Mahāvana Forest Monastery is being established in a remote part of Sri Lanka in the Thai Forest Tradition as taught by Venerable Ajahn Chah, inspired by the ancient forest monasteries of the Buddha’s time. It aims to provide a quiet forest environment for meditation and contemplation in a monastic setting.
The monastery’s purpose is to provide a peaceful monastic environment that supports monks practicing the Buddha’s teachings and eventually give people an opportunity to ordain in the monastic order.
Life in the monastery follows the peaceful rhythm of the Thai Forest Tradition.
The monastery is being built gradually using simple and natural materials, with a focus on earth construction. The aim is to create a quiet place that is environmentally friendly and pleasant to live in, supporting simplicity, renunciation, and the development of meditation.
Mahāvana Forest Monastery was founded by Ajahn Medhino, who was ordained at Wat Pa Nanachat and has been a monk for over 30 years.
He trained and practiced for many years with several respected forest teachers in Thailand. He also spent some years practicing in Australia and New Zealand.
For the past 15 years he has lived primarily in the forests of Sri Lanka, mostly in solitude.
The monastery is now being developed on a small area of beautiful forested land that was generously donated by local villagers who were inspired by Ajahn Medhino’s practice.
While primarily a training monastery for monastics, Mahāvana Forest Monastery is also a place where laypeople are welcome to come and stay for short or longer periods to practice with the monks, according to availability.
Mahāvana Forest Monastery is intended to be a quiet place for the practice of the Buddha’s path to freedom.