Bhante Aggacitta Mahāthera

Āyasmā Aggacitta is a Malaysian bhikkhu ordained at the age of 25 by Bhaddanta Mahasi Sayadaw in Rangoon in 1979. He trained under Sayadaws U Paṇḍita, U Tissara (Yankin Forest Monastery), U Āciṇṇa (Pa Auk) and U Tejaniya (Shwe Oo Min).

Besides practising meditation, he studied advanced Pāli grammar under Sayadaw U Dhammananda at Wat Tamaoh, Thailand, and the Pāli Tipiṭaka in Myanmar, researching on its interpretation and practice until his return to Malaysia at the end of 1994.

After a four-year solitary meditation retreat in Sarawak, he returned to West Malaysia in 1998 and since then has been investigating popular interpretations and practices of Buddhism in the light of the Pāli scriptures, real life experiences and contemporary research findings. Using a critical yet constructive approach, he shares his findings with others to bring them closer to practical reality via his writings, sutta study with meditation workshops, meditation retreats and mindful hiking retreats.

He is a keen Pāli scholar and ardent Dhamma practitioner noted for his extensive knowledge of the Pāli scriptures and vast experience in the practical aspects of the Vinaya and meditation.

Using a critical yet constructive approach, he shares his findings with others via his writings, sutta study with meditation workshops, meditation retreats and mindful hiking retreats. 

In 2000, he founded Sāsanārakkha Buddhist Sanctuary (SBS) near Taiping, Perak, Malaysia.

In 2012, Āyasmā Aggacitta Mahāthera was invited by the Theravāda Buddhist Council of Malaysia to be one of the founding members of its Monastic Advisory Panel.