Stillness Flowing, the new English biography about the life and teachings of Luang Por Chah, authored by Ajahn Jayasaro, is now available to the public.

Click on the following links to download the PDF, ePUB and Mobi versions of the book to your E-book reader, phone, tablet or computer.

This important work details the life and teachings of Luang Por Chah, also known as Ajahn Chah, and has been in the making for over two decades. This biography is based on the 1993 Thai biography of Luang Por Chah entitled Upalamani which was also authored by Ajahn Jayasaro. It includes translations from Upalamani, in particular many of the anecdotes and reminiscences of Luang Por’s disciples, as well as a significant amount of social, cultural, historical and doctrinal information to provide context to an audience that may be unfamiliar with Thai culture and its Buddhist heritage.

There will also also be physical copies available for free distribution at the Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery. Local supporters are requested to pick them up in person at the monastery due to the large size and weight of this book.

Venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi has kindly offered to give a public Dhamma Talk at the Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery on Sunday, March 4, 2018. The talk will begin at about 3:00pm following the regularly scheduling Sunday puja—chanting and meditation—starting at 2:00pm.

All are welcome to join us for the day. For those cannot make it in-person, you can tune in by watching the talk on YouTube:

• https://youtu.be/BgsbBWcKch8

Venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi is perhaps most well known for his publications, including translations of the Majjhima and Saṃyutta Nikāya, and most recently the Suttanipāta. Last year, Bhikkhu Bodhi gave a Dhamma talk to the Abhayagiri community based on the the teaching from the Āḷavaka Sutta.

You can learn more about Bhikkhu Bodhi at the following links:

• https://bodhimonastery.org/ven-bhikkhu-bodhi.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhikkhu_Bodhi

There is still space available on the Thanksgiving Retreat and registration will remain open until we have a waiting list.

November 17-25, 2018 at Mount Madonna Center in Watsonville, CA (near Santa Cruz)

If you already applied you will receive a formal confirmation from the retreat manager, Hitesi (hitesi3@gmail.com), in August. Please do not make travel arrangements until you receive this confirmation.

To apply, mail your deposit and registration to Paul Friedlander as indicated on the application.

Lead by the Abhayagiri Community

Abhayagiri Monastery in Redwood Valley, California and the Sanghapala Foundation invite you to join Ajahn Sudanto, Ajahn Karunadhammo, Ajahn Nyaniko, Debbie Stamp and others from the Abhayagiri Community for a 9-day retreat over the Thanksgiving holiday.

We will create a monastery environment during our time together, and we offer you this opportunity to explore the Dhamma in a setting that differs somewhat from a typical meditation retreat. We will all live the monastery life, following the Eight Precepts, taking only what is offered, and attempting to reflect on our every activity as part of our practice. This will include noble silence, morning and evening chanting, sitting and walking meditation, a work period, and daily Dhamma talks and teachings.

The retreat will be held from Saturday afternoon, November 17th, through Sunday morning, November 25, 2018, at the Mount Madonna Center in Watsonville, California. It’s a beautiful spiritual retreat center on a mountaintop setting and the closest airports are San Jose (45 miles), Oakland and San Francisco (both about 75 miles).

Because of the length of this retreat and the adherence to the Eight Precepts, you must previously have sat at least one five-day meditation retreat. Retreatants are requested to attend the entire retreat, from registration 10:30am-noon to the closing ceremony on Sunday morning approx. 11am. The facility is wheelchair accessible. We are unable to accommodate special dietary or environmental needs. We will eat a light breakfast and, in keeping with this monastic tradition, the daily meal (vegetarian) is eaten before noon; there is no evening meal or use of kitchen. Incense and candles are used at the morning and evening chanting periods. Note that this is a double-occupancy rooming setup (there are only a few single rooms available for elders and those with serious medical conditions). This is a beautiful center with very comfortable accommodations, but no camping/trailers possible for our retreat.

The retreat will be offered solely on dana (freewill donations); there is no set fee. (We do wish to make known that the new location is charging significantly more than the Angela Center did in past years – approximately double the cost).

Registration/lottery will remain open into August or until there is a waiting list, and applicants will be notified mid-August. Please note: no deposit refunds after October 1, 2018. This is a new policy for us, because Sanghapala is financially committed even if there are cancellations. Thank you for your understanding.

You can download the registration form here.
Please consult our calendar for more details.

This year’s Kaṭhina Ceremony at Abhayagiri has been moved to Sunday, October 28.

On the evening of January 15th, Luang Por Pasanno was asked by the Elders at Wat Pah Pong to give a video recorded Dhamma talk before the gathered assembly of monks and laypeople. Although the vast majority of the thousands present were Thai speakers, Luang Por was asked to give the talk in English. After a quick intro in Thai in which he explains that all the non-English speaking Thais in the audience will now have the unique opportunity to experience what the early Western disciples of Luang Por Chah felt when he was giving multiple, hour-long discourses in unfamiliar-to-them Isan or Thai language, Luang Por Pasanno begins his talk in English. A Youtube video of this talk can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/4gUbaaIrRfI

The first tuesday meditations and Dhamma talks at Berkeley Buddhist Monastery will not be meeting for January, February, and March while the monastics are on their winter retreat. They will resume again on April 3, 2018.

The annual winter retreat begins on January 2, 2018 and lasts for three months, ending on April 1st. During this time, the resident community takes time to engage in more formal meditation practice following a changing schedule of group and individual practice.

During these three months there will be no overnight guests accepted. (For overnight visits after the retreat please contact the monastery after April 1, 2018.) However, day visitors and those wishing to visit the monastery to participate in the meal offering or bring offerings of requisites at meal time are still welcome. It should be noted, however, that the community is practicing noble silence, and talking and conversations with the monastics and retreat crew are very limited.

We will continue to have the Sunday afternoon meditation and Dhamma talk (2:00 pm each Sunday) and the weekly lunar day observances, as on the website calendar.

For those interested in listening to or downloading Dhamma talks from the monastery website, we plan on posting new talks regularly throughout the retreat.

We will celebrate New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day at Abhayagiri Monastery. On New Year’s Eve there will be a ceremonial almsround at the monastery. New year’s day being Wan Phra, the monks will follow their usual almsround in Ukiah and Redwood Valley.

December 31 (New Year’s Eve)

9:45 am – Arrive
10:15 am – Monks’ Almsround at the monastery (ceremonial food offerings made directly into the monks’ bowls) *
10:45 am – Meal Offering (please bring a dish to share)
11:00 am – Blessing

2:00 pm – Afternoon Puja and Dhamma Talk
5:30 pm – Tea Time
7:30 pm – Evening Puja and possible Dhamma Talk
9:00 pm to 11:30pm – Walking or Sitting Meditation
11:30 pm – Paritta Chanting
12:01 am – Sharing the Merit

January 1 (Wan Phra, New Year’s Day)

8:00 to 10:30 am – Monk’s almsround in Ukiah and Redwood Valley
10:45 am – Meal offering at the monastery
7:30 pm – Evening Puja, Eight Precepts and Dhamma Talk
9:00 pm to … – Late Night Vigil

* For the ceremonial almsround on December 31st, please offer any kind of rice (white, brown, etc). Dry goods and other requisites can be placed on the Dana Table to be offered to the monks. Cooked food will be offered to the monks in the kitchen at 10:45 am. Please do not put money, checks, or canned foods into the monks’ bowls.

As the end of the year draws near and the Abhayagiri community prepares for Winter Retreat, there is still much trail maintenance and fire prevention work to do in the forest. We will therefore focus on working in the forest this weekend and have canceled the usual 2 pm Sunday program on Dec. 10. You are welcome to join us for the Sunday work afternoon, which will begin at 1 pm.

For those interested in Dhamma teachings this weekend, please come to the Upasika Day on Saturday, Dec. 9 or the Lunar Observance Evening which begins at 7:30 pm on Monday, Dec. 11.

On November 14th, 2017, Abhayagiri ordained Jordan as an anagārika. In addition, 2 sāmaṇeras: Rakkhito and Cittapālo (formerly anagārikas Gary and Ryan, respectively), were ordained 1 week later, on November 21st, 2017.

In case you missed them, you can watch the ordinations here:

We also have photos from Rakkhito and Cittapālo’s ordination:

Sāmaṇera Ordination of Anagārikas Gary and Ryan

And finally, a brief bio of each of the new ordainees:

Tan Rakkhito

Tan Rakkhito was born in 1961 in New Jersey. He lived most of his adult life in Oregon. As a young man he was drawn to the samana life he found in books, but at the time he was not able to follow that path. Many years later, after a life in the world, a timely reading of Bhikkhu Bodhi’s In the Buddha’s Words inspired him to once again explore monasticism. He found accord with the beloved and respected teacher Luang Por Pasanno, along with the Dhamma-rich Thai Forest Sangha. Tan Rakkhito took Anagārika precepts in November 2016, went forth as a Sāmaṇera in November 2017, and took full Bhikkhu precepts on November 4, 2018.

Tan Cittapālo

Tan Cittapālo was born and raised in the state of Maine. He first encountered Buddhism in 2011 during his gap year in Thailand. After reading Food for the Heart, Tan Cittapālo made his way to Abhayagiri, where he found a deep connection with the community and practice. Tan Cittapālo took full Bhikkhu ordination on August 25th, 2019, with Ajahn Pasanno as his preceptor.