Venerable Bambalapitiye Gñanaloka Thero is a highly venerated senior Sri Lankan Buddhist monk of the Theravada tradition. Venerable Gñanaloka is respected for his strict adherence to the Vinaya, deep commitment to meditation and for ascetic practices, similar to those of the ancient disciples of the Buddha.
He has a special interest for solitude and simple living, and spends long periods every year in the rugged mountains of the Himalayas, Nepal & India as well as in the deep uninhabited forests of Sri Lanka. He ardently engages in continuous meditation practice as performed in the ancient times. His teachings, are direct and practical and reflects the teachings of the Buddha in simple manner. Venerable Gnanalokas Dhamma talks are suffused with loving-kindness and compassion, and include interesting anecdotes from his experiences as a monk as well as from his early life. Rather than an intellectual abstraction of the teachings, Venerable Gñanaloka tends to focus on practical applications of the Dhamma, for developing wisdom and compassion in daily life.
He was born in Sri Lanka in 1971 to a family of devout Buddhists. At the age of 14, Venerable Gñanaloka accompanied his parents to South Africa and spent the adolescent years with his family in Lesotho.
