Wat Pa Kanjanabhisek and the Buddha Metta Project
Ajahn Sudhiro is abbot of Wat Pah Kanjanabhisek and the founder of the Buddha Metta Project. He has been ordained as part of the Dhammayut forest tradition for over twenty years. Ajahn Sudhiro is in the lineage of the founder of the forest tradition, Ajahn Mun, and has done periods of tudong practice as well as solitary practice in a cave for two and eight years. He is one of the older generation of forest practitioners that has practiced in the forest and often tells stories of his time in solitary practice. After this he founded Wat Pa Kanjanabhisek near his hometown and has founded projects to help the local community. He helps children receive health care and educates the nearby Khon Khaen community about monasticism and meditation.
In the last ten years, Ajahn Sudhiro has also been active internationally, teaching Buddhist groups in the UK and other parts of Europe. He regularly stays at the monasteries of the Ajahn Chah tradition here. He also established Sammapatipadarama monastery in Napier, New Zealand, where he now usually spends the rains retreat.
The Buddha Metta Project,in Loei Province, is a newly evolving project that will be a center for all people, both Buddhists and those interested in Buddhism, to live together and practice the tradition. Visitors will be asked to follow the basic precepts but they are not expected to be Buddhist. At the center there will be a mix of local people and visitors. Ajahn Sudhiro hopes that this will be an international center where monks and nuns from outside Thailand will come to stay and practice meditation in a traditional way in simple accommodations. This will be a Dhamma village who will focus on spreading metta throughout the world. The practice will show the Buddhist culture within the Thai rural way of living led by monks and nuns of the forest tradition and lay teachers. Ajahn Sudhiro envisions a place where pe! ople fro m all over the world can practice together in a harmonious environment. He especially hopes families can come to practice here and experience the Buddhist way of life together.
Wat Pah Kanjanabhisekis Ajahn Sudhiros temple. When he is not there, however, the monastery is quite quiet and with only a few residents. While he is staying there, and is not at Buddha Metta Project in nearby Loei province or traveling abroad, he offers opportunities for foreign laity to stay and practice meditation as well as the monastic life. With prior discussion and preparation with Ajahn Sudhiro some foreign men have ordained temporarily, and for longer periods of time. After discussing this possibility for a while with Ajahn Sudhiro and after determining the candidate is self-reliant the temporary ordination can take place. Because Ajahn Sudhiro is fluent in English, there is often an international community around him.
The daily schedule at Wat Pah Kanjanabhisek includes daily morning and evening chanting, group meditation throughout the day, and helping out with chores of sweeping, cleaning, and helping to prepare food with the local community. The community here, following the forest tradition, eat once a day at 8AM. Lay foreigners can also follow monks on alms round and the local community is happy and used to seeing the international community, even sometimes offering to the foreigners as well. The international community as well can have private interviews with Ajahn Sudhiro about their meditation practice, and can hear public dhamma talks as well. Depending on the timing of the stay the international community could also be involved in taking trips to visit nearby monasteries, or to visit the Buddha Metta Project and help with the construction.
Ajahn Sudhiro and his projects holds another opportunity for foreign engagement in Thai Buddhism. His ability in English and vision for international communities coming together to ! learn ab out Buddhism facilitate this. Foreigners can spend time with him at Wat Pah Kanjanabhisek to learn about Buddhism or temporarily ordain, as well as the Buddha Metta Project where there is a focus on practice of meditation and experiencing living the Dhamma.
