Asoka Weeraratna අසෝක වීරරතන | |
|---|---|
 Asoka Weeraratna | |
| Born | 12 December 1918 |
| Died | 2 July 1999(1999-07-02) (aged 80) Mitirigala, Sri Lanka |
| Nationality | Sri Lankan (Sinhala) |
| Other names | Alfred Weeraratna Mitirigala Dhammanisanthi Thera |
| Education | Mahinda College, Galle[1] |
| Known for | Propagation of Buddhism |
Asoka Weeraratna (December 12, 1918 – July 2, 1999) was aSri Lankan (Sinhala) Buddhist missionary, who founded theGerman Dharmaduta Society in 1952.[2] He is also the founder of theBerlin Buddhist Vihara, one of the oldest Buddhist temples inEurope and MitirigalaNissarana Vanaya, a famous meditation monastery in theWestern Province, Sri Lanka.[2] Asoka Weeraratna later entered the Order ofBuddhist monks in 1972 as Ven. Mitirigala Dhammanisanthi Thera and spent his later life as a forest monk at the Mitirigala Nissarana Vanaya for a period of 27 years.[3]