Welcome

Here you’ll find news and other resources for anyone interested in Temple Forest Monastery, a Buddhist monastery in the Thai forest tradition of Ajahn Chah and Ajahn Sumedho located in the small town of Temple, New Hampshire. A pleasant one-and-a-half-hour drive from Boston, the monastery benefits from a balance of wilderness, seclusion and accessibility historically typical of a Buddhist forest monastery.

A forest monastery in New England

The Buddhist ‘forest monasteries’ of Southeast Asia tend to be simple dwelling places for the monastic community (the ‘Sangha’), located in peaceful natural settings – usually forests. Their main purpose is to facilitate the practice of meditation and the living of the Buddhist monastic way of life.

In Thailand the forest monasteries have played a role in helping to protect threatened forests and the many forms of life they host, and to provide sanctuaries where people can come to join the monastic community for shorter or longer periods, practicing meditation while living in nature in a similarly simple manner.

Since the monastic communities of Theravada Buddhism depend entirely upon the lay community for their material support – as they have for over 2,500 years since the time of the Buddha – the existence of a monastery depends upon the interest and generosity of people who find it to be of value.

The primary purpose of Temple Forest Monastery is to serve as a place where Buddhist forest monks are able to live and practice the monastic life according to their tradition – which combines meditation and seclusion for individuals within a forest wilderness with a disciplined communal life – and where those interested can apply to become monks and receive a traditional training. In addition the monastery acts as a religious center, or ‘church’, for local and regional Buddhists, and also as a resource for those of any faith or none interested in learning from traditional Buddhist monastic life, teachings, and practice.

Everyone is welcome: guidance and opportunities for meditation and quiet reflection are offered for visitors and, for those who wish to join the monastic routine of the monks, for overnight guests. The monastery aims to provide an accessible contemplative sanctuary for anyone interested in this way of life. It is therefore a place where cultures mix, and on any given day there may be local American as well as Thai or other Asian visitors, and occasionally guests from other countries. 

Temple Forest Monastery is part of an international monastic community based in Thailand, with branches in various Western countries; the monks at Temple are mainly Westerners who have taken ordination within this monastic order. The monasteries of this tradition are financially independent, each funded entirely through unsolicited donations from people who wish to support that particular monastery. Since Buddhist monks’ rules prevent them from receiving or handling money or having personal funds, a religious non-profit organization was created to facilitate those needs for this monastery. Everything is offered freely to everyone who comes to the monastery; there is no charge for anything.

Who’s involved?

Since the early 1990s interested people in New England have been inviting the monastic community of Ajahn Sumedho to start a branch monastery in the region. In 2011 a non-profit organization – Jeta Grove – was formed in order to act as a ‘steward’ for the monastic community, since the monks’ rules prevent them from directly receiving or having legal control over money. Jeta Grove receives donations and handles the financial affairs of the monastery on behalf of those wishing to support the monks, working closely with the abbots and monastic community in providing for the Sangha’s needs.

More about the monastery’s history >

More about the community >

More about the tradition >

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