Ajahn Anan Akiñcano

Ajahn Anan Akiñcano was born Anan Chan-in on 31 March 1954 in Saraburi, central Thailand. After his studies he worked as an accountant, and in his free time he stayed at a nearby monastery keeping the eight precepts. Wat Marp Jan’s biography says that insight from this practice removed his remaining doubts, and he decided to ordain.

He received full ordination on 3 July 1975 with Ajahn Chah as his preceptor and teacher, and was given the Pali name Akiñcano, “One Without Worries”. For about four years he practised at Wat Nong Pah Pong and its branches and served as Ajahn Chah’s attendant. At Ajahn Chah’s encouragement he then spent roughly five years wandering in remote forests in Isaan and central Thailand.

In the early 1980s he settled on a plot of uninhabited land on the Rayong coast with other monks, and that site became Wat Marp Jan. It is now a branch of Wat Nong Pah Pong with several branch monasteries of its own. Its community of more than sixty monks includes many Westerners. He is its abbot and teacher.

He teaches in Thai. The monastery publishes English translations of his talks as video, podcast and books, and it runs a daily online session of chanting and meditation, with a Dhamma talk and questions on Fridays. Some of his talks are on YouTube with English translation.