Ledi Sayadaw Biography

Maung Tat Khaung¹ was born on 1st December 1846 (13th waxing of Nattaw, 1208 Burmese Era) in Saing-pyin village, Dipeyin township in the Shwebo district (currently Monywa) of northern Burma (Myanmar). His parents were U Tun Tha and Daw Kyene. He had three younger brothers; two became monks, one a householder.

At the age of eight he was sent by his parents to the local monastery of Sayadaw U Nanda. There he learned the Burmese language, the foundations of Pali language and Pali canon. At the age of fifteen he was ordained as a samanera (novice buddhist), as was the tradition, and received the name of Nyanadhaja (the banner of knowledge).

At age eighteen, Samanera Nyanadhaja showing first signs of independent thinking, became dissatisfied with his education, feeling that is too narrowly restricted to Tipitaka.² To the disappointment of his teacher, he disrobes and goes back to the layman life. Six months later, his teacher and another influential teacher, Myinhtin Sayadaw tried to persuade him to return to monastic life, but he refused. Myinhtin Sayadaw suggested that he should learn the Vedas, which Nyanadhaja accepted and became again a samanera. In eight months, he mastered the Vedas under Sayadaw U Gandhama, a vedic expert. Later, he told to one of his disciples, “At first I was hoping to earn a living with the knowledge of the Vedas by telling peoples’ fortunes. But I was more fortunate in that I became a samanera again. My teachers were very wise; with their boundless love and compassion, they saved me.”

At age of twenty, on April 1866 he took the higher ordination (upasampada) under the guidance of his old teacher, Sayadaw U Nanda, and became Bhikku U Ñāṇadhaja.

In 1867 Bhikku U Ñāṇadhaja left his preceptor and the Moywa district where he grew up, to continue his studies in Mandalay, the royal capital of Burma. During the rule of King Mindon Min³ Mandalay was the most important place of learning in the country, and the Maha-Jotikarama one of the most important monasteries. To gain admission as a resident monk, according to the rules, Bhikku U Ñāṇadhaja recited by heart the 227 Pratimokkha precepts⁴

Soon, he started studying with Venerable San-Kyaung Sayadaw, a teacher famous for translating the Visuddhimagga (Path of Purification) into Burmese, and King Mindon’s personal tutor.

In 1871 King Mindon Min sponsored the Fifth Buddhist Council, calling bhikkhus to authenticate texts.⁵ Bhikku U Ñāṇadhaja was asked to recite from memory the fifth book of the Abhidhamma (Kathavatthu Abhidhamma, Points of Controversy), several hundred pages, in front of hundreds of textual experts.

During the time of his studies in Mandalay, Venerable San-Kyaung Sayadaw gave an examination of twenty questions for two thousand students. Bhikkhu Ñāṇadhaja was the only one who answered all the questions correctly. These answers were later published in 1880, under the title Parami-Dīpanī (Manual of Perfections). This was the first of many books to be published in Pali and Burmese by Venerable Ledi Sayadaw.

After eight years, having passed all his examinations, Bhikku Ñāṇadhaja was qualified as a Pali teacher at the Maha-Jotikarama monastery.

In 1883 a great fire swept through a part of Mandalay and destroyed most of the royal palace and Maha-Jotikarama monastery where Bhikku Ñāṇadhaja resided. All his books and notes were lost in the fire. He left Mandalay for his home village, in Monywa.

Here he was teaching Pali to the bhikkhus and samaneras at Monywa during the day and in the evening spend the nights in meditation in a small monastery. Apparently, this was the period when he began practicing Vipassana in the traditional Burmese fashion: with anapana (breathing) and vedana (sensation).

In 1885 the British conquered upper Burma and sent the last king, Thibaw into exile. With the arrival of British, meat eating, opium and alcohol were also introduced. Ñāṇadhaja decided to go around and give talks especially against eating beef, arguing that “that to kill cows was like killing your father and your mother. The oxen tilled your fields, the cows gave you milk” and “How would you feel if you were a cow and this was happening to you?"

In 1886, Ñāṇadhaja went into retreat just to the north of Monywa, in Ledi jungle. After a while many bhikkhus and lay people started coming to him for teachings. A monastery to house the monks was built and named Ledi-tawya monastery. From this monastery he took the name by which he is best known: Ledi Sayadaw. For 12 years he taught the Tipitaka to monks and compiled a new commentary on the Abhidhammattha Vibhavani Tika (a Sinhalese Abbhidhamma commentary) titled Paramattha-Dīpanī Tika, correcting more than 230 errors in it. This created quite a stir within the Buddhist community, but over time it became a standard reference among teachers and scholars of Abbhidhamma.

In 1895 he decided to go on a pilgrimage to Bodh Gaya⁶ and other places sacred to Buddhists: Sarnath, Rajagaha, Savathi and Lumbini, Buddha’s birthplace in Nepal. He was shocked by the state of the sacred places in India, neglected and in disrepair. He came to the realization that if ever Dhamma was to spread in India, it could not be through the monks but through householders. That had a huge impact on his later actions. On the way back, on the boat he wrote the Paṭiccasamuppāda Dīpāni (The Chain of Causation). He had no reference books with him, but he had a thorough knowledge of the Tipitaka, so he needed none. In the Manuals of Buddhism there are seventy-six manuals (Dīpanīs), commentaries and essays listed under his authorship, but this is not a complete list of his works.

Back at Ledi Monastery in 1896, fifty years old, he spends another five years there then he retreated in caves and forests around Sagaing to practice kasina meditation and attained the fourth jhana. Then he began Anapana meditation. He wrote “The Lion’s Roar”, a poem stating that he attained the fourth jhana. He entrusted the poem to his senior disciple for safekeeping.

In 1897, while spending the rainy retreats at Ledi Monastery he wrote books on Dhamma in Burmese: Lakkhana Dīpanī (Manual of Characteristics of Existence), Punnovāda Dīpanī (Meditation for Punna) and Vijjāmaggā Dīpanī (Manual of the Way to the Holy-Path-Knowledge). He said he wanted to write in such a way that even a simple farmer could understand. Before his time, it was not usual to write on Dhamma subjects so that lay people could have access to them. Even while teaching orally, the bhikkhus would commonly recite long passages in Pali and then translate the passage literally, which was very hard for the lay person to understand.

In 1899 he wrote Nibbāna Dīpanī and Mahasayana Dīpanī while staying at Dhammānanda Monastery, in Le Sin Village, near Monywa. In 1900 Sayadaw authored the Uttamapurisa Dīpanī. He then took his rainy season retreat at Maha Myaing forest north of Dipeyin, where he joined his disciple, U Eindaka, who had dwelled there for nine years. Teacher and disciple lived together, and Ledi Sayadaw taught U Eindaka his meditation method.

During the years 1901 and 1902, Ledi Sayadaw moved to Shwe Taung U Mountain on the bank of the Ctaindwin (Sallāvāti) River near Alon and resided in a stone cave. At that time, he wrote Āhāra Dīpanī, Annata Dīpanī and Dhamma Dīpanī. He became seriously ill during his stay at the mountain monastery. It is said that one day, a very old white person appeared to pay his respects to Sayadaw and gave him some medicine for his illness. His illness immediately disappeared.

In 1903, Ledi Sayadaw moved to Latpantaung Mountain, on the north bank of the Chindwin River, near Monywa. Here, he meditated and wrote five books: Sammāditthi Dīpanī (Manual of Right Understanding), Catusacca Dīpanī (Manual of the Four Noble Truths), Kammatthāna Dīpanī (Manual of Meditation), Paramattha Sankhepa (stanzas in Burmese), Nirutti Dīpanī (in Pāli, a commentary on the Mogallānavyākarana, a famous classical Pāli grammar).

Near the end of 1903, Ledi Sayadaw was invited by Kinwonminkyi U Kaung, the prime minister of King Mindon and subsequently King Thibaw to come to Mandalay and stay at his residence in the old palace. Ledi Sayadaw gave Dhamma lectures by answering the questions that arose among the royal family and the educated audiences who heard his discourses. He taught them Ānāpāna meditation and authored a book on this technique, while staying at U Kaung’s house in the Old Royal Palace. Ledi Sayadaw’s Dhamma preaching became widely celebrated and he was invited to travel all over Burma to teach.

While the Abhidhammatthasangaha (An Outline of Buddhist Philosophy) was widely read among scholars, its language was too complex for laypeople. So, Ledi Sayadaw compiled the Paramattha Sankhitta, as a digest in Burmese of this text making it easy for the average person to recite and understand.

To further facilitate the dissemination of the Dhamma to the lay people, Ledi Sayadaw established “Paramattha Sankhit Associations”, or Digest Associations. These associations brought Abhidhamma study to all levels of Burmese society, whereas before it had been the domain of scholars only.

In 1904 Ledi Sayadaw authored Bhāvāna Dīpanī, Bodhipakkhiya Dīpanī and Saddasankhepa (Sadda Sankhitta). Next year he helped to establish and organize a Paticcasamuppāda Association, a Paramattha Sankhit Association, a Vipassanā Association and the Association for Refraining from Eating Beef.

From 1903 to 1914 Ledi Sayadaw travels around Burma giving talks and "his passionate eloquence drew immense congregations … he held immense crowds rapt." He wrote dozens of manuals in response to householders who would write to him and say, "Can you please explain this; can you please explain that?"

In 1914, while staying at Ratanāsiri Monastery, he wrote the Vipassanā Dīpanī (The Manual of Insight Meditation) dedicated as an “Outline of the Exercises of Insight for the Buddhists of Europe” and was written as a compendium of Buddhist doctrine for those in Europe who wanted to practice Vipassanā meditation.

Ledi Sayadaw said that he wanted to “endow people with the tools of liberation in this very life… All you need is khaṇikā Samādhi, "momentary Samādhi. As long as you can feel your breath, can feel sensation, you can do Vipassana. Householders can do it … this is the time; this is the opportunity. Practice now… Even if you can just be with sensation and be with those four elements: earth, air, fire, and water, and feel them, then you can do Vipassana".

Ledi Sayadaw appoints U Po Thet, a farmer who practiced vipassana for 14 years according to Sayadaws’ methods, as the first householder teacher, saying: "[Saya Tet], my great pupil, take my staff. From today onwards, teach the Dhamma of Rūpa and Nāma, pay homage to the Sāsana ⁷ in my stead. Go and teach".

At age 73, Ledi Sayadaw became blind. As he couldn't write anymore, he practiced and taught meditation. His last two years were spent at one of the monasteries donated to him many years before in Pyinmana, south of Mandalay. He passed away on the full-moon day of July 27, 1923, age 77.

Commentaries, manuals, essays, and letters written by the Ledi Sayādaw

(in alphabetical order)

In Pāli

• Anattavibhāvanā.
• Anu Dīpanī.
• Exposition of Buddhism for the West.
• London Pali Devi Questions and answers.
• Nirutti Dīpanī or Vuttimoggallāna Tīkā.
• Niyāma Dīpanī.
• Padhāna Sutta (Pali and word for word meanings).
• Paramattha Dīpanī. (Manual of Ultimate Truths) or Abhidhammattha Sangaha Mahā Tīkā.
• Patthānuddesa Dīpanī.
• Sammāditthi Dīpanī.
• Sāsanasampatti Dīpanī.
• Sāsanavipatti Dīpanī.
• Vaccavācaka Tīkā.
• Vibhatyattha Tīkā.
• Vipassanā Dīpanī
• Yamaka Pucchā Visajjanā.

In Burmese

• Admonitory letter prohibiting Lotteries and Gambling.
• Admonitory letter to the inhabitants of Dipeyin Township for abstention from taking intoxicants.
• Admonitory letter to U Saing, Headman of Saingpyin Village for abstention from taking intoxicants.
• Āhāra Dīpanī (Manual of Nutritive Essence).
• Alankā Sankhitta.
• Alphabets Sankhitta.
• An Advice to hold a Lighting Festival at the Bo Tree within the precincts of Ledi Monastery, Monywa.
• Ānāpāna Dīpanī (Manual of Exhaling and Inhaling).
• Anatta Dīpanī (Manual of Impersonality).
• Anatta Dīpanī (New).
• Asankhāra-sasankhāra-vinicchaya Dīpanī.
• Bhāvanā Dīpanī (Manual of Mental Concentration).
• Bodhipakkhiya Dīpanī. (Manual of the Requisites of Enlightenment).
• Catusacca Dīpanī (Manual of the Four Noble Truths).
• Cetīyangana-vinicchaya Dīpanī.
• Chapter on Material Qualities.
• Dānādi Dīpanī.
• Decision on ājīvatthamaka Sīla.
• Decision on Vikālabhojana-sikkhāpada.
• Dhamma Dīpanī.
• Dīghāsana-vinicchaya Dīpanī.
• Epic on Samvega.
• Gambhīra-kabyā-kyan (Manual of Profound Verses).
• Gonasurā Dīpanī (A Manual of Cows and Intoxicants).
• Inaparibhoga-vinicchaya Dīpanī.
• Inscription at Sīhataw Pagoda
• Kammatthāna Dīpanī (Manual of Meditation-subjects).
• Lakkhana Dīpanī (Manual of Characteristics of Existence).
• Ledi Questions and Answers.
• Magganga Dīpanī (A Manual of the Path Factors).
• Mahāsayana Dīpanī (Manual of the Great Lying Down).
• Nibbāna Dīpanī (Manual of Nibbāna).
• Nibbāna-visajjanā Manual.
• Niyāma Dīpanī (Manual of Cosmic Order).
• Open letter for abstention from taking beef.
• Paramattha Sankhitta (Summary of the Ultimates)
• Pāramī Dīpanī (Manual of Perfections).
• Paticcasamuppāda Dīpanī (Manual of Dependent Origination).
• Prosody Sankhitta.
• Questions on Sotāpanna.
• Rogantara Dīpanī.
• Rūpa Dīpanī (Manual of Material Qualities).
• Saccattha Dīpanī.
• Sadda Sankhitta.
• Sarana-gamana-vinicchaya Dīpanī.
• Sāsanadāyajja Dīpanī.
• Sāsanavisodhanī, Vols. I, II & III.
• Sikkhā-gahana-vinicchaya Dīpanī.
• Sīlavinicchaya Dīpanī.
• Somanassaupekkhā Dīpanī (Manual of Joy and Equanimity).
• Spelling Sankhitta.
• Sukumāra Dīpanī.
• Upasampada-vinicchaya Dīpanī.
• Uttama Purisa Dīpaniī (A Manual of the Excellent Man).
• Vijjāmagga Dīpanī (Manual of the Way to Path-Knowledge).
• Vinaya Sankhitta.
• Virati-sīlavinicchaya Dīpanī.

Footnotes

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