Elders - Open Sangha Foundation

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Elders

Here are some old friends who can now be called elders because each
one is over 70 years old and have been in the dhamma more that 35 years.
This page works on cell phone when held sideways


	Achan-Dhammavidu Koh Samui Surat		Achan DhammaVidu ordained 1997 and after spendin many years at Dohm Kiem close the Wat Suan Mokkh is now the main teacher at DipaBhavan living with Achan Pho

	Ajahn-Ammaro Hertfordshire UK		Ajahn Amaro (born 1956)[1] is a Theravāda Buddhist monk and teacher, and abbot of the Amaravati Buddhist Monastery at the eastern end of the Chiltern Hills in South East England. The centre, in practice as much for ordinary people as for monastics, is inspired by the Thai Forest Tradition and the teachings of the late Ajahn Chah.[1] Its chief priorities are the practice and teaching of Buddhist ethics, together with traditional concentration and insight meditation techniques, as an effective way of dissolving suffering.

	Ajahn-Bodhipala Hertfordshire UK		Ajahn Bodhipālā was born in South-East Asia in 1940 and had three children with her now deceased husband. She also has five grandchildren. She studied applied mathematics and worked as a computer programmer for nearly twenty years. She was able to 'go forth' as an anagārikā in 1998 and received sīladhāra ordination in 1999. Venerable Ajahn Sumedho was her preceptor. Her daily life in the monastery is challenging, since she has to simplify the complexity of her thoughts in order to give space to the intuitive knowledge to develop. Owing to her mathematical training, she is not surprised that this process involves a lot of patience and endurance, and is time-consuming. She considers her work in the monastery as a tool to measure her level of practice, and also as a litmus test of her ability in maintaining herself as an observer instead of as a doer. She realizes that no better place exists on earth for being able to observe the activities of her mind, and at the same time she can accumulate good deeds by serving the sangha at Amaravati.

	Ajahn-Pissano Redwood Valley CA		Ajahn Pasanno took ordination in Thailand in 1974 with Venerable Phra Khru Ñāṇasirivatana as preceptor. During his first year as a monk he was taken by his teacher to meet Ajahn Chah, with whom he asked to be allowed to stay and train. One of the early residents of Wat Pah Nanachat, Ajahn Pasanno became its abbot in his ninth year. During his incumbency, Wat Pah Nanachat developed considerably, both in physical size and reputation. Spending 24 years living in Thailand, Ajahn Pasanno became a well-known and highly respected monk and Dhamma teacher. He moved to California on New Year’s Eve of 1997 to share the abbotship of Abhayagiri with Ajahn Amaro. In 2010 Ajahn Amaro accepted an invitation to serve as abbot of Amaravati Buddhist Monastery in England, leaving Ajahn Pasanno to serve as sole abbot of Abhayagiri for the next eight years. In spring of 2018, Ajahn Pasanno stepped back from the role of abbot, leaving the monastery for a year-long retreat abroad. After returning from his sabbatical, Ajahn Pasanno now serves as an anchor of wisdom and guidance for the community. The monastery is now under the active leadership of Ajahn Ñāṇiko, who Ajahn Pasanno requested to serve as abbot.

	Ajahn-Ratanavao		Ajahn Ratanavaṇṇo was born in Korat, north-east Thailand, on 10 February 1971. After finishing high school he worked in an industrial concern for a year, and then, as he had not been called up for military service, he decided to become a monk for three months. Those three months have extended indefinitely. In his fifth year as a monk Ajahn Ratanavaṇṇo moved to Wat Pah Nanachat, where he acted as the monastery secretary. In 1999 he spent a year at Abhayagiri Monastery, before moving to Amaravati in 2001. Ajahn Ratanavaṇṇo returned to Amaravati in late November 2012, after spending the three previous years back in Thailand.

	Ajahn-Sundara Hertfordshire UK		Ajahn Sundarā was born in France in 1946. She studied dance in England and France. After working for a few years as a dancer and teacher of contemporary dance, she had the opportunity while living and studying in England to attend a talk and later a retreat led by Ajahn Sumedho. His teachings and experience of the monastic way of life in the Forest tradition impressed her deeply. Before long this led her to visit to Chithurst Monastery, where in 1979 she asked to join the monastic community as one of the first four women novices. In 1983 she received ordination as a sīladhāra, with Ajahn Sumedho as her preceptor. After spending five years at Chithurst Monastery she went to live at Amaravati Monastery, where she took part in establishing the nuns’ community.

	Bhikkhu-Bodhi Lafayette NJ		Bhikkhu Bodhi is an American Buddhist monk from New York City. Born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1944, he obtained a BA in philosophy from Brooklyn College (1966) and a PhD in philosophy from Claremont Graduate School (1972).Drawn to Buddhism in his early 20s, after completing his university studies he traveled to Sri Lanka, where he received novice ordination in 1972 and full ordination in 1973, both under the late Ven. Ananda Maitreya, the leading Sri Lankan scholar-monk of recent times.

	Christopher-Titmass Totnes Devon		I have been living primarily chargin high fees and also want money as donations (dana in the Buddhist tradition) since 1970 when I ordained as a Buddhist monk in Thailand. All teachings are offered on a donation basis. If you wish, you might like to become a paid monthly subscriber. Your paid subscription will go directly to support the teachings, the office expenses and support for the family and myself.

	Geshe Kelsang Gyatso London		On 19 September 2022, the NKT announced the death of Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso Rinpoche ( Geshe Kelsang Gyatso was a Buddhist monk, meditation teacher, scholar, and author. He was the founder and spiritual director of the New Kadampa Tradition-International Kadampa Buddhist Union, a registered non-profit, modern Buddhist organization that came out of the Gelugpa school/lineage.

	Gil-Fosdale CA		Gil is the founding teacher and a co-guiding teacher of the Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, California, and the Insight Retreat Center in Santa Cruz, California. He is also a founder of the Sati Center for Buddhist Studies, where he is the Dean of its Buddhist Chaplaincy training programs. He has trained as a monk and as a teacher in both Burmese Theravāda and Japanese Sōtō Zen. In addition to books on Buddhist meditation practice, his published translations of Buddhist texts, including The Dhammapada: A New Translation of the Buddhist Classic with Annotations (Shambhala, 2005) and The Buddha Before Buddhism: A Translation of the Aṭṭhakavagga with Commentary (Shambhala, 2016). His dissertation was published in 2014 as Dawn of the Bodhisattva Path: The Early Perfection of Wisdom (Institute of Buddhist Studies and BDK America).

	Santikaro Norfork Wi		Kevala Retreat Center was inspired by Wat Suan Mokkh in Thailand. Sitting on a hill in Southwestern Wisconsin, it consists of three guest houses where people can come stay and retreat either alone or with a group. There are only a few rooms available, so not many people will be there at one time. In the front, there are two of the guest houses, one with a shared kitchen and library space upstairs, and the house of Santikaro and his wife Marie Jo. Marie Jo and Santikaro spend some time each day taking care of the wildlife, the trails, and the horses that live on the property, but they are both available to schedule a chat with at any time if you just knock on their door. Walking to the back, there is a long soft grass trail with 6 or 5 places to veer off and sit on a little bench in seclusion. It’s like a beautiful little nature park full of native flora and fauna. There is also one guest house in the back of the property that sits more secluded than the houses in front. Santikaro and Marie Jo also keep three friendly cats that wander around making friends with the guests. Guests are expected to bring their own food, keep to their own schedule, and to clean up after themselves. It’s a wonderful place to come and retreat on your own or in a group.

	Shinzen-Young North; Yardley PA		Shinzen is like no other teacher you’ve ever encountered. He merges scientific clarity, a rare grasp of source-language teachings East and West, and a gift for sparking insight through unexpected analogies, illustrations, humor, and firsthand accounts that reveal the inner journey to be as wondrous as any geographical expedition.

	Thanissaro Bhikkhu Valley Center CA		This is Achan Thannissaro wat founded in 1990's there are a number of western monks