Venerable Metteyya Sakyputta was born in a small village in southern Nepal. As a young boy, he spent his days in the shade of an ancient Pipala tree, in the sacred garden of the Maya Devi Temple – the birthplace of the Buddha. Often he would remain there even through the night pondering the universe, how it worked, and about society and what he could do to inspire positive change.
As a middle school student, he was active in establishing environmental clubs, community and student service clubs, tutoring programs, scholarships, and a textbook donation drive for students who could not afford to buy their books or continue their studies. At the age of 15 he established his first school to serve underprivileged rural children in the surrounding areas. Today, Metta School teaches 685 students and employs 18 teachers to teach kindergarten through the eighth class.
Now an ordained Buddhist monk named the Venerable Metteyya, this young man has become a beloved Buddhism teacher around the world. He was one of the featured scholars in the 2010 PBS documentary “The Buddha”, and was portrayed alongside other well-known meditators in the 2014 documentary “On Meditation”. He was also a featured chapter in Allan Lokos’ book: “Patience: The Art of Peaceful Living.”
He is the founder of the Lumbini Social Service Foundation (LSSF), and in addition to the Metta Gurukul School he has opened a branch Metta school (Punnihawa School) in a neighboring village, a school exclusively for rural girls (Karuna Girls School), a nunnery for young girls (Peace Grove Institute), and has also begun the construction of a peace education center and monastery for young boys (Bodhi Institute), all in his home community.
In addition to his education projects, Venerable Metteyya also oversees efforts in nature conservation, including the Lumbini Crane Sanctuary, and is in the beginning stages of launching a Lumbini nature conservation program to revitalize and restore the ancient Lumbini Sacred Garden.
Finally, Venerable Metteyya, through his grassroots development organization, has taken the first steps to develop a comprehensive rural healthcare system in the Lumbini & Kapilavastu area. The Mahakaruna Hospital will provide 1.6 million villagers who currently have little or no access to healthcare with preventative, curative, and restorative care. To train and empower local youth, the healthcare project will also build and manage a nursing school to staff the future hospital.
In all his work, Venerable Metteyya seeks to pioneer institutions where they are needed most. He engages the local community by training and employing local youth, empowering boys and girls, and men and women, to be change-makers in their societies.
As Alegría becomes a sustainable meditation and retreat center, a percentage of its proceeds will go toward Venerable Metteyya's humanitarian efforts in Nepal. With your support, we can continue to educate and empower children and youth in the birthplace of the Buddha.