Rachael Louise Wass
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Minh An was born as Lawrence Mills in North London in 1932, and was the son of a shopkeeper and school teacher. During the war, his family evacuated to Norfolk where he attended Thetford Grammar school. This became a high point of his school career when he was inspired by one of his school teachers during these war years (the teacher was a consientious objector at the time) when he was taught all about Indian and Chinese history (something unheard of in colonial England). Indian history recounts one of it's great periods, during King Ashoka's reign who became a follower of the Buddha....this was a remarkable time in India's history, as he set up a number of historic decrees that still are revered today (if you notice the wheel on the Indian flag...I believe this is Ashoka's emblem).
Lawrence completed a diploma in horticulture, but was called up for 2 years of national service in the deserts of the Suez Canal Zone. While in the army he read his first book about Buddhism and became a Buddhist. Later, back in the UK he returned to work in horticulture (working in the world renown Kew Gardens, whidh is not just a garden...but an incredible and important research and repository of plants from around the world) then still as a young person, became inspired to travel to Thailand and Burma, becoming a fully ordained monastic. He became good friends while living in a hermitage in northern India, with another western monastic named, Ven. Sankarishita who later went on to form a new Buddhist group called Friends of the Western Buddhist Order. (if you've ever bought a book from Windhorse Publishing...that is FWBO Publishing house). Lawrence was known as Ven. Khantipalo at that time, and continued to study and become an accomplished translator of Buddhist sutras from Pali into English, as well as author of books...this scholarly work is still used today by many people.
Lawrence came to Australia in 1973 and set up a hermitage/monastery called "Wat Buddhadhamma" in Sydney, this is one of the very first Theravada monasteries in Australia...and certainly Lawrence was one of the single Western monastics of that time...a forefather of Buddhism in Australia. After some time, Lawence decided to leave the monastery and became a "lay teacher" and married, and co-founded another Buddhist centre in far North Queensland, he would often teach at Buddhist Summer schools and various places around Australia and overseas. In his later years, Lawerence life changed again and he divorced and also suffered a major stroke although he continued to teach, translate and write books. He came to Quang Minh Temple under the kind and compassion of our Abbot, Ven Phuoc Tan earlier this year, and was ordained as a noviciate into the Vietnamese tradition, giving him his new name of Minh An (meaning Peace:with Wisdom).
It is true, Minh An (Lawrence) in his later years has slowed down a little, and his health needs are more advanced, though his contribution and accumulated practice over many years (nearly 60 years) and no doubt lifetimes brings an opportunity for us as practitioners and fellow meditators to honor our elderly and provide them with the a time to share and be purposeful in our lives....there is a great wisdom and compassion to be accessed by just being present together in meditation on Wednesday nights.....I hope you can join me then.
Books that Lawrence has written if you have interest, I think many available from Windhorse Publishing:
Source: http://www.quangminh.org.au/
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Minh An was born as Lawrence Mills in North London in 1932, and was the son of a shopkeeper and school teacher. During the war, his family evacuated to Norfolk where he attended Thetford Grammar school. This became a high point of his school career when he was inspired by one of his school teachers during these war years (the teacher was a consientious objector at the time) when he was taught all about Indian and Chinese history (something unheard of in colonial England). Indian history recounts one of it's great periods, during King Ashoka's reign who became a follower of the Buddha....this was a remarkable time in India's history, as he set up a number of historic decrees that still are revered today (if you notice the wheel on the Indian flag...I believe this is Ashoka's emblem).
Lawrence came to Australia in 1973 and set up a hermitage/monastery called "Wat Buddhadhamma" in Sydney, this is one of the very first Theravada monasteries in Australia...and certainly Lawrence was one of the single Western monastics of that time...a forefather of Buddhism in Australia. After some time, Lawence decided to leave the monastery and became a "lay teacher" and married, and co-founded another Buddhist centre in far North Queensland, he would often teach at Buddhist Summer schools and various places around Australia and overseas. In his later years, Lawerence life changed again and he divorced and also suffered a major stroke although he continued to teach, translate and write books. He came to Quang Minh Temple under the kind and compassion of our Abbot, Ven Phuoc Tan earlier this year, and was ordained as a noviciate into the Vietnamese tradition, giving him his new name of Minh An (meaning Peace:with Wisdom).
It is true, Minh An (Lawrence) in his later years has slowed down a little, and his health needs are more advanced, though his contribution and accumulated practice over many years (nearly 60 years) and no doubt lifetimes brings an opportunity for us as practitioners and fellow meditators to honor our elderly and provide them with the a time to share and be purposeful in our lives....there is a great wisdom and compassion to be accessed by just being present together in meditation on Wednesday nights.....I hope you can join me then.
Books that Lawrence has written if you have interest, I think many available from Windhorse Publishing:
- Noble Friendship: travels of a Buddhist Monk
- Tolerance: A study from Buddhist Sources
- Buddhism Explained
- Pointing to Dhamma
- Banner of the Arahants
- Calm and Insight
- Buddha My Refuge
- Jewels within my Heart (Dhammapada)
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