Webu Sayadaw (, ; 17 February 1896 – 26 June 1977) was a

Theravada ''Theravāda'' (; 'School of the Elders'; ) is Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed ''Theravādins'' (anglicized from Pali ''theravādī''), have preserved their version of the Buddha's teaching or ''Dharma (Buddhi ...

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

, and vipassanā master, best known for giving all importance to diligent practice, rather than scholastic achievement.

Early life

Ven. Webu Sayadaw was born to Daw Kyin Nu and U Lu Pe in 1896 in

British Burma British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and cultur ...

near Khin U township in modern-day

Sagaing Division Sagaing Region (, ; formerly Sagaing Division) is an administrative divisions of Myanmar, administrative region of Myanmar, located in the north-western part of the country between latitude 21° 30' north and longitude 94° 97' east. It is border ...

. He underwent the usual monk's training in the Pāli scriptures from the age of nine, when he became a

novice A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession with no prior experience. Religion Buddhism ...

, until he was twenty-seven. His monastic name was .

Monk and teacher

In 1923 (seven years after his ordination), he left the monastery and spent four years in solitude. He practiced (and later taught) the technique of

Ānāpānasati (Pali; Sanskrit: '), meaning "Sati (Buddhism), mindfulness of breathing" ( means mindfulness; refers to inhalation and exhalation), is the act of paying attention to the breath. It is the quintessential form of Buddhist meditation, attribute ...

(awareness of the in-breath and out-breath). He said that by working with this practice to a very deep level of concentration, one is able to develop Vipassanā (insight) into the essential characteristics of all experience: anicca (impermanence), anatta (egolessness) and dukkha (unsatisfactoriness). According to Roger Bischof, on return from his four years of seclusion, he said, regarding

: "This is a shortcut to Nibbana, anyone can use it. It stands up to investigation and is in accordance with the teachings of the Buddha as conserved in the scriptures. It is the straight path to Nibbana." Ven. Webu Sayadaw was famous for his unflagging diligence in meditation and for spending most of his time in solitude. He was reputed to be an

arahant In Buddhism, an ''Arhat'' () or ''Arahant'' (, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved '' Nirvana'' and has been liberated from the endless cycle of rebirth. The und ...

(fully enlightened one), and it is said that he never slept. For the first fifty-seven years of his life, Ven. Webu Sayadaw stayed in upper Burma, dividing his time among three meditation centres in a small area. After his first trip to

Rangoon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...

in 1953 to visit the International Meditation Centre at the invitation of Sayagyi U Ba Khin, he included southern Burma in his travels, visiting there to teach and meditate from time to time. He also went on pilgrimage to India and

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

. Ven. Webu Sayadaw spent his final days at the meditation centre in the village where he was born. He died on 26 June 1977, at the age of eighty-one.

References

Biography of Venerable Webu Sayadaw

Wheel Publications (BPS)

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Essential Practice Part I: Dhamma Discourses of the Venerable Webu Sayadaw
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Essential Practice Part II: Dhamma Discourses of the Venerable Webu Sayadaw (WH384/385)
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Bodhi Leaf Publications (BPS)

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Dhamma Talk-1 (BL119)
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To Light A Fire (BL122)
'

References

External links

Video and rare photos of Venerable Webu SayadawThe Way to Ultimate Calm: Selected Discourses of Webu Sayadaw (full book)Short biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Webu Sayadaw Theravada Buddhist monks 1896 births 1977 deaths Burmese Theravada Buddhists Burmese Buddhist monks People from Sagaing Region 20th-century Buddhist monks

Early life

Monk and teacher

See also

References

Wheel Publications (BPS)

Bodhi Leaf Publications (BPS)

References

External links