Sati Store: Everyday Dhamma for Urban Life

BANGKOK, Oct. 19, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Chulalongkorn University's Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts and Suan Mokkh Bangkok have created "Sati Store," a mobile cart that makes mindfulness and Dhamma accessible to urban residents through creative activities and everyday products.

The project was initiated by Dr. Naputsamohn Junpiban, a lecturer in the Department of Creative Arts (Exhibition and Experience Design), with support from the Faculty's Design Innovation Grant. Since November 2025, researchers, community members, and monks have participated in workshops to explore how mindfulness can be communicated in ways suited to modern lifestyles. Rather than measuring success through sales or visitor numbers, the team considers the conversations around the cart its most meaningful outcome.

Designed as a "convenience store for knowing," the mobile exhibition invites visitors to explore their emotions without feeling that they are attending a sermon. Activities include the Mindful Kathina Offering Tree, where participants share experiences through Collection Slip or Emotional Recovery Withdrawal slips. "Shades of Sati" presents mindfulness as five changing states, from awakening and stability to fading and returning awareness. Other activities encourage participants to consider how they might respond to difficult situations and reflect on relationships that need greater care, gratitude, or understanding.

The store also offers practical objects that serve as mindfulness reminders. An A5-sized water bottle encourages office workers to pause and check in with themselves, while bags, pins, fans, and keychains carry messages intended to bring users back to their breath and the present moment.

Project advisor Phra Khru Thammarat of Wat Yanawesakwan emphasized that mindfulness is not distant from daily life or limited to Buddhism. Simple reminders can help people recognize emotions before stress develops into anger, conflict, or despair. Phra Suksan Subhattho added that mindfulness is especially relevant in the social media age, when people often measure their worth through likes, comparison, and social acceptance. He described mindfulness as the courage to face sadness, loneliness, and anger without self-judgment.

The project has attracted interest from hotels, hospitals, banks, and temples and was named a Top 3 Finalist for the Creative Excellence Awards by the Creative Economy Agency. Ultimately, Dr. Naputsamohn said, the true Sati Store is not the cart or its products, but the ability to pause, breathe, and observe one's mind whenever it is most needed.

Read the full article at https://www.chula.ac.th/en/highlight/424959/

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SOURCE Chulalongkorn University Communication Center