Biography in Brief

Ven. Ñanananda was born in 1940 to a Buddhist family in Galle District in Sri Lanka. He received his school education from Mahinda College, Galle. In 1962 he graduated from the University of Peradeniya specializing in Pali Studies, and served as an Assistant Lecturer in Pali at the same University for a brief period of time. He renounced his post in 1967 to enter the Order of Buddhist monks under the name Katukurunde Ñanananda in the forest monastic tradition of Sri Lanka.

Ordination…

Ven. Ñanananda initially ordained at the Island Hermitage. Three other monks were ordained with him, two of them being Ven. Ñāṇasuci (later Samanera Bodhesako) and Ven. Ñāṇajivako (Prof. Čedomil Veljačić). After the Meetirigala Nissarana Vanaya was established by Asoka Weeraratna in 1967 with Ven. Matara Sri Nanarama Mahathera as the abbot and the meditation master, Ven. Ñanananda moved to that monastery in 1972 and re-ordained under Ven. Nanarama. When Ven. Nanarama Mahathera died in 1992, Ven. Ñanananda moved to Pothgulgala Aranya, where he still resides as the abbot. Ven. Ñanananda has continuously maintained a simple and austere way of practice with a strong commitment to strict Vinaya standards.

Well known for…

Ven. Ñanananda thero is best known for the works of "Concept and Reality" in Early Buddhist Thought, published in 1971, and "The Magic of the Mind", published in 1974, both completed during his stay at the Island Hermitage. His one of the major work is a collection of sermons on “Nibbana” that was initially published in Sinhala and later published in English translation, titled “Nibbana - The Mind Stilled”.

So, this means English speakers like you are definitely lucky to have enough of noble dhamma discussions of him to have a blessed time.

The noble bhikku passed away on 22nd February, 2018!