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Mahasi Sayadaw U Sobhana မဟာစည်ဆရာတော် ဦးသောဘန | |
|---|---|
 The Venerable Mahasi Sayadaw | |
| Title | Sayadaw |
| Personal | |
| Born | Maung Thwin 29 July 1904 Seikkhun, Shwebo District, British Burma |
| Died | 14 August 1982 (aged 78) |
| Religion | Buddhism |
| Nationality | Burmese |
| School | Theravada |
| Lineage | Mahasi |
| Education | Dhammācariya (1941) |
| Dharma names | Sobhana သောဘန |
| Occupation | Buddhist monk |
| Senior posting | |
| Based in | Mahasi Monastery, Yangon, Myanmar |
| Predecessor | U Nārada |
| Successor | U Pandita, Dipa Ma |
| Website | www |
Mahāsī Sayādaw U Sobhana (Burmese: မဟာစည်ဆရာတော် ဦးသောဘန, pronounced [məhàsì sʰəjàdɔ̀ ʔú θɔ́bəna̰]; 29 July 1904 – 14 August 1982) was a Burmese Theravada Buddhist monk and meditation master who had a significant impact on the teaching of vipassanā (insight) meditation in the West and throughout Asia.
In his style of practice, derived from the so-called New Burmese Method of U Nārada, the meditator lives according to Buddhist morality as a prerequisite for meditation practice. Meditation itself entails the practice of "bare insight," using satipaṭṭhāna, the four foundations of mindfulness, to anchor the attention on the sensations of the rising and falling of the abdomen during breathing, observing carefully any other sensations or thoughts. This is coupled to reflection on the Buddhist teachings on causality, thereby gaining insight into anicca, dukkha, and anattā and attaining stream entry.
Mahāsī Sayādaw was a questioner and final editor at the Sixth Buddhist Council on May 17, 1954.