BHIKKHU DHAMMASIHA 

Bhikkhu  Dhammasiha was born in West Germany on 5th December 1966.  After finishing high school in Hanover and serving as a conscript in the German armed forces, he studied business administration in West Berlin. As the curriculum was not too demanding, he was left with plenty of time and energy for his genuine interests: Schopenhauer’s philosophy, Indian religion and culture, and a thorough exploration of the suffering and disappointment inherent in sensual pleasures. A powerful lesson on impermanence was provided by the fall of the Berlin-Wall, and the dramatic changes it entailed.
After finishing his degree in 1993, he attempted a compromise of material necessities and spiritual aspirations by starting a PhD on “Indian Corporate Culture”.  However, during field research in India, he read the Dhammapada which hit him as a true revelation.  He travelled to Sarnath and Bodh Gaya, and finally succeeded in dropping worldly concerns to fully devote his life to the spiritual quest.

He ordained as a Theravāda Buddhist monk in Sri Lanka in June 1995, with most Ven. Pandita K. Sri Jinavamsa as preceptor.  For three years he trained at Nissarana Vana, Meetirigala in Sri Lanka, a forest monastery dedicated to solitary practice of meditation, and meticulous observance of the Theravāda Vinaya.  His approach to practice was guided by the Suttas of the Pāli Canon, and by the examples of senior monks like Ven. Nanavimala, Ven. Nanadipa and Ven. Bhikku Bodhi.

In 1998 he came to Australia and started training in the tradition of Ajahn Chah, first at Bodhinyana Monastery in Perth, and later at Vimokkharam, a quiet Forest Hermitage in Melbourne’s Dandenong Ranges.  During this period, he was fortunate to receive teachings from some of the foremost living teachers of the Thai Forest Tradition, like Tan Ajahn Tui and Tan Ajahn Plien, on their visits to Australia.

Bhikkhu Dhammasiha arrived in Brisbane in 2007 on invitation by Brisbane Buddhist Vihara, to help in establishing a forest monastery in South East Queensland.  He is now the abbot of Dhammagiri Forest Hermitage, the first forest monastery in Brisbane, and the only one in Queensland associated with the tradition of Ajahn Chah.  The hermitage is located in serene, natural environment amid forested hills adjoining D’Aguilar National Park,only 33km (45mins) from Brisbane’s city centre.