Meet Our Team
We are a community of dedicated practitioners, teachers and volunteers who strive to embody the wisdom and compassion of the Buddha
in our daily lives and in our service to others. Our team is guided by the principles of ethical conduct, loving friendship (Metta) and compassionate service.
Each member of our community brings unique skills and experiences to our shared values and mission of preserving and sharing the Buddha's original teachings.
Together, we create a supportive and nurturing environment where all who seek refuge in the Dharma can find a place of peace.
Sayalay Chandadhika
Abbess and Spiritual Minister
Sayalay Chandadhika was born in 1982 in Kyaukme, Shan State, Myanmar. Her father worked in the agricultural sector as a government officer, while her mother served as a school principal. She completed her undergraduate studies in English Literature at Mandalay University, where she encountered the Pa-Auk Meditation Center, sparking a deep interest in meditation and meditation practice.
In 2008, she was ordained as a Sayalay under the guidance of Sayadaw U Kesara in Mandalay. During her early years of monastic training, she translated Dhamma talks, meditation instructions, and Q&A sessions for international practitioners. Within three years, she completed the full Pa-Auk meditation training. In 2010, she undertook a six-month intensive advanced retreat under the direct mentorship of the Most Venerable Pa-Auk Sayadaw in Mawlamyine. Following this, she was sent by Pa-Auk Sayadaw to Taiwan to assist in establishing the Pa-Auk branch at Taiwandipa Theravada Buddhist College.
In 2016, Sayalay Chandadhika earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Buddhism from the Sitagu Buddhist Academy in Myanmar. She was later invited to teach at the Myanmar Institute for Religious Studies in Yangon, an institution managed by the local Catholic community. There, she actively participated in interfaith dialogue, representing Buddhist perspectives.
In 2017, upon the recommendation of Irish Catholic nuns who had practiced meditation in Mandalay, she was invited by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue to take part in the Interreligious Learning and Exchange Program at the Vatican. While in Rome, she also studied theology and contemporary Islam at two different Pontifical universities. At the conclusion of the program, she was honored with a personal meeting with His Holiness Pope Francis.
Sayalay Chandadhika has since continued her teaching and spiritual work in Europe, particularly in Germany and the Netherlands. She currently serves as the Chair, Resident Teacher and Spiritual Minister of Buddha Dhita Nunnery. She also is a member of the Dhamma Advisory Council (DAR) in the Netherlands and a member of Buddhist Teachers Europe (BTE).
Adi Ichsan
Honourable Guest Teacher
Adi Ichsan majored in Modern Asian History in 1988 with Non Western Philosophy as minor. He became Buddhist in 1983 under the supervision of his first Vipassana teacher, late Acharn Phra Kru Mettavihari, and received the Buddhist name Dhammuttamo. Adi practiced vipassana since 1982 and since the 90's, gained his knowledge and insights in the Thai temples, under the guidance of Thai meditation masters. In 1997, Adi completed the teacher course of the International Buddhist Center at Wat Phradhatu Doi Suthep, under the guidance of Phra Acharn Noah Yuttadhammo. A year later, his former teacher, Mettavihari, also recognized him as a teacher in the Vipassana. After his retirement as a commercial banker in 2015, he entered temporarily as a monk (2016) under the name of Phra Cittadhammo under the supervision of his current teacher Phra Kru Pariyati Bhavannideskha (Ajarn Sobin S. Namto) who was the abbot of Wat Wang Plado ( Wat Phra That Buddha Metta), Borabue, Mahasarakham, up to the abbots demise in 2022 . At present Adi Ichsan is board member of the Dhammadipa Foundation, in Amsterdam; is a member of the Dharma Advisory Council (DAR) of the Netherlands Buddhist Union (BUN); member of the Buddhist Teachers Europe (BTE) and is also advisor to the Board of Wat Thai Buddhavihara Temple in Purmerend.
Henk van Voorst
Honourable Guest Teacher
Henk van Voorst has been practicing vipassana meditation since 1976. He started with a retreat in Kandubodha (Sri Lanka) with teacher U Seevali Thera, (Mahasi). Then a 10-day retreat with Goenka in Igatpuri (India). Back in the Netherlands, he practiced the 'Mahasi' and 'Goenka' directions at the same time for a number of years. After meeting the Thai monk Mettavihari, he chose the 'Mahasi' direction. Henk has received extensive instruction from several Asian and Western teachers. At the moment his teachers are Bhante Sujiva (Mahasi) and Shaila Catherine (Pa Auk and Mahasi). In the past this was also Brother Dassana, until he passed away in 2020.
Originally trained as a social psychologist, Henk has mainly worked in the field of audiovisual media.
Participants in retreats experience Henk as precise and clear in his transfer. His guidance conversations are experienced as very supportive to the practice.
Henk leads his own ongoing meditation group in Utrecht. More information about Henk's own offering can be found here
Swe Swe Aye
Treasurer
Swe Swe Aye has ultimate faith in the teachings of Buddha and has always tried to follow the principles of a
Buddhist. She trusts that Theravada Buddhism exhibits the truth about life and nature and help people develop spiritually and find peace. She also believes that more people should have a chance to know, analyze and practice the authentic Buddhism. She has worked as a project manager in the public health and humanitarian sector for a greater part of her profession. Currently she is working in clinical research data management. She is also a regular volunteer in different organizations in the Netherlands and Myanmar for most vulnerable people especially women, children and displaced people. Swe has a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery from Myanmar and became her Master of Public Health in the Netherlands
Mariëtte van Gent
Chairperson
M ariëtte van Gent has been a Buddhist for 11 years and is following the Buddhist direction of the Religious Studies program at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. She has been interested in Buddhism since she was 16, but because of the reactions in her Catholic environment she did not dare to express this openly.
After speaking with a Thai child psychologist in the Netherlands 11 years ago, she decided to delve further into Theravada Buddhism, because this is the authentic form of Buddhism. She has four children, two of whom are adopted children from Nigeria and one foster son from Iraq. Respect for each other's diversity is the most normal thing in the world for her. Her wish is to further deepen and develop herself in the Dhamma together with others in the monastery. (Since she was 21) until her retirement age (March 15, 2026)
she works as a business partner HRM with roles as integrity coordinator, coordinator of highly educated refugees and vitality coordinator, at a large government organization. She studied Sociology, Law and Human Resources.