Our Teachers

Monastics

The Buddhist Society of Victoria is unique in that while it is a Theravada teaching centre, it is open to the teachings of other traditions of Buddhism. Whilst the monastics from our Practice Centre (Newbury Buddhist Monastery) give regular teachings, we also invite monastics from overseas and interstate to reside at the BSV for extended periods of time and provide their unique teachings.

The teachers listed here are amongst those that have provided recent teaching, a full list of recorded teachings can be found here.

Ajahn Brahm

Spiritual Advisor

Ajahn Brahm is the popular Buddhist teacher to a growing international audience of people keen to learn meditation and develop a deeper spiritual understanding. He is also the founding father of an emergent Australian forest tradition of Buddhist monasticism focused on being true to the original roots of the Buddha’s Teaching of Dhamma and Vinaya.

Dhamma Talks

Ajahn Brahmali

Visiting Monastic Teachers

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. Having completed degrees in engineering and finance, he began his monastic training as an anagarika in England at Amaravati and Chithurst Buddhist Monasteries. After hearing the ‘word of Brahm’ he decided to travel to Australia to train at Bodhinyana Monastery.

Ajahn Brahmali has lived at Bodhinyana Monastery since 1994, and was ordained as a Bhikkhu, with Ajahn Brahm as his preceptor, in 1996.

Dhamma Talks

Ajahn Nissarano

NBM Resident Monastic Teacher

Ajahn Nissarano was born in Perth in 1952. After working in libraries for 20 years, he ordained at Bodhinyana Monastery as a fully ordained monk in March 1998. He spent a total of 9.5 years at the Monastery, before travelling to Thailand in 2005, and to Sri Lanka in 2006. He has lived in Sri Lanka for more 10 years, and for the past 6 years has been living on his own in a hut under a rock, surrounded by forest, on the side of a mountain. He periodically visits Australia, usually Melbourne and Perth

Dhamma Talks

Ajahn Sādaro

NBM Resident Monastic Teacher

Ajahn Sādaro usually resides at Bodhipala Monastery in South Australia. He ordained in Thailand under Ajahn Anan over 10 years ago, and has been in Australia for the last 7 years, living in monasteries in Canberra and Sydney before moving to South Australia. He resides at the Newbury Buddhist Monastery and is assisting with research on mindfulness being conducted by Monash University and the University of Melbourne.

Dhamma Talks

Bhante Mudito

NBM Resident Monastic Teacher

Bhante Mudito was born in a remote village in Northern-Finland. After completing military service, he travelled to the United States where he attended chef school and worked in a high-end hotel for a few years. While living in New York his long-time interest in Buddhism evolved as he started meditating with different groups. He sought after many teachers and found many of them to be too lofty of simply too boring.

But then the stars aligned when Ajahn Brahm wrote his hit book Open the Door of your Heart and on the book promotion tour he came to New York where Mudito fell in love with Ajahn and his simple teachings. He has followed Ajahn Brahm ever since and in 2010 he went to stay in Bodhinyana and ordained as a monk in 2012

Dhamma Talks

Bhante Aranavihari

NBM Resident Monastic Teacher

Bhante Aranavihari was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka 1959. He was ordained at Na-Uyana Forest Monastery in October 2003. He was trained in Pa-Auk Forest Monastery, Mawlamyine, Myanmar from February 2006 to July 2010 and was trained in Bodhinyana Buddhist Monastery in Perth from July 2011 to October 2013.

Dhamma Talks

Ajahn Dtun

Visiting Monastic Teacher

Ajahn Dtun born in 1955 in Ayutthaya Thailand, Ajahn Dtun was raised in Bangkok. After completing his Bachelor’s degree in Economics, he decided to become a monk at Wat Nong Pah Pong under Ajahn Chah. He is currently the Abbot of Wat Boonyawad in Chonburi, Thailand.

Dhamma Talks

Venerable Chi Kwang Sunim

Visiting Monastic Teacher

Venerable Chi Kwang Sunim is a Buddhist nun of many years, who initially trained twenty years in South Korean monasteries. Having founded several Buddhist organisations, she is currently the abbess of the Seon Centre in Kinglake. Sunim has chaired the Australian Sangha Association and the Buddhist Council of Victoria and continues to teach meditation and Buddhist studies broadly, recently returning from teaching in Indonesia, Korea and Malaysia. She is often asked to engaged in Intra Buddhist and interfaith activities, along with environmental and community welfare programs.

Dhamma Talks

Bhante Bodhidhaja

Visiting Monastic Teacher

Bhante Bodhidhaja, born in Switzerland as Nicolas Vrticka was introduced to Buddhism at an early age by a neighbour. After graduation Nicolas worked as a primary school teacher and chose social work as an alternative for compulsory military training in Switzerland.

Dhamma Talks

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Bhante Cunda

Visiting Monastic Teacher

Bhante Cunda was born in Malaysia and named Kim Yee Chan. Kim Yee’s family moved to Perth Western Australia when he was 4 years old. Kim Yee spent his time between Perth and Christmas Island where he worked for a period of time. At the age of 23 Kim Yee came across Buddhism while at Christmas Island listening to recorded tapes of Ajahn Brahm’s meditation instructions.

Dhamma Talks

Lay Teachers

Sandeep Karki

Senior Lay Teacher

Sandeep was born in Nepal and came to know about Buddhism while attending a University in California in 1998. In 2000, Sandeep was ordained as a Buddhist monk and was in the robe for 6 Vassa.

After leaving the monastic order, outside his day job, Sandeep has been teaching meditation and providing spiritual counselling along Buddhist principle in prison, temples, clubs, drug rehabilitation centre and homes of friends.

Weekly Meditation Events