The International Forest Monastery
Wat Pah Nanachat is a Buddhist monastery in Northeast Thailand, in the Theravada Forest Tradition.
It was established in 1975 by Ven. Ajahn Chah (1918-1992) as a branch monastery close to his own traditional forest monastery Wat Nong Pah Pong in Ubon Rajathani province, with Ven. Ajahn Sumedho, an American disciple of his, as the first abbot. The monastery aims at providing English-speaking people the opportunity to train and practise the ancient lifestyle that the Buddha taught his monks in the forests over 2500 years ago.
Wat Pah Nanachat is a Buddhist monastery in Northeast Thailand, in the Theravada Forest Tradition.
It was established in 1975 by Ven. Ajahn Chah (1918-1992) as a branch monastery close to his own traditional forest monastery Wat Nong Pah Pong in Ubon Rajathani province, with Ven. Ajahn Sumedho, an American disciple of his, as the first abbot. The monastery aims at providing English-speaking people the opportunity to train and practise the ancient lifestyle that the Buddha taught his monks in the forests over 2500 years ago.
CLICK TO ENTER
The Documentary film describes in detail the daily life in the international forest monastery, Wat Pah Nanachat in Thailand. In this story, the viewer comes to know about the vipassana meditation practice and the philosophy and customs of the beggar monks through the eyes of a European monk, the actor in the film.
Besides the main Buddhistic philosophy (Theravada) and the monasterial life, this film also shows Thailand's social structures very impressively. In addition, one accompanies the forest monks to a smaller monastery in a national park on the Mekong river, the border river to Laos.
One of the highlights of the film, is the monks' jungle retreat in the far west of the country, very near to the border with Burma (Myanmar). This malaria infested national park, is home to the famous river Kwai, which flows through it. Here the audience becomes a witness, to how the head of the monastery, a Canadian and environment activist, is engaged in the fight to stop the last jungles of Thailand being cut down and cleared by fire.
The main monastery of the forest monks, the Wat Pah Nanachat, was founded in 1975 by the well known buddhist master of meditation, Ajahn Chah, for the increasing number of his western disciples. Under his guidance, more than 100 monasteries have been established, some of them in western countries such as England, Australia, Newsealand, Switzerland, Italy and the USA. In England, there are already 4 monasteries in this tradition!
The first head of the forest monastery, Wat Pah Nanachat in Thailand, was an american, Ajahn Sumedho. He is now the spiritual head of the international Forest Sangha and the corresponding buddhist center in England, the Amaravati..