***CORONA MEASURES*** (21-07-2021)
The following measures are now in place for the monastery:
Note: Being inside any monastery building requires that your municipality does not have a higher regulation level than Skiptvet and that there are no other local restrictions in your municipality prohibiting this. Please remember to use hand sanitizer and keep 1 meter distance at all times.
We hope that the national opening plan for the society will go well and that the monastery can continue to ease its restrictions over time, while also keeping in mind the great uncertainty of this pandemic. May all beings be free from suffering and disease.
The following measures are now in place for the monastery:
Note: Being inside any monastery building requires that your municipality does not have a higher regulation level than Skiptvet and that there are no other local restrictions in your municipality prohibiting this. Please remember to use hand sanitizer and keep 1 meter distance at all times.
- The meditation hall is open 24 hours a day
- Visitors may join the meal (which is often served outdoors for safety reasons) and after the meal it is possible to speak with a monk.
- The recommendation is still to be outdoors as much as possible, but 20 people are allowed inside the main house at a time
- We accept applications for overnight stays - these will be evaluated depending on the corona situation and we will get back to you.
We hope that the national opening plan for the society will go well and that the monastery can continue to ease its restrictions over time, while also keeping in mind the great uncertainty of this pandemic. May all beings be free from suffering and disease.
Skiptvet Buddhist Monastery belongs to the Thai forest tradition of Theravada Buddhism. It was established on the 1st of July, 2015, when Western monks from the lineage of the late Venerable Ajahn Chah came to take up residence here, following an invitation by the Norwegian Forest Monastery Foundation ("Stiftelsen Skogskloster"). The monastery, which is the first of its kind in the Nordic countries, consists of an old farm with surrounding forest ― altogether approximately 37 hectares/90 acres. It is located in the south-east of Norway, about one hour by car south of Oslo and two-and-a-half hours north of Gothenburg.
Lokuttara Vihara is the Pali name for Skiptvet Buddhist Monastery. In Pali, the scriptural language of Theravada Buddhism, it means "Dwelling Beyond the World". Lokuttara is made up of "loka", meaning world, and "uttara", meaning above or the north. Vihara means either a physical abode or a mental dwelling place. The aim of the Buddhist practice is to transcend all worldly conditions and realize Nibbana which is said to be "above the world". It is also a suitable name for a monastery located in the northern part of Europe.
