Chah Subhatto

Infobox Buddhist biography
name = Laung Por Chah

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birth_date = birth date|1918|6|17|df=y
birth_place = Ubon, Thailand
death_date = death date and age|1992|1|16|1918|6|17|df=y
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nationality = Thai
denomination =
school = Theravada
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occupation = Buddhist monk
teacher = Ven. Mun Bhuridatta
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website = [http://www.ajahnchah.org/ ajahnchah.org]

Venerable Ajahn Chah Subhaddo (Chao Khun Bodhinyanathera) (Thai:ชา สุภัทโท , alternatively spelled Achaan Chah, occasionally with honorific titles "Luang Por" and "Phra") (17 June 1918, Thailand – 16 January 1992) was an influential and celebrated teacher of the Buddhadharma in the twentieth century. Respected and loved in his own country as a man of great wisdom, he was also instrumental in establishing Theravada Buddhism in the West. Beginning with the founding of Cittaviveka monastery in Chithurst, West Sussex, U.K., the Thai Forest Tradition of Ajahn Chah spread throughout Europe, the United States and the British commonwealth.

In his native Thailand Ajahn Chah established the monasteries of Wat Nong Pah Pong and Wat Pah Nanachat in Northeastern Thailand. Wat Pah Pong now includes over 250 branches in Thailand, as well as over 15 associated monasteries and ten lay practice centers around the world. Wat Pah Nanachat was established as the first Thai Forest Tradition monastery specifically for training Westerners in the monastic Vinaya. It is, of course, a center for training people of all ethnicities. Several of Ajahn Chah's Western students have established monasteries throughout the west.

The dhamma talks of Ajahn Chah were recorded, transcribed and translated into several languages.

Over one million people attended Ajahn Chah's funeral in 1992, including the Thai royal family. He left behind a legacy of Dhamma talks, students, and monasteries.

Biography

Ven. Ajahn Chah was born on June 17th, 1918 near Ubon Rajathani in North-East Thailand. His family were farmers. He ordained as a monk in April 1939.

The Thai Forest Tradition

During the early part of the twentieth century Theravada Buddhism underwent a revival in Thailand due to the fortuitous presence of outstanding teachers whose intentions were to raise the standards of Buddhist practise throughout the country. One of these teachers was the Venerable Ajahn Mun Bhuridatta. Ajahn Chah was a student of Ajahn Mun and continued his high standards of practise when he himself became a teacher.

The monks of this tradition keep very strictly to the original monastic rule laid down by the Buddha known as the patimokkha or the vinaya. The early major schisms in the Buddhist sangha were largely due to disagreements over how strictly the training rules should be applied. Some opted for a degree of flexibility (some would argue liberality) whereas others took a conservative view believing that the rules should be kept just as the Buddha had framed them. The Theravada tradition is the heir to the latter view. An example of the strictness of the discipline might be the rule regarding eating. In the tradition of Ajahn Chah a monk who is not ill may not eat between noon and dawn the following day. This is not an arbitrary rule but follows the recommendation of the Buddha that it is highly beneficial to eat in only one part of the day. Also this discipline is sometimes augmented and supported by various ascetic practices known as dhutanga used on an occasional or regular basis to deepen devotional practice. They might, for example, eat only one meal a day, sleep outside under a tree, or dwell in secluded forests or graveyards.

Famous Western students

*Venerable Ajahn Sumedho: Abbot of [http://www.amaravati.org Amaravati Buddhist Monastery] , Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire England
*Venerable Ajahn Khemadhammo : Abbot of [http://www.foresthermitage.org.uk The Forest Hermitage] , Warwickshire, England
*Venerable [http://www.forestsangha.org/munindo4.htm Ajahn Munindo] : Abbot of [http://www.ratanagiri.org.uk Aruna Ratanagiri Buddhist Monastery] , Northumberland, England
*Venerable [http://www.abhayagiri.org/index.php/main/community_member/303/ Ajahn Pasanno] : Co-abbot of Abhayagiri Monastery Redwood Valley, California, USA
*Venerable Ajahn Brahm : Spiritual Director of the [http://www.bswa.org Buddhist Society of Western Australian] and Abbot of Bodhinyana Buddhist Monastery, Serpentine WA, Australia
*Venerable Ajahn Amaro : Co-abbot of Abhayagiri Monastery Redwood Valley, California, USA
*Venerable [http://www.forestsangha.org/viradha4.htm Ajahn Viradhammo] : Abbot of [http://www.tisarana.ca Tisarana Buddhist Monastery] , Perth, Ontario, Canada
*Joseph Kappel
*Jack Kornfield, co-founder of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts
* Many other Monk westerners see External link 1Listen
filename=T06-09 A Chah Conditions of the Mind.ogg
title="Enlightenment"
description= Dhamma talks
format=Ogg

Notes

References

*"A Still Forest Pool: The Insight Meditation of Achaan Chah" (Jack Kornfield ed.). Theosophical Publishing House (1985). ISBN 0-8356-0597-3.
*"Being Dharma: The Essence of the Buddha's Teachings". Shambahla Press (2001). ISBN 1-57062-808-4.
*"Food for the Heart" (Ajahn Amaro, ed.). Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2002. ISBN 0-86171-323-0.
*" [http://buddhistpublishing.com/BN/application/Application.php?ProductCode=5144 Teachings of a Buddhist Monk] ", Ajahn Sumedho, (Ed. Diana St Ruth — Illustrator Marcelle Hanselaar), Buddhist Publishing Group, 1990/2001. ISBN 0-946672-23-7.

External links

* [http://www.watnongpahpong.org/aboutajahnchah.php Short biography and picture] .
* [http://www.ajahnchah.org/videos.htm Video: detailed biography of Ajahn Chah]
* [http://www.watnongpahpong.org/indexe.php Website of Wat Nong Pah Pong]
* [http://www.watnongpahpong.org/sakhananae.php International branch monasteries of Wat Nong Pah Pong]
* [http://ajahnchah.org/ Ajahn Chah website] - in English and other languages, with useful links and info.
* [http://www.muttodaya.org/ Muttodaya Forest Monastery] - Affiliated monastery in Germany for Western monks.

Teachings

* [http://ajahnchah.org/pdf/the_teachings_of_ajahn_chah_web.pdf PDF ebook: The Teachings of Ajahn Chah] - main collection of Dhamma talks.
* [http://ajahnchah.org/book/index.php Dhamma talks by Ajahn Chah] .
* [http://www.watnongpahpong.org/mp3playt-e.php Dhamma talks in MP3 audio format, with English translation] .
* [http://www.forestsangha.org Portal of the Ajahn Chah Sangha, including MP3s] .