rice Research Institute. She was awarded the Ekushey Padak in 2022 by the Government of Bangladesh for his significant contribution in research on the production of high yielding varieties of paddy.
QABM Rahman is a former Bangladeshi government official who was a freedom fighter. He was first the director and later the director general of Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority. He was the first chairman and managing director of Bangladesh Shipping Corporation.
Dutanga bhante SaranankarMohathera is a Bangladeshi Buddhist monk, preacher, Buddhist rights activist, and the chief abbot of the Gayanasarana Buddhist Forest Monastery, in Rangunia, southeastern Chittagong District.
Jinbodhi Bhikkhu is a Bangladeshi professor who teaches in the Department of Pali at the University of Chittagong. He was awarded the Ekushey Padak by the Government of Bangladesh in 2024 for his special contribution to education.