Venerable Ajahn Achalo Bhikkhu
Venerable Ajahn Achalo was born in Australia in 1972 and went forth as a bhikkhu at Wat Nong Pah Pong Forest Monastery, in the lineage of Ajahn Chah, in Ubon Rachathani province, Northeast Thailand in July 1997. His teachers include Ajahn Sumedho, Ajahn Pasanno, Ajahn Anan and Ajahn Jayasaro. He currently lives at Anandagiri Forest Monastery in Petchabun province in Northern Thailand.
Over the years Ven. Achalo has also attended HH Dalai Lama's teachings on around 15 occasions. In the USA, Australia, Bodhgaya India, and other places.
“Because I have had repeated opportunities to attend His Holiness teachings in many different places, I believe that there must be some kammic connection from the past.”
After ten years of studying and practicing according to the teachings of Theravada in the forest temples of Ajahn Chah’s tradition, I also had an interest to study and compare the teachings and skillful means of the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions. I went to listen to the Dalai Lama's 10-day teaching in the south of India, spending 6 weeks there n order to learn more. The fact that I am interested in studying the teachings of Mahayana or Vajrayana does not mean that the teachings of Theravada are incomplete or inadequate. Just as a scholar in each field of study must have a comprehensive knowledge of the area in which he or she is studying, so I would like to study the teachings and practices of other buddhist traditions as well.
As the Dalai Lama visited Australia more often, I also found myself having to return to Australia more often to visit my ageing parents. I would arrange my visit to coincide with HH Dalai Lama's teaching events, so that I would have the opportunity to attend the Teachings. I attended 7 teaching occasions in Australia altogether. His Holiness had frequently invited me to give the auspicious prayer chant at the opening ceremony. I have also led meditation sessions before His Holiness’s teachings, and participated in discussion/question and answer sessions as a representative of the Theravada monastics. His Holiness warmly greeted me and used to hold my hand and call me "old friend" ("Ahh my old friend, my long-time friend") It was a great honour.
Through teaching retreats in Malaysia and offering online teaching sessions, I have somewhat unexpectedly gained a lot more Malaysian, Singaporean, Indonesian and Chinese followers, who were interested in the teachings of Theravada Buddhism. Having some knowledge and understanding of the Mahayana traditions can be of great help in explaining and drawing parallels between the Theravada and Mahayana teachings and practices for practical application in daily life. I am grateful for my good fortune that I met His Holiness The Dalai Lama and his teachings in this lifetime, as well as those of my wonderful Theravada teachers.
Venerable Ajahn Achalo Bhikkhu
Venerable Ajahn Achalo was born in Australia in 1972 and went forth as a bhikkhu at Wat Nong Pah Pong Forest Monastery, in the lineage of Ajahn Chah, in Ubon Rachathani province, Northeast Thailand in July 1997. His teachers include Ajahn Sumedho, Ajahn Pasanno, Ajahn Anan and Ajahn Jayasaro. He currently lives at Anandagiri Forest Monastery in Petchabun province in Northern Thailand.
Over the years Ven. Achalo has also attended HH Dalai Lama's teachings on around 15 occasions. In the USA, Australia, Bodhgaya India, and other places.
“Because I have had repeated opportunities to attend His Holiness teachings in many different places, I believe that there must be some kammic connection from the past.”
After ten years of studying and practicing according to the teachings of Theravada in the forest temples of Ajahn Chah’s tradition, I also had an interest to study and compare the teachings and skillful means of the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions. I went to listen to the Dalai Lama's 10-day teaching in the south of India, spending 6 weeks there n order to learn more. The fact that I am interested in studying the teachings of Mahayana or Vajrayana does not mean that the teachings of Theravada are incomplete or inadequate. Just as a scholar in each field of study must have a comprehensive knowledge of the area in which he or she is studying, so I would like to study the teachings and practices of other buddhist traditions as well.
As the Dalai Lama visited Australia more often, I also found myself having to return to Australia more often to visit my ageing parents. I would arrange my visit to coincide with HH Dalai Lama's teaching events, so that I would have the opportunity to attend the Teachings. I attended 7 teaching occasions in Australia altogether. His Holiness had frequently invited me to give the auspicious prayer chant at the opening ceremony. I have also led meditation sessions before His Holiness’s teachings, and participated in discussion/question and answer sessions as a representative of the Theravada monastics. His Holiness warmly greeted me and used to hold my hand and call me "old friend" ("Ahh my old friend, my long-time friend") It was a great honour.
Through teaching retreats in Malaysia and offering online teaching sessions, I have somewhat unexpectedly gained a lot more Malaysian, Singaporean, Indonesian and Chinese followers, who were interested in the teachings of Theravada Buddhism. Having some knowledge and understanding of the Mahayana traditions can be of great help in explaining and drawing parallels between the Theravada and Mahayana teachings and practices for practical application in daily life. I am grateful for my good fortune that I met His Holiness The Dalai Lama and his teachings in this lifetime, as well as those of my wonderful Theravada teachers.
Venerable Dr. Barry Kerzin
Dr. Barry Kerzin was born in southern California where he completed undergraduate studies in philosophy at UC Berkeley. He went on to graduate from the USC College of Medicine and completed his internship at Los Angeles County Medical Center followed by residency at Ventura County Medical Center, also in Los Angeles. He has maintained board certification by the American Board of Family Medicine since 1980.
Dr. Kerzin relocated to India in 1989 to become personal physician to His Holiness the Dalai Lama. He later took monastic vows as a Buddhist monk and was ordained by His Holiness in 2003. Dr. Kerzin has completed many meditation retreats including a three-year retreat. As meditator for over 30 years, he has volunteered as a research subject and his brain has been studied at both Princeton and the University of Wisconsin Madison.
Dr. Kerzin’s medical practice is now principally in India. He remains personal physician to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and provides care to other members of the Tibetan Community in Exile and local Indians. He also provides free care to the poor.
Dr. Kerzin has focused much of his professional career on bridging Eastern and Western medicine. He speaks often to healers, first responders, and corporate executives about developing mindfulness, compassion, and resilience. His teaching schedule regularly takes him all over the world, including to Japan, Hong Kong, Russia, Mongolia, Korea, Europe, and North America. In the last few years, among many other presentations, Dr. Kerzin has taught continuing professional education courses and invited plenary addresses at Oxford, Cambridge, Stanford, and the University of Pittsburgh. His programs in ethical leadership have led to invited presentations with some of the world’s leading corporations, including Google in Japan, and California; Deep Mind Google London in 2019 and 2023; and Mitsubishi Jisho.His charitable work includes founding the Altruism in Medicine Institute in the US and the Human Values Institute in Japan.
Dr. Kerzin holds adjunct or visiting faculty appointments at the University of Washington Tacoma, the University of Pittsburgh, the Central University of Tibetan Studies in Varanasi, India, the University of Hong Kong (HKU), and the Mongolian National University of Medical Science. He also serves as a fellow of the Mind and Life Institute and consults for the Max Planck Institute in Leipzig on compassion training.
Dr. Kerzin has created a compassion – mindfulness app called AIMIcare. The Health Science students at the University of Pittsburgh are now engaged; the 50,000 nurses at Ingenovis are engaged; and discussions with Harvard University are in progress.
Dr. Kerzin is the author of numerous books and articles, most recently No Fear No Death: The Transformative Power of Compassion and Nāgārjuna’s Wisdom: A Practitioner’s Guide to the Middle Way. He has appeared in many radio and television interviews, including the PBS Newshour in 2020.
When he is not traveling, Dr. Kerzin resides in Dharmsala, India.
Ven. Assoc. Prof. Rangama Chandawimala
Ven. Dr. R. Chandawimala Thero is a Sri Lankan Buddhist monk who received higher ordination in 1989. He graduated from the University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka, in Buddhist Philosophy (Hon) in 1994 and obtained M.A. from the same University in 1997. As a trained teacher he received PG Dip in Education from the University of Colombo. He also received M.A. and PhD in Buddhist Studies from the University of Hong Kong in 2003 and 2008 respectively. Currently he is serving as an Associate Professor at Buddhist College of Singapore, at KMSPKS Monastery. His field of interest covers Early Buddhism, Buddhist Philosophy and Buddhist history. His latest publication is “Heterodox Buddhism: The School of Abhayagiri”.