West of the Moon
As I wind down the track at the end of Coalmines Road, I am reminded of Tolkien's poem:
a new road or a secret gate;
and though I oft have passed them by,
a day will come at last when I
shall take the hidden paths that run
west of the moon, east of the sun.
Out of sight from the main road, with no signs, is a Buddhist Hermitage. It is one of Bundanoon's quieter stories. Elizabeth Gorsky bought the property in 1983. The property on the Hermitage's southern side was acquired in 1998 adding additional natural forest area to the site. Elizabeth, who has a passionate interest in the study and practice of Buddhism, used the Hermitage as her retreat. Over the years a variety of teachers, monks nuns and lay people, including locals, have visited and lived. Her interests took her around the world to a number of Buddhist centres of study.
Simultaneously another phenomenon was occurring. In the forests of Thailand, a growing group of westerners was attracted to the teachings of a humble monk, Ajahn Chah. Numbers of American, English, Australians and other nationalities became students of Ajahn Chah. In 1983 some of Ajahn Chah's western disciples were invited to start Bodhinyana Monastery in the countryside outside Perth in WA. This became the major centre for Theravadin monastic education in Australia, and currently houses 20 monks and students. It is affiliated with the main monastery Wat Pah Nanachat in Thailand, and other monasteries following the teachings of Ajahn Chah around the world. Greater depth on this can be found through the internet site www.forestsangha.org.
Elizabeth developed faith in the abbot of Bodhinyana, Venerable Ajahn Brahmavamso, and offered the property to him. This resulted in the visits of a number of monks and nuns to the Bundanoon Hermitage. A decision was then made to transfer the ownership of the Hermitage to an incorporated association, linked to Bodhinyana and to allow the property to evolve as a Buddhist monastery. The property has been renamed 'Santi Forest Monastery', 'santi' being the Pali word for peace.
Elizabeth then went on to ordain as a Buddhist nun at Dhammasara Nuns' Monastery in WA, under the name Sister Nirodha.
The current resident Sangha has ordained and trained in Thailand and Bodhinyana Monastery. Working together with the local and Buddhist community, they plan to further develop the site as a monastic residence.
Lay people will be welcome to stay, live peacefully, and practice meditation. The monastery survives purely on donations and there is no charge for accommodation, teaching, books or other services provided by the monastery.
The monastics may be seen walking on alms round in Bundanoon on Sunday morning about 9.30 am. In their tradition alms rounds is called 'pindapata'. It is part of an ancient tradition in India (the place of the Buddha's birth), practiced by mendicants from many religions such as Hindus, Jains, and, in the past, Christians too. It is part of maintaining a relationship between monks and nuns and the surrounding community. Any kind of food, preferably vegetarian, can be offered to a monk or nun on alms round. Some people ring the monastery the night before and request to have them visit their house in order to offer food.
Since the monastery is mainly natural bush bordering on the National Park, the Sangha is determined that any development should be harmonious and impact minimally on the environment.