The greatest gift is the
gift of the teachings
 
Ayya Medhanandi's Dharma Talks at Sati Saraniya Hermitage
Ayya Medhanandi
Ayyā Medhānandī Bhikkhunī, is the founder and guiding teacher of Sati Sārāņīya Hermitage, a Canadian forest monastery for women in the Theravāda tradition. The daughter of Eastern European refugees who emigrated to Montreal after World War II, she began a spiritual quest in childhood that led her to India, Burma, England, New Zealand, Malaysia, Taiwan, and finally, back to Canada.
2016-08-13 Reading: Therigatha – Venerable Subha Bhikkhuni’s Poem 9:42
Satipanna Insight Meditation Toronto (SIMT) Retreat
Sati Saraniya Hermitage
2015-12-20 Peace Without Fear - Seven Lights to Freedom 29:18
The Buddha teaches us about seven lights to gain true freedom. They are none other than the factors of enlightenment. Three are dynamic skills that deeply cleanse the mind. In turn, these give rise to four 'septic friendly' brightening agents that lead us to inner wisdom. We learn how to practice forgiveness and compassion, and how to awaken to a selfless benevolence - an unassailable joy, peace and complete freedom of heart.
Sati Saraniya Hermitage
2015-12-20 Virtue Goes Full Circle 30:11
Virtue creates a force in the heart, a field of goodness, from generosity to joy to enlightenment and back again. Once there is joy in the heart, the mind finds ease to go to its depths. Be your own doctor, self-examine, see with the inner eye to discern and resolve our inner dis-ease and free the mind. Dukkha is not the problem, it is our teacher.
Sati Saraniya Hermitage
2015-11-21 Practice Forgiveness: Guided Metta Meditation 30:00
Satipanna Insight Meditation Toronto (SIMT)
Sati Saraniya Hermitage
2015-10-11 On The Wings of the Breath 17:38
Using the breath to move into the silent space in the heart and attentively following its rhythm, the breath becomes our whole world. We let go of all objects that arise, all thought, as we stay present and aware in the simple current of breathing. In these moments of pure presence, we are planting the priceless seeds of our awakening.
Sati Saraniya Hermitage
2015-10-04 Softly Close the Gates 30:00
There is so much for us to understand. Preparing yourselves for that unfolding of wisdom, take your rightful seat in a balanced way and follow the path inward. Softly close off all the gates and give your full attention and energy to the mind's interior exploration – of itself. We are on a wondrous journey!
Sati Saraniya Hermitage
2015-08-18 Devotion 37:10
Satipanna Insight Meditation Toronto (SIMT) Retreat, Chapin Mill, Batavia, N.Y.
Sati Saraniya Hermitage
2015-08-16 Sanctity Deep Within Us: Guided Metta Meditation: 30:00
Satipanna Insight Meditation Toronto (SIMT) Retreat
Sati Saraniya Hermitage
2013-06-30 Sacred Heart: First Inside the Temple 32:40
First talk given inside the new Sati Saraniya Temple building. Within us we have a sacred space that we need to reclaim - the very space inside the heart. Here the Four Noble Truths come to life. Know our suffering, not blaming anyone or any conditions for it, see its origin within us, and right here, resolve it, uproot it. Here then, we realize suffering's end, time and again. And so in clearing the heart, we clear the Path.
Sati Saraniya Hermitage
2012-04-08 A Wilderness Traveller 37:26
All of us can train our minds. When we are driven by lack of wisdom, ill-will, greed or confusion, we live in a wilderness of the mind. In spiritual community, we hold together to blaze a trail through that wilderness, establishing trust and confidence, and persevering. We are guided by wisdom and mindfulness to purify ourselves; and we are willing to make sacrifices – even to suffer – for the treasures of the Path.
Sati Saraniya Hermitage

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