This year, Abhayagiri turns 30 on June 1st. Due to the growing size of our community and some logistical considerations, the current plan is to celebrate this occasion in two separate, but related events. It happens that Vesakha Puja - the full moon of May commemorating the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and final nibbāna - is Sunday, May 31st. This is an amazing coincidence that it falls so close…
Update: The teachings and readings from the winter retreat are now available via this link: https://www.abhayagiri.org/talks/collections/1/177-winter-retreat-2026-the-foundation-of-mindfulness The monastery entered the annual three-month winter retreat on January 3, 2026. Our Abbot, Ajahn Nyaniko, will be in Thailand until early March and on solitary retreat for most of March with the exception of…
Just as the willingness to both give and receive is a mark of any sound human relationship, the giving and receiving of alms ( free-will offering of material support) has always been a part of most cultures. It centres people around kindness and humility and reminds us that although we are all subject to the changeable fortune of the world, our values and relatedness can remain constant. For this reason, alms-round ( ’pindapada’= ‘scrap-gathering’) is the heart of the livelihood of a Buddhist monastic (or ‘samana’). We are alms-people, not ‘monks’ or ‘nuns’, and certainly not priests. To rely…
This Dhamma talk was offered onMarch 14, 2026 at Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery.
