Ledi Sayadaw

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Ledi Sayadaw

Ledi Sayādaw (1846, - 1923) was a famous Theravadin Buddhist monk in Burma. He revived the practice of vipassana meditation and wrote many manuals or expositions (Dipani) on Vipassana. His leading disciple was Saya Thetgyi, a layman. He wrote many books on Dhamma in Burmese in such a way that even a lay person can understand, hence he made Dhamma accessible to all levels of society.This scholarly, saintly monk was instrumental in reviving the traditional practice of Vipassana, making it more available for renunciates and lay people alike.

He went on to learn the technique of Vipassana still being taught in the caves of the Sagaing Hills; and after mastering the technique, he began to teach it to others. His vihara (monastery) was in Ledi village near the town of Monywa. There he meditated most of the time and taught the other bhikkhus.

At other times he traveled throughout Myanmar. Because of his mastery of pariyatti, he was able to write many books on Dhamma in both Pali and Burmese languages such as, Paramattha-dipani (Manual of Ultimate Truth), Nirutta-dipani, a book on Pali grammar and The Manuals of Dhamma..

Thus he strengthened pariyatti, and at the same time he kept alive the pure tradition of patipatti by teaching the technique of Vipassana to a few people.

He realized that besides bhikkhus, good lay teachers would need to be developed for the spread of Dhamma. Therefore he made the technique, which had previously been restricted to bhikkhus, accessible to lay people as well. Although he trained some bhikkhus to teach, he also established a lay farmer named Saya Thetgyi as a teacher.

Ledi Sayadaw was perhaps the most outstanding Buddhist figure of his age. He was instrumental in reviving the traditional practice of Vipassana, making it more available for renunciates and lay people alike. In addition to this most important aspect of his teaching, his concise, clear and extensive scholarly work served to clarify the experiential aspect of Dhamma