Maechee Opasini Sorntiraj

Thailand

Maechee Opasini Sorntiraj has a very deep love of life, Buddhism and nature. Born in 1959 she was fortunate to have a mother and a sister who were nuns. They were happy, peaceful and knowledgeable in Buddhist teachings and practices. This positively influenced her and she ordained at age 27.

She enjoyed studying Dhamma and Abhidhamma and did so to the highest levels, Level III. While she studied she gained strong faith and inspiration to see improvement in people's lives and society, so she became a Dhamma teacher and event organizer for the temple. She has taught different age groups and populations: the elder, youth, working people from both the government and private sectors.

She traveled to India and Nepal and became further inspired to promote Buddhism. She teaches the Four Mindfulness postures and considers every activity as meditation. She is the Abbess of Suan Pasanti Nantawan Temple in Nakhonsawan Provice, and she focuses on primarily making outreach to teach women.

Over the past 21 years, she has undertaken 16 projects as follows.

1. Teaching Dhamma on the radio
2. Annual meditation retreats: Makha Puja, Mother's Day & Father's Day
3. New Year's Chanting to bring in a positive New Year
4. Herb project: more than 100 herbs
5. Dhamma studies
6. Water treatment project
7. Recycling
8. Charcoal oven for energy conservation
9. Organic farming
10. Reforestation and tree bank
11. Fertilizer project
12. Five Precepts project
13. Tipitaka out of the closet project, whereby villagers come to read stories from the Tipitaka and share stories
14. Building accommodations for meditators
15. Landscaping the temple
16. Dhammatan project: a corner is devoted to CDs and Dhamma books

Her happiness clearly comes from her close relationship to nature and Dhamma.