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Likewise, Benny Liow, a Buddhist intellectual, had also done some
study on his contribution and compiled his research into a coffee
T he External Buddhist societies in table book titled a K. Sri Dhammananda – a Pictorial Retrospect in

tertiary institutions
Success Factors were formed, not so 1997 (BGF publication). After his demise, Ven. Jimin, a Malaysian
nun now doing her PhD in Taiwan, also did some research on
of Ven.K.Sri students were inspired him, and presented a paper on the contribution of Ven. K. Sri
much because some
Dhammananda at the 2 International Conference on Malaysian
nd
Dhammananda’s by the Dharma but Buddhism. I have also written a little booklet, Little Stories of a
Great Monk a few months after his demise.
more because they
Missionary felt a sense of crisis These documentations showed us how, through the personal

Works posed by Christian quality of Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda, he was able to transform the
evangelisation. landscape of Malaysian Buddhism. His personal qualities - such as
his Dharma missionary spirit, his exemplary leadership, his literary
and oratory skills, his dignified yet approachable personality, and
his wits and wisdom, are beyond doubt the critical factors that led
Venerable K. Sri Dhammananda is undoubtedly one of the most to his success in carrying out missionary works in Malaysia.
prominent Buddhist monks who has contributed significantly to the
development of Malaysian Buddhism. His missionary activities While acknowledging his personal quality, one cannot ignore
in Malaysia, from January 1952 till his demise in August 2006, other factors that also played an important role in his success as
have contributed so much to Malaysian Buddhism that the Young a missionary. In this article, I would like to examine the external
Buddhist Association of Malaysia (YBAM), in the 1980s, honored factors contributing to his successful missionary works. These
him as the “Father of English Speaking Buddhists” (The YBAM external factors are important for us to understand a historical event
also honoured Ven. Chuk Mor as the “Father of Chinese Speaking in its right perspective.
Buddhists”). Although this honour was not bestowed in an official
manner or through any kind of selection process but emerged in English as a Medium of Communication
daily conversation, it is well accepted by the Buddhist community.

Perhaps the single most important external factor in missionary
His contribution had also prompted Leong Kok Hing, former work is the language medium. Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda arrived
President of YBAM, to write an article in 1986 (the same article in Malaysia at a time when the country was still under British rule.
is reprinted in the Voice of Buddhism, Vol. 42, April 2007) listing English was then the medium of instruction in most schools, as
down nine major areas of contribution of Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda. well as in colleges. English was therefore popularly spoken and

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