With the support of the Aryana Vihar Trust and the greater Buddhist community, there is interest in the creation of a forest monastery associated with Wat Pah Nanachat, an international branch forest monastery of Wat Nong Pah Pong, Thailand. The monastery would be following a traditional model found in northeast Thailand, providing a space to support the training and lifestyle of Buddhist monks following the Vinaya training and developing their bhavana. The space would create a quiet and natural environment where monks, laymen and laywomen can practice meditation and live following the protocols of the monastic community. The living areas would provide a sense of solitude for individuals to spend time in meditation and reflection, while also following the schedule and routine of the monastic community.

The aim is the creation of an environment which creates a sense of space, cleanliness, and inspiration. This would include the development and management of trees and plants to help bring a naturally cool and uplifting feel to the space. The structures around the monastery could me done in a tasteful way, without being luxurious and serve as functional and practical living spaces. With the climate of Haryana including a possibly long hot season, there is importance to develop the structures and space to give shelter and relief from such conditions. It would be important to create this monastery in such a way to make practical and of decent quality, considering the costs, and respecting and using the funds offered by generous supporters appropriately.
Also while creating the physical area of the monastery, we would hope to create a sense of community with both the locals and others further away. Along with hiring professional assistance from further afield, it would be helpful and practical to hire local labor which would help while creating a sense of community in an area not yet familiar with forest monasteries.

The most immediate goal is to make an overall plan of the project and consider the possible phases and in which order to proceed.

Finding professional help in the design of the monastery project

• Architect: To help in the design and manage the of building structures such as meditation huts, main hall, smaller shelters, kitchen, and The interest in structure styles would lean more to natural, eco-friendly building styles such as rammed earth, Cobb or earth bag.

• Permaculture: To help with understanding how to manage water, tree planting, building locations and overall ‘flow’ of the Path ways, roads, entry gate/wall and land management infrastructure.

Listed below are the various areas for consideration in creating a forest monastery. They are not listed in any particular order, for as the plan develops it will become more apparent what projects would take priority.

• Meditation huts used for individual living space with very basic furnishing and without electricity plumbing (maybe water). The room size would be around 10ft x10ft , and have a footprint of 10ft x 14ft, giving a 4ft area of a porch/veranda out side the This would be the primary residence for monks, along with a few available for long term men/women practicing with the community.
• Toilets and bathing facilities for use by the resident monastic community, visiting overnight guests and people visiting for short day Finding suitable places to place septic systems and proper waste management is important, along with access to water for cleaning and showering.
• Kitchen area for food preparation and storage, including an area for visitors to take their meal
• Eating area for the monastic community which would also serve as a place for (senior) monks to receive guests and Having a space for informal gatherings, tea, Q and A etc. could be done here. This could also function as an area for general information or free book distribution.
• Meditation hall (Sala) This would be the main hall of the monastery, generally of a larger size for daily use and This is where morning and evening practice would take place, larger gatherings for events or teachings, and a general quiet, open and available space for meditation practice.
• Mens’s common area which would be where men staying overnight would sleep, bath and use the Individual rooms, whether separate huts or all within a single structure like a dorm, would be the standard living arrangement.
• Women’s common area which would be where women staying overnight would sleep, bath and use the Individual rooms, whether separate huts or all within a single structure like a dorm, would be the standard living arrangement.
• Main entrance and parking. For people arriving at the monastery and parking their cars Making the space practical while also creating the setting that one is ‘coming into’ or arriving at a place meant for spiritual practice. Making walls, fences and gates which give create a practical boundary, yet still feels inviting and open to others.
• Water system to provide drinking water, shower water and for cultivating the land of trees and This likely involves digging a bore and creating an irrigation system
• Forest cultivation and management. Finding information and organizations to help in selecting plant species, proper plantation and maintenance, and providing other permaculture
• Electricity use would be needed for running water pumps and small appliances in the Heavier use may occasionally be needed while doing construction, using power tools such as saws or mixers. Currently there are lines running over the land which could be accessed. Also solar energy may be a direction worth considering.

Donations and payments

The budget will be a significant factor as to how and when the different projects take place, making sure we can afford to move ahead with various phases.

The monastery will be supported by donations made by people near and far. At present the donations can only come from within India until AVT receives government approval to receive donations made from international donors. There has been a generous donation made of a substantial amount to start with the initial building of infrastructure and developing phase. There is also an existing budget within AVT being managed by the treasurer.

Arañña Saṅghārāma Vihāra (or Saṅghārāma for short) is proposed at village Rampur Gainda, district Yamunanagar, Haryana, India. It is approximately 300km north from Dwarka, Delhi and 1.5km from the ancient monastery of Adi Badri in district Yamunanagar, Haryana.