Buddhism, perhaps, is India’s priceless gift to Asia, some say, ‘The Light of Asia’, which traversed across the Asian continent and beyond for over the past two thousand and five hundred years, since its birth in the cradle of the Gangatic basin in northern India between the 6th and 4th BCE. As Buddhism, with its cardinal thoughts, methods and practices, travelled distant lands of Asia – one through the ‘Uttarapath’ of central Asia and trans-Himalayan highlands (also known as the northern ‘Silk route’), and the other through peninsular India via erstwhile Ceylon (now, Sri Lanka) to Thailand, Indonesia and Burma (southern ‘silk route’, mostly through water way) – it blossomed into multifaceted school of thoughts and practices along the way, facilitated by legendary Buddhist missionaries under the patronage of emperor Ashoka. Now at the third millennium, Buddhism continues to be one of the influential spiritual forces with a following of over 500 million people across 30 countries, predominantly in Asia, but also including US, Europe and Canada.
Bahujana Hitaya Education Trust, through the funding of Dhama Dipa School, provides children in remote tribal areas with access to quality education and an opportunity for a better way of life. Some of the facilities however – due to a lack of funding – are made of straw and bamboo. A hut with two classrooms collapsed in a fierce tornado in December of 2003, and 13 children were stranded inside. Fortunately, nobody was injured. However, this incident served to show just how important proper classrooms are in ensuring the safety of our children and staff.
To address this problem, we managed to raise enough funds for expanding and adding more permanent and sound buildings to our campus. Unfortunately, the construction project suddenly had to be halted in January of 2012 due to a freeze on the promised capital. Currently, classes continue to be held in the old, temporary facilities surrounded by the lifeless, unfinished buildings, bricks and mortar of the construction site.
We appreciate all contributions, whether financial or material, irrelevant of size or value. You see, every little bit makes a significant difference and affects the lives of our children. If your donation is monetary, we will immediately apply it to our construction budget, getting a step closer to completing those desperately needed buildings and seeing to it that the children, staff, and volunteers are in a safe, stable, and suitable environment.
If you wish to better equip our children with the donation of any supplies in good condition, we will see to it that these materials have a long life and help to inspire as many children in their eagerness to learn as arrive through our campus gates. It is hard to believe that in this day and age of technology almost none of our students have ever even turned on a computer before, yet their young minds and curiosities itch at the sight of any personal technologies brought on campus by guests and volunteers. Your contribution will help to open up a new world for them, a gateway into the modern way of life.
School Supplies
Books
Electronics/technology/computer equipment
Stationary
Musical instruments
Athletic gear
Art supplies
Craft supplies
Anything else that would benefit and help children and teens
Enabling children to have access to technology, better facilities and equipment will empower marginalized tribal communities with meaningful education, better opportunities, and promising futures.
Education is an engine for change. While India’s economy is growing by leaps and bounds, many still do not have access to learning opportunities. The best hope to making a lasting and transformative change is to give all of India’s children access to quality education, education that gives them the tools to help themselves. With the support of generous donors, Dhamma Dipa School has been working since 2002 to fulfill this objective. Together, with your help, we can continue to give these young minds the chance they deserve to flourish and keep yet another generation of rural India from being left behind by the modern world.
To make a donation, please contact Chairman Ven. Dr. Dhammapiya at the email listed below with your information and how you would like to contribute. We can arrange to receive gifts via paypal, electronic transfer, or the post office. Additionally, we will provide you with any necessary correspondences that could help to make you eligible for a tax deduction on your gift. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration and profound generosity!