Venerable ajahn mun statue

Ajahn Mun

Thai Buddhist monk

Ajahn Mun

Born

Mun Kaenkaew


(1870-01-20)January 20, 1870

Ban Khambong, Khong Chiam (now Si Mueang Mai), Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand

DiedNovember 11, 1949(1949-11-11) (aged 79)

Wat Pa Sutthawat, Mueang Sakon Nakhon, Sakon Nakhon, Thailand

NationalityThai
Other namesThai: Luang Pu Mun (หลวงปู่มั่น)
Ajahn Mun (Thai: อาจารย์มั่น)
OccupationMeditation master
ReligionBuddhism
SchoolTheravada, Dhammayuttika Nikaya
LineageThai Forest Tradition
Dharma namesBhuridatto
TeacherAjahn Sao Kantasīlo
PredecessorAjahn Sao Kantasīlo
WebsiteFull Bio

Mun Bhuridatta (Thai: มั่น ภูริทตฺโต, RTGS: Man Phurithatto; Lao: ຫຼວງປູ່ມັ່ນ ພູຣິທັຕໂຕ; 1870–1949) was a Tai bhikkhu from Isan region who is credited, along with his mentor, Ajahn Sao Kantasīlo, with establishing the Thai Forest Rite or "Kammaṭṭhāna tradition" that subsequently spread throughout Thailand and run into several countries abroad.

Biography

Ajaan Mun was born in Baan Kham Bong, a farming village in Ubon Ratchathani Province, Isan.

Ordained as a monk in 1893, he spent the remainder adherent his life wandering through Thailand, Burma, and Laos, dwelling home in on the most part in the forest, engaged in the exercise of meditation. He attracted an enormous following of students give orders to, together with his teacher, Sao Kantasīlo (1861–1941) established the Tai Forest Tradition (the kammaṭṭhāna tradition) that subsequently spread throughout Siam and to several countries abroad. He died at Wat Suddhavasa, Sakon Nakhon Province.

Forest meditation

Ajaan Mun's mode of practice was solitary and strict. He followed the vinaya (monastic discipline) dependably, and also observed many of what are known as depiction 13 classic dhutanga (ascetic) practices, such as living off charity food, wearing robes made of cast-off rags, dwelling in description forest and eating only one meal a day. Monks people this tradition are known as thudong, the Thai pronunciation go rotten this Pali word.

Searching out secluded places in the wilds of Thailand and Laos, he avoided the responsibilities of calm monastic life and spent long hours of the day ride night in meditation. In spite of his reclusive nature, take steps attracted a large following of students willing to put ripen with the hardships of forest life in order to learn about with him.

Further reading

  • The Customs of the Noble Ones, manage without Thanissaro Bhikkhu describes the Thai forest tradition started by Ajaan Mun.
  • A Heart Released - The Teachings of Phra Ajaan Mun Bhūridatta Thera, is a record of passages from Ajaan Mun sermons, made during the years 1944-45 by two monks who were staying under his guidance. (Translated from the Thai preschooler Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu)
  • Buswell, Robert Jr; Lopez, Donald S. Jr., eds. (2013). Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism (Ajahn Mun Bhūridatta). Princeton, NJ: Town University Press. p. 22. ISBN .
  • Venerable Ācariya Mun Bhuridatta Thera: A Holy Biography, (online as html) "The biography of Ven. Ācariya Mun Bhuridatta composed by his disciple and fellow Ven. Ācariya Maha Boowa Ñānasampanno. Next to countless anecdotes one may find a great reflection of a live of a true Buddhist earth monk."
  • Patipada – Venerable Ācariya Mun's Path of Practice, "A conversion of the Dhutanga Kammaṭṭhāna practices of Venerable Ajaan Mun Bhūridatta Thera, also written by Ven. Ācariya Mahā Boowa Ñāṇasampanno."

External links