What Buddhism Is
Introduction to Buddhist Meditation in the Tradition of Sayagyi U Ba Khin
Welcome to the authentic teachings of Buddhist meditation as practiced by one of Burma's greatest meditation teachers. The texts you find here offer clear, practical guidance for understanding Buddhism and applying its life-changing teachings in everyday life.
These writings present the Buddha's teachings not as complicated philosophy, but as a living practice that anyone can learn, regardless of their religious background. Through simple explanations of meditation and ethical living, these teachings show the path to inner peace, wisdom, and freedom from suffering.
The texts focus on the real benefits of meditation—developing a clear mind, emotional balance, and good character—while staying true to the Buddha's original teachings. They show how ancient wisdom can help with modern problems, offering "a deep pool of quiet in the midst of all that is happening today."
This website also includes writings from important Buddhist monks that that are directly or indirectly linked to Sayagyi U Ba Khin. You will find texts from Ledi Sayadaw, a highly learned monk and scholar who was the teacher Sayagyi Thet Gyi - Sayagyi U Ba Khin's own teacher. Also featured are the profound insights of Webu Sayadaw, a revered Buddhist monk who is believed to have achieved the highest goals of the Buddha's teachings and who encouraged Sayagyi U Ba Khin to teach Vipassana meditation to lay people.
Sayagyi U Ba Khin was a remarkable man who showed that deep spiritual achievement could go hand-in-hand with worldly success. He served as Burma's first Accountant General after independence and held other important government positions, all while maintaining an intensive meditation practice.
In 1952, he founded the International Meditation Centre in Rangoon, where he taught true Buddhist meditation to both local students and visitors from around the world. What made him special was his practical, down-to-earth approach. Instead of just talking about Buddhism, he taught 10-day meditation courses where he emphasized direct experience through systematic practice of morality, concentration, and wisdom.
After Sayagyi U Ba Khin's passing, his teaching was continued and spread worldwide by his most accomplished student—Mother Sayamagyi (Daw Mya Thwin) and her husband Sayagyi U Chit Tin, who established five International Meditation Centres around the globe. These centers preserve his method of teaching the Buddha's path through direct, personal understanding of life's fundamental truths: that everything changes, that clinging causes suffering, and that there is no permanent self to cling to.
Sayagyi U Ba Khin (1899-1971)
Webu Sayadaw (1896-1977) was one of Burma's most revered Buddhist monks, renowned for his extraordinary meditation practice and reputation as a fully enlightened being. Born in Ingyinbin village, he became a novice monk at age nine and studied Pāli scriptures until age twenty-seven at Masoyein Monastery in Mandalay. In 1923, Webu Sayadaw made a pivotal decision to abandon scholarly studies and spend four years in complete solitude dedicated entirely to meditation practice.
Webu Sayadaw specialised in Ānāpānasati (mindfulness of breathing), declaring it "a shortcut to Nibbāna" and "the straight path to Nibbāna." His approach was simple yet profound: maintain awareness of breathing in, breathing out, and where the breath touches the nostrils, developing deep concentration to gain Vipassanā (insight) into impermanence, non-self, and suffering.
The relationship between Webu Sayadaw and U Ba Khin proved crucial for the international spread of Vipassanā meditation. Their first meeting occurred in 1941, and Webu Sayadaw became instrumental in encouraging Sayagyi U Ba Khin to teach meditation to laypeople. This endorsement from such a highly respected monk helped establish Sayagyi U Ba Khin's credibility as a meditation teacher, despite his lay status.
In 1953, Webu Sayadaw accepted an invitation from Sayagyi U Ba Khin to visit the International Meditation Centre in Rangoon—his first major journey outside upper Burma. Webu Sayadaw continued to support Sayagyi U Ba Khin's work throughout his life, even reviewing and approving his written teachings on Buddhism.
Webu Sayadaw (1896-1977)
Ledi Sayadaw U Ñāṇadhaja stands out as one of Burma’s most influential Theravada monks, revered for combining deep scholarship with uncompromising meditative practice. Born in Saing-pyin village, Sagaing Division, he ordained as a novice at fifteen and soon distinguished himself in Mandalay for his mastery of Pāli and Abhidhamma studies.
After a devastating fire in 1883, he retreated to the forest near Monywa, founded Ledi Monastery in 1886, and adopted the name “Ledi Sayadaw,” meaning “respected teacher of the Ledi forest”. There he balanced teaching and intensive meditation, producing a stream of lucid manuals—such as the Paramattha Dīpanī and Bodhipakkhiya Dīpanī—that made complex doctrine accessible to monks and lay readers alike.
Equally significant was his revival of Vipassanā (insight) meditation. By training lay practitioner Saya Thetgyi, he established a teaching tradition that later reached Sayagyi U Ba Khin, helping spread Vipassanā meditation worldwide.
