Sitagu Sayadaw | |
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သီတဂူဆရာတော် | |
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| Title | Sangha Rājā of Shwekyin Nikāya |
| Personal life | |
| Born | (1937-02-23)23 February 1937 (age 88)[1] |
| Nationality | Burmese |
| Education | Khin-ma-gan Pali University, Mandalay (M.A.) Sangha University, Yangon |
| Other names | Venerable Dr. Ashin Nyanissara U Nyanissara Thegon Sayadaw Thabeik Aine Sayadaw |
| Occupation | Buddhist monk |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Buddhism |
| School | Theravada |
| Lineage | Shwekyin Nikāya |
| Dharma names | Ñāṇissara |
| Senior posting | |
| Teacher | Anicakhan SayadawAshin Pandita[2] |
| Based in | Sagaing Hills,Myanmar |
| Website | thesitagu |
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Key figures
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Ashin Nyanissara (Burmese:ဉာဏိဿရ;IAST:Ñāṇissara) best known asSitagu Sayadaw (သီတဂူဆရာတော်), is a Burmese meditation teacher and prolific Buddhist scholar. He is also the founder ofSitagu International Buddhist Academy.
His work as a teacher began in 1977 and encompasses religious, educational, medical and infrastructural activities. He travels worldwide to promote his humanitarian efforts and for interfaith dialogue.[1] In 2012, he became theShwegyin Nikaya'sUpaukkaṭṭha (ဥပဥက္ကဋ္ဌ;lit. 'first and foremost').[3]
Sitagu Sayadaw is known for his charismatic leadership and practices ofsocially-engaged Buddhism.[2] His organization has funded many social projects in Burma, including water pumps, construction of hospitals such as the Sitagu Ayudana Hospital in Sagaing[4] in 1985, and the Sitagu Buddhist Academy in 1998.[2]
Sitagu Sayadaw was lauded for his missionary and charity works, especially in the aftermath ofCyclone Nargis in 2008, which killed upwards of 100,000 in the country's delta regions.[5]
He is also interested ininterfaith dialogue and currently sits on the Board of World Religious Leaders for theElijah Interfaith Institute.[6]
The sayadaw has associated in recent years with the Buddhist nationalist groupPatriotic Association of Myanmar.[7] In May 2017, the sayadaw preached asermon inKayin State toMyanmar Army officers likely to be involved with the suppression in Arakan state.[8] In the sermon, he argues that badkarma obtained from killing of those who do not follow the five precepts is much less than of those who do.[9] On May 28, 2019, after having delivered a sermon, he singledAshin Wirathu, then in hiding, out from among thesaṅgha, asking in rhetoric, "Where is Wirathu? He is my comrade."[10]
In February 2021, the sayadaw had appeared not to affix his signature to a statement released by theSitagu International Buddhist Academy in response to the then-days-oldmilitary coup and theensuing protests against it. The letter was criticized as having presented afalse balance between the two opposing sides. In March 2021, however, the sayadaw, along with the other leading monks of theShwekyin Nikāya, added his signature to a letter that urgedMin Aung Hlaing to immediately cease the assaults on unarmed civilians protesting the takeover by the military and to refrain from engaging in theft andproperty destruction.[11][12] The letter reminded the general to be agood Buddhist.[11] The March letter gained notoriety for the discrepancies between its signed original draft and its final version, the latter which appears to have legitimized Min Aung Hlaing's rule through a veiled reference to him asking. TheBurmese word for 'king',min (Burmese:မင်း,MLCTS:mang:), coincides with the first syllable of the general's name, even in theBurmese script.
The sayadaw was criticized for having attended areligious-donation event on March 26, 2021, upon invitation from theState Administration Council (SAC), during which a ceremony was held in relation to a religious-construction project involving what is reported to become the largest marble Buddha statue in existence. The criticism also brought the sayadaw's continued personal association with Min Aung Hlaing back to the fore.
TheState Peace and Development Council bestowed twohonorific titles upon him:
Honorary doctorates received from Myanmar and International Universities: