Ajahn Anan

Ajahn Anan Akiñcano is a Thai monk in the forest lineage of Ajahn Chah and the founding abbot of Wat Marp Jan, a forest monastery in Rayong province, eastern Thailand. Born in Saraburi in 1954, he spent a year working as an accountant while living at a local temple, then took full ordination in 1976 with Ajahn Chah as his preceptor. He stayed at Wat Nong Pah Pong for several years as his teacher's attendant, and afterwards wandered alone through the forests of the north-east and centre of the country. In 1984 he settled on the land that became Wat Marp Jan, where he now guides Thai and overseas monks.

His teaching keeps coming back to the basics: daily meditation, mindfulness in ordinary tasks, keeping the precepts, and calm that opens into insight. He puts the path in simple language that suits beginners while still speaking to long-term practitioners. Lay guests can stay at the monastery for up to a week by arrangement, joining the routine of chanting, sitting and shared work, and nothing is charged for food or lodging. Each evening the community streams chanting and meditation on Zoom, and on Fridays he gives a dhamma talk followed by questions. His books, including Seeking Buddho and Simple Teachings on Higher Truths, are given away free.