Venerable Canda
We were so delighted to welcome Venerable Canda to join our episode, “The Taste of Dhamma,” in which she was one of three foreign practitioners to comment on her spiritual growth in the Golden Land. Following is a fuller biography of her journey into Buddhist nunhood.
When Venerable Canda took her first meditation retreat in India in 1996, in the Vipassana Tradition of SN Goenka, she knew she had found her life's purpose. She spent the next seven years dedicated to meditating and serving as a volunteer on retreats, mostly in India, Nepal and Myanmar, and saw thousands of lives transform just as hers had, too. As her confidence and gratitude in the Triple Gem deepened, so did her aspiration to renounce lay life and this was particularly inspired by the Buddhist lineages and people of Myanmar.
Unable to find a suitable place to ordain, she returned to England in 2002 (now 27) to study a degree in Ayurvedic medicine - as a 'backup' option. During this time however, she came to know about Sayadaw U Pannajota, a highly realised monk developing an international monastery for nuns as well as monks, in Hmawbi, Yangon. Elated by this news, she took temporary ordination for three months in her next study vacation, with a definite view to return. After graduating with first class honours, she renounced for the long term and resided at Thephyu Tawya Dhamma Yeiktha for the next four years under the close mentoring of Sayadaw, who treated her like a daughter. Sadly, despite ideal practice conditions, she became seriously ill with gastric problems that could not be resolved, and eventually saw little option but to take leave of her Teacher and find another opening to continue her monastic life.
Fortunately, around the same time, she happened upon some monastic talks by Ajahn Brahm that resonated immediately, and felt a strong calling to deepen her meditation under his guidance. In 2012, she had the chance to spend a three month rains' retreat (vassa) at Ajahn Brahm's home monastery in Perth, Australia, and join Dhammasara Nuns' Monastery nearby. She subsequently took full 'bhikkhuni' ordination there, with Ajahn's encouragement.
In 2016, Ajahn Brahm asked Ven Canda to return to the UK and develop a monastery. In response, Ven Canda founded Anukampa Bhikkhuni Project, a UK Charity which Ajahn Brahm serves as Spiritual Advisor and as a trustee, which aims to promote the teachings and practices of Early Buddhism and develop Britain's first bhikkhuni monastery. Significant steps have been taken to fulfill both aims and a temporary Bhikkhuni residence (vihara) was established in Oxford. Ven Canda has also been serving a growing community of international Dhamma practitioners throughout the pandemic, through regular and accessible online teachings that emphasise kindness and letting go as a way to deepen stillness (samadhi) and the path for liberating insight to arise into suffering, impermanence and non-self.
Ven Canda hopes that the final few steps can soon be taken to enable Anukampa's monastery vision to come to fruition, by raising funds, teaching and building community. As well as continuing to practice for the realisation of nibbana, this feels like a small way to pay back the debt of gratitude for all she has received from the people of India and Myanmar, her Teachers, the great bhikkhunis past and present, and of course, the Buddha himself.