After the Buddha preached his first sermon at Isipatana he gave this commission to his audience; “Wander forth for the good of the many, for the welfare of the many, out of compassion for the world. Let no two of you go in the same direction. Teach the Dhamma that is lovely, in the beginning, the middle and the end.” From its very beginning Buddhist Sangha took this call to heart and because they did the Dhamma eventually spread to every corner of Asia. And of the monks who undertook to proclaim the Dhamma far and wide none have been more energetic and ready to do so than those of Sri Lanka. It was Sri Lankan monks who spread Theravada to Burma and the various kingdoms which made up what is now Thailand. It was they who probably helped Buddhism survive in south India for as long as it did.
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