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ROYAL PATRON OF TIPIṬAKA

Born in England and studied chemistry and liberal arts teaching in Lausanne, Switzerland, Her Royal Highness Princess Galyani Vadhana was a grand-daughter of King Chulalongkorn Chulachomklao the Great of Siam, who in 1893, ordered the Pāḷi Tipiṭaka to be printed in 39-volume set for the first time. 

As one of the country's pioneering lecturer in liberal arts education, the Princess was also a leading university scholar in French language and literature in Thailand. Her resolute academic standard and international mindedness as well as her personal simplicity were some of the Princess's trademark qualities known among her former students and close friends.

In 2003, when leaning about the World Tipiṭaka Project which would follow the magnanimous tradition of King of Siam's Tipiṭaka printing, the Princess kindly granted a private audience at her residence to members of the Dhamma Society Committee and Tipiṭaka Patrons both from Thailand and abroad. In 2004, Her Royal Highness graciously accepted to become the Honorary President of the Tipiṭaka Presentation Worldwide after six months of intensive fact-finding investigation of the Tipiṭaka Project by the Princess herself.

In 2005, on March 6th, the Princess Honorary President made an Inaugural Tipiṭaka Presentation to Her Excellency the President of Sri Lanka in an unprecedented 15-hour pilgrimage by a special flight from Bangkok to Colombo. Since then many institutions worldwide have requested the World Tipiṭaka Edition from Thailand. A special Commemorative 40-volume Tipiṭaka in Roman-script Edition is presented by Her Royal Highness annually on March 6th in Bangkok and abroad to international institutions worldwide, the anniversary of the World Tipiṭaka Inauguration, thereby following the meritorious presentation of Siam-script Tipiṭaka by grandfather, King Chulalongkorn Chulachomklao of Siam.

As Tipiṭaka Patron, the Princess initiated a private donation fund for the printing of Roman-script Tipiṭaka and has advised the World Tipiṭaka Project to initiate a modern-day Tipiṭaka Studies for lay people. In 2007, in response to the Princess's educational advice, a 40-volume Tipiṭaka Studies Reference in Pāḷi-language/Roman script was published for the first time in Bangkok by Dhamma Society, in her honour, specially on the occasion of the Princess's 84 Birthday Anniversary.

As the elder sister of His Majesty the King and the most esteemed senior member of the royal family, the Princess was the Royal Matriarch of the Royal Family until she passed away on January 2, 2008. She was 84.  

The beloved Princess would always be remembered for her great and gracious patronage of the World Tipiṭaka Project and its Presentation Worldwide.