'Bhikkhu Bodhi' (born
1944) is an American
Buddhist monk from
New York City. Born in
Brooklyn, New York, he obtained a BA in philosophy from
Brooklyn College in 1966 and a PhD in philosophy from
Claremont Graduate School in 1972.
Drawn to Buddhism in his early 20s, after completing his university studies, he traveled to
Sri Lanka, where he received novice ordination in 1972 and full ordination in 1973, both under the late Ven.
Ananda Maitreya, the leading Sri Lankan scholar-monk in recent times.
He was appointed editor of the
Buddhist Publication Society (in Sri Lanka) in 1984 and its president in 1988. Ven. Bodhi has many important publications to his credit, either as author, translator, or editor, including ''The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha -- A Translation of the
Majjhima Nikaya'' (co-translated with Ven.
Bhikkhu Nanamoli, 1995) and ''The Connected Discourses of the Buddha -- a New Translation of the
Samyutta Nikaya'' (2000).
In May 2000, he gave the
keynote address at the
United Nations on its first official celebration of
Vesak (the day of the
Buddha's birth, enlightenment, and passing away). He returned to the U.S. in 2002 and since July 2002 has been living and teaching at Bodhi Monastery. He is currently the president of the Sangha Council of Bodhi Monastery and the chairman of
Yin Shun Foundation.
External links
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www.dharma.org entry
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Bodhi Monastery
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Online Books and Articles at Access to Insight
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Suttas read aloud