General Information ~ News

Welcoming Asian Sayadaws

Sayadaw U Tejaniya's Forest Refuge Retreat
May 24 - June 14, 2009

IMS is honored to host Sayadaw U Tejaniya at the Forest Refuge, May 24 – June 14, 2009. Due to the large amount of interest we anticipate in this retreat, a lottery will be held to allocate spaces. If you would like to participate, please complete a Forest Refuge application and make sure it reaches us by September 30, 2008.

We request that you stay for the entire duration of the course; no partial retreats are available. Each participant is expected to practice in the style that Sayadaw U Tejaniya offers; this is a chance for many to explore practice in a new way.

Sayadaw will give instructions once only—on May 25. Question and answer sessions with him will take place each week in the meditation hall; he will not offer any dharma talks. He will meet with smaller interview groups at least twice each week, and each yogi will have an opportunity for an individual meeting at some point during the retreat. Please note that silence may not be held as strictly as usual.

Sayadaw U Tejaniya began his Buddhist training as a young teenager in Burma under the late Shwe Oo Min Sayadaw (1913–2002). Twelve years ago, following life as a householder with a business career, he ordained as a monk. He teaches meditation at Shwe Oo Min Dhammasukha Tawya in Rangoon, Burma.

Sayadaw's relaxed demeanor and easy sense of humor can belie a commitment to awareness that he encourages his students to apply in every aspect of their lives. His earlier householder experience gives him a rare insight into the challenges faced by lay practitioners. His book, "Don't Look Down on the Defilements, They Will Laugh at You," aptly characterizes his teaching style—accessible and true to the traditional teachings of the Buddha.

If you are placed on the wait list, you might like to consider a Forest Refuge retreat during the month of July, 2009 instead. We are honored to host senior Vietnamese teacher and monk Bhante Khippapanno at this time. A student of the late Shwe Oo Min Saydaw as well, his teaching focus is very similar to that of Sayadaw U Tejaniya.
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Bhante Khippapanno's Forest Refuge Retreat
July 1 - 31, 2009

Bhante Khippapanno, ordained a Buddhist monk in 1949, has practiced vipassana in India and Burma since 1967 and was mentored by the late Burmese meditation master Shwe Oo Min Sayadaw. Bhante founded Jetavana Vihara, Washington, DC, 1982, and Sakyamuni Meditation Center, CA, 1988.  He also helped establish Phuoc Son Meditation Center, Vietnam, 1994.

IMS is honored to host senior Vietnamese teacher and monk Bhante Khippapanno at the Forest Refuge, July 1-31, 2009. His teaching will place special emphasis on Citta (Mind), the third of the Buddha’s Four Foundations of Mindfulness (Satipatthāna in Pali).

Bhante Khippapanno’s dharma talks may cover other areas of the Sutta Pitaka (teachings delivered by the Buddha and his close disciples), as well as the Abhidhamma (Buddhist Psychology). These are considered helpful to Satipatthāna practice.
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