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24 EASTERN HORIZON | FACE TO FACE
Learning from Many Traditions
By Ajahn Achalo
Ajahn Achalo was born in Brisbane, Australia in pilgrimage. During his years of training, he has
1972. He developed a keen interest in meditation received personal guidance from many remarkable
at the age of 20 and a year later left for Thailand teachers, among them, Ajahn Sumedho, Ajahn
to study Buddhism more intently. After a two- Pasanno, Ajahn Jayasaro and Ajahn Kalyano.
year period practicing in various centers and
monasteries, in 1996 Ajahn Achalo ordained as a For most of his Bhikkhu life, he has considered
Theravada Bhikkhu (monk) under Ajahn Liem at Tan Ajahn Anan, abbot of Wat Marp Jan, to be his
Wat Nong Pah Pong, the monastery founded by principal mentor. In addition, he has found the
venerable Ajahn Chah. Although most of his training Dalai Lama’s instructions and example to be of
has taken place in Thailand, Ajahn Achalo has also tremendous value.
lived in several international Forest Monasteries in
the Ajahn Chah lineage. In the following interview, Benny Liow asked Ajahn
Achalo about how he first became interested in
Ajahn Achalo is deeply grateful for his many Buddhism, his training in the Ajahn Chah tradition,
opportunities to study with well-practiced how would a beginner approach Buddhism since
monks as well as for having been able to train in there are so many various forms of teachings, how
several traditional contexts, including meditation would someone knows if he is progressing in the
monasteries, remote forests, and periods on practice, and the importance of mind training.
Benny: Can you tell us how you first became
interested in Buddhism, and whether you faced
challenges in your early years finding good teachers
in Australia?
Achalo: I started meditating when I was fifteen years
old. In those days we didn’t have the internet, but we
had public libraries and bookstores. I met a young
woman in a New Age bookstore who taught me White
Light meditation, the practice of visualizing white light
and cleansing your body and mind and aura with light.
You could describe it as a simple samatha practice, it
was uplifting and I found it to be helpful. I did it for
10-15 minutes every day before going to high school.
I didn’t have a traditional religious world view at that
time, although I did believe in the law of kamma and in
rebirth, which I’d heard about by studying a little bit of
Hinduism. And there was also a belief in the existence
of angels and ghosts. Curiously, I was the only one in
my family who believed in these things at that time.
