Advisers
Ajahn Brahm
Spiritual Adviser
Ajahn Brahm is a renowned and beloved meditation master and the author of many bestselling books, including Opening the Door of Your Heart. Trained in Thailand with Ajahn Chah, he has been a monk since 1974. Ajahn Brahm is Spiritual Director of the Buddhist Society of Western Australia (BSWA) and adviser to numerous Buddhist organisations, including Anukampa Bhikkhuni Project, which is dear to his heart as an English monk.
Ajahn Brahm courageously cleared the path for bhikkhuni ordination in Australia and is passionate about creating opportunities for all people to experience the liberating power of the Buddha’s teachings. Despite his huge responsibilities, Ajahn Brahm continues to share the Dhamma he has realised with a smile and his humorous, insightful talks save lives!
Ajahn Brahmali
Additional Adviser
Ajahn Brahmali was born in Norway in 1964. He first became interested in Buddhism and meditation in his early 20s, after a visit to Japan. He completed Masters degrees in engineering and finance before renouncing the world of industry and commerce to ordain as a bhikkhu with Ajahn Brahm as his preceptor in 1996.
Apart from having been responsible for the building work at Bodhinyana Monastery, Ajahn Brahmali teaches the monastic discipline (the Vinaya) and gives Pali classes (the language of the texts). Ajahn Brahmali’s clear and thoughtful talks make the teachings of the Buddha accessible to all and are very popular downloads on BSWA’s website. He teaches regularly at BSWA and at various places outside Australia. Ajahn Brahmali has published a number of articles on the Dhamma.
Ajahn Hasapanna
Additional Adviser
Ajahn Hasapanna was born in Ipoh, Malaysia in 1960. During her days as a lay person, she and her family generously supported Ajahn Bhante Sujato when he was practicing in Ipoh.Her main spiritual influence is the monastic lifestyle of the Forest tradition.
When Ajahn Hasapanna had developed enough courage and inspiration to become a nun, Bhante Sujato pointed her to Dhammasara Nuns Monastery, where in 2002 she began anagārikā training, undertaking the Eight Precepts. She received bhikkhuni ordination in 2009, with Ayya Tathālokā as her preceptor, in a ceremony at Bodhinyana Monastery. Ajahn Hasapanna is Abbot of Dhammasara Nuns Monastery and Assistant Spiritual Director of BSWA.
Ayya Anandabodhi
Additional Adviser
Ayya Anandabodhi, originally from Wales, has lived as a Buddhist nun in the Forest tradition since 1992. After spending 17 years at Amaravati and Chithurst monasteries in the UK, she moved to the United States, where in 2009 she helped establish Aloka Vihara, a Buddhist monastery for women. She now serves as Spiritual Director at Pārāyana Vihāra in Port Townsend, Washington.
In 2011, Ayya Anandabodhi received bhikkhuni ordination, with Ayya Tathālokā as her preceptor, joining the growing number of women who are reclaiming this lineage given by the Buddha. Her practice combines meditation in nature, studying the early Buddhist suttas and living in community. She teaches Dhamma on a regular basis in her local area and occasionally further afield.
Ayya Santussika
Additional Adviser
Ayya Santussika was born in 1954 and grew up on a farm in Indiana, USA. She began exploring meditation in the mid-1970s and received BS and MS degrees in Computer Science while being a single mother. After working as a software designer and developer for 15 years in the San Francisco Bay Area, she trained as an interfaith minister and received a Masters of Divinity degree in 2002.
During her interfaith training, she began visiting monasteries in the US, Europe, Asia and Australia, learning from master teachers, mostly in the Ajahn Chah lineage, where her son became a monk. In 2012, she received full ordination as a bhikkhuni and founded Karuna Buddhist Vihara, which has a forest hermitage in California’s Santa Cruz Mountains and a meditation center in Sunnyvale, California. Her teachings are primarily based on the Pali suttas as applied to daily life.