Buddhist | Theravada

In the Theravada Buddhist forest tradition, practitioners are encouraged to ‘read their own minds.’ Rather than only reading books and acquiring intellectual theories about ourselves and our world, one develops the ability to know one’s own mind – and the world it creates – through direct, non-verbal experience. This is done by cultivating our innate capacity to be clearly aware in the present moment, the ‘classroom’ in which we can learn about our body and mind, and how to make peace with their constantly changing nature.

Name of the tradition

Theravada Buddhism

Broad school

Forest Tradition

Specific school

Thai-Australian Forest Tradition

What can attendees expect?

Attendees will be exposed to different methods of meditation that can help us to be with our bodies, thoughts and emotions – especially difficult ones – just as they are. The emphasis will be on cultivating an open and receptive awareness of whatever occurs, with an attitude of kindness, gentleness, non-interference, and readiness to learn from every experience.  We will also explore ways of fostering beneficial mental qualities such as gratitude, loving friendliness, and joy. Through these means, we can gradually learn how to transcend the thinking mind and experience the greater quietude, clarity, and stillness of mind from which freeing insights can arise.

About the teacher

Venerable Munissara Bhikkhuni

Venerable Munissara earned a bachelor’s degree in History from Harvard University (USA) and an MA in Southeast Asian Studies from Chulalongkorn University (Thailand). She started practising meditation in the 1990s, became a novice nun in 2009 and a fully-ordained Buddhist nun (bhikkhuni) in 2012. After six years of monastic training in Thailand, she joined the community at Dhammasara Nuns Monastery outside Perth, Australia. She regularly leads guided meditations for lay visitors at Dhammasara and has taught meditation at Dhammaloka Buddhist Centre and Jhana Grove Meditation Centre in Perth and at various settings in Thailand including monasteries, schools, and a prison. In 2021-2022 she served as Secretary of the Australian Sangha Association.

Further resources

Books