Treasure Mountain is a podcast channel aimed at people interested in spiritual development from a Buddhist perspective. Most of the guests are practising Buddhists with many years (even many decades) of experience. Part of the aim of Treasure Mountain is to encourage Buddhists everywhere in the English-speaking world to look beyond the confines of their local Buddhist group and see that there is a renaissance in Buddhist practice and culture occurring at a global level, and that there are many inspiring teachers and community leaders across many countries adapting to 21st century life whilst trying to stay true to the origins of Buddha’s teaching. Treasure Mountain also seeks to raise awareness about some of the lesser known but dedicated teachers and community leaders and their worthy projects, and to provide listeners with an opportunity to give to these causes.
May 14, 2023
This episode is about the late, great Master Hsying Yun, a true dynamo of a monk, dedicated to the spreading of the teachings and practice of Buddhism in Taiwan, China and around the world. Master Hsing Yun has achieved so m…
April 15, 2023
Joining us on this episode is a humble monk who was quietly practicing meditation in northern Thailand until he returned to his native Ukraine just three months before the Russian invasion in February 2022. Bhante Thithidham…
March 18, 2023
Joining us on this episode is a return guest, Ajahn Kovilo who is joining us from Dharma Realm Buddhist University in California. Ajahn Kovilo is an Ohio-born monk who, having been introduced to meditation through the Goenka…
Feb. 20, 2023
Our return guest today on Treasure Mountain Podcast is Bhante Akaliko who is an Australian monk in the Theravada forest tradition. He is the spiritual director of Little Dust and founder of the Rainbodhi LGBTQIA+ Buddhist Co…
Feb. 14, 2023
Our guest today on Treasure Mountain is Ian Green, who is Chairman of the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion Ltd and Founder of the Jade Buddha for Universal Peace. Along with his wife Judy, he has been a Buddhist for over …
Jan. 23, 2023
Our guest today on Treasure Mountain is John Waite who was born in post WW2 United Kingdom and brought up to be fiercely independent. From a young age he was searching for a better way to live in the world and was influenced…
Jan. 19, 2023
One of the most impactful traditions of Buddhism in the modern world is one that isn’t very good at publicity - but is very dedicated to practice. Despite it’s strict adherence to the principles of monastic discipline and th…
Jan. 9, 2023
Our guest today on Treasure Mountain Podcast is Bhante Akaliko. Akāliko Bhikkhu is an Australian monk in the Theravada forest tradition. He is the spiritual director of Little Dust and founder of the Rainbodhi LGBTQIA+ Buddh…
Jan. 5, 2023
From time immemorial we have looked up to heroes for guidance and as models of how to live an excellent life: people with virtues such as courage, patience, kindness and wisdom. But who are our heroes today? We live in an ag…
Dec. 1, 2022
On this episode of Sage Advice we have as our guest, Ajahn Hasapanna of Dhammasara Monastery in Western Australia. Ajahn Hasapanna was born in Ipoh, Malaysia in 1960. During her days as a lay person she and her family genero…
Treasure Mountain Podcast will be releasing new episodes every Wednesday for the foreseeable future. Coming up we have: Bhikkhu Mudu will return for a…
It's been a huge effort to get the podcast and website up and running. I'm so grateful to my first four guests - Bhante Mudu, Bhante Mettaji, Ayya Canda …
Producer and Host
I am Sol Hanna, the producer and host of the Treasure Mountain Podcast. I'm a 47 year old Australian who has been a practising Buddhist since 1993.
In my time I've contributed to Buddhist publishing online mostly as a volunteer with the Buddhist Society of Western Australia. As a volunteer (and as president, vice president and a committee member over many years) I've been responsible for working to establish the first website (www.bswa.org), the first posting of dhamma talks online and the first podcast (2004), the BSWA Youtube channel (2006) as well as later improvements and innovations to the BSWA's online services. The BSWA's online volunteers have helped millions of people connect with dhamma teachings which have become incredibly popular across the globe.
The whole internet landscape has changed dramatically since the turn of the century. My aim over the next few years is to see if I can make an even broader impact through initiatives like the Treasure Mountain podcast. We are in the early stages of a global Buddhist renaissance and my aim is to connect more people with the regular practice of virtue, meditation and wisdom. I'm hoping you can offer some feedback to help me get there.
These days I’ve moved out of the big city with my wife Jenni and son Arturo to live in a small country town called Witchcliffe. I am the convenor of the local Buddhist group, BAMBI, and am the main teacher of meditation and dhamma when we do not have guest monastics visiting. Our aim is to support forest monks and nuns on a "tudong trail" or walk-about trail, where they can live in the South-West forests and practice in solitude whilst being supported by the local community. And one day we will establish a monastery in the South-West region. When I’m not busy with my efforts to share dhamma practice far and near, I'm teaching at a local secondary school, supporting my wife and son, spending time in my big permaculture garden with hundreds of fruit trees and veggies, and lots of ducks and chickens and a couple of silky terriers.