Home

Venerable Panadure Chandarathana Thero is an experienced meditation teacher on both Vipassana and Samatha meditation techniques. He is the Deputy Abbot of Mitirigala Nissarana Vanaya, a renowned forest monastery in Sri Lanka. Annually, Venerable Chandarathana Thero conducts meditation retreats in Sri Lanka and overseas and is the author of numerous publications on meditation in English and Sinhalese.

We are happy to be able to present the following texts for personal use, in Acrobat format, with the permission of Ven. Chandaratana. The Mitirigala Sangha retains the copyright of the texts and permission should be sought from the Mitirigala Nissarana Vanaya, Mitirigala, 11742, Sri Lanka, in regard to wider distribution or publication.

Signless and Emptiness (2024)

Ven. Chandaratana writes: "Many yogis participating in the retreats often ask the question, 'What should one do once they have reached emptiness?' This is a challenging question to answer. There are various suttas where the Buddha addresses this subject, and it is important to carefully seek guidance from these teachings. This question became the theme of the retreat we conducted in 2024 at the Jhana Grove Retreat Centre in Perth. The interesting questions posed by the yogis helped to further enhance the topic and make it more practical."

• Download 'Signless and Emptiness book' as a PDF document (1.05 MB)

Satipatthana Sutta: Essential Teachings for the Practice (2022)

Ven. Chandaratana writes: "Since the Satipatthana Sutta is the heart of Buddhist Meditation, it is my wish that these teachings will serve as an aid to many practitioners to commence the practice and serve as a practice guide to advanced yogis as well."

• Download 'Satipatthana Sutta book' as a PDF document (1.29 MB)

Grasping: The Upadana Sutta (2023)

Ven. Chandaratana writes: "I wish to discuss the subject of upadana; clinging, grasping, holding on to, or adhering to. This is a phenomenon that constantly arises in our mind, and as a result, we end up with a great deal of suffering. In Dependent Origination (paticca samuppada), the Buddha explains how this clinging, or grasping leads to becoming (upadana paccaya bhavo). Then how this becoming gives rise to various kinds of suffering. So, recognising the types of upadana, clinging, grasping, is quite vital. "

• Download 'Grasping: The Upadana Sutta book' as a PDF document (720 KB)