The annual Great Kathina Robe Offering (Thot Kathin Samakkhi) at Wat Phra Dhammakaya is the grandest merit-making event of the year. Each year it honors Khun Yai Achan Maha Ratana Upasika Chandra Khonnokyoong, the temple’s founding benefactor and beloved teacher.
When is the Great Kathina?
Around November each year is the time of the Great Kathina Samakkhi at Wat Phra Dhammakaya. During the rainy-season retreat, disciples collect offerings, and on this day the robes and requisites are formally offered to the Sangha.
Program highlights
- Morning: alms-giving (Tak Bat) to hundreds of monks
- Afternoon: the grand Kathina ceremony held outdoors, offering the Kathina robe to the monastic community
- Chanting and dedication of merit to ancestors and all beings
Why this Kathina is special
It commemorates Khun Yai Achan, whose vision and dedication shaped Wat Phra Dhammakaya. Offering a Kathina robe within the Kathina season (the month after the rainy retreat) brings the great blessing of the Kathin—one of the few acts of giving whose merit must be received and announced by the assembled Sangha on the same day.
How to join — On-site and Online
- On-site: Wat Phra Dhammakaya, Khlong Sam, Khlong Luang, Pathum Thani 12120. Arrive early for the morning alms round.
- Online: Join via Line OA “@dhammakaya” or watch the live broadcast on the temple’s Facebook page and DMC channel.
Before the great Kathina
Donors traditionally accumulate merit through 3 Thot Pha Pa (Kasina) offerings: on Dhammachai Day, the Dhammakaya Master Day and 10 October, supporting 30,000 temples nationwide. See everything in the Dhammakaya Merit Calendar.
