The Heartwood Hermitage
A Refuge of Dhamma in the West Kootenays
Nelson, BC, Canada
Heartwood Kootenays
The Heartwood Hermitage is a community project held by Buddhist monastics as well as lay practitioners, through HeartDhamma to bring the early teachings of the Buddha to life in the West Kootenays and internationally.
Bhante Ananda
Bhante Ānanda’s home-base is now the Heartwood Hermitage, near Nelson, British Columbia, where he is the residing teacher and spiritual guide. There, a tiny house, nestled in a small cedar grove, currently acts as his kuti. This only tiny building, which constitutes the whole of this small hermitage.
Retreats
Sharing his time between Sri Lanka, the Heartwood Hermitage in British Columbia, and the Indian Himalayas, Bhante Ānanda also leads retreats worldwide.
Teachings
Emphasizing “Natural Samādhi,” Bhante Ānanda teaches the development of mental collectedness through uplifting the mind and relaxing bodily tension. He guides practitioners through Loving-Kindness meditation, the four Brahmavihāras, Satipatthāna, and culminating in Vimutti—mental liberation.
Life at the Hermitage
Story + Support
In June 2020, a tiny house was purchased, which now serves as shelter and refuge to Bhante Ānanda, in the West Kootenay mountains of Blewett, a nearby community of Nelson, BC.