Phra Khruba Boonchum

Ñāṇasaṁvara was born on 5 January 1964 in Mae Kham, Chiang Rai Province, Thailand, to Po Kham Hla and Nang Saeng La, a Shan-speaking family originally from Mong Yong near Kengtung, Shan State, Burma. His birth name was Sai Wun Sum. His grandparents later migrated to Chiang Saen, Thailand. == Ordination ==

He first ordained as a novice at the age of 11, receiving the title Shin Nya Tham Wora. He was ordained as a bhikkhu on 29 May 1985 at 09:39 am by senior monks including Sai Nom (Paw Kyit), Daw Nan Sam Saeng, Mong Phone Pandaka U Nang Shwe, and Daw Nan Thit. In the third year after his ordination, he built a stupa on the 49th mountain of Khyen Loi Win Kyauk (Khyen Taw Taung) in Wan Lai village. He also travelled to Buddhist sites in Sri Lanka and India. == Later life ==

Ñāṇasaṁvara serves as the abbot of Wat Phra That Don Ruang in Tachileik, Shan State, Myanmar. He has been invited to royal palaces in Bhutan and Thailand. His followers include senior Burmese officials, military generals, and Shan ethnic armed leaders such as Khin Nyunt and Yawd Serk. Before Khin Nyunt’s fall from power, he donated large sums to the Sayadaw. Around 2007, authorities pressured him to leave his monastery; after the Saffron Revolution, he was named among patrons of the International Sangha Organization led by the exiled Penang Sayadaw. He relocated to Thailand until returning to Myanmar under President Thein Sein. He gained international media attention during the Tham Luang cave rescue, when he predicted the exact day the trapped boys and their coach would be found alive. The King of Thailand later offered him robes in recognition. Ñāṇasaṁvara has also mediated peace and reconciliation ceremonies with ethnic minority groups in Myanmar. == Health ==

In August 2022, after completing a three-year, three-month, and three-day cave meditation retreat, he became seriously ill with cerebral malaria. He was treated at Bangkok Hospital at the expense of King Vajiralongkorn, and later recovered. == Awards ==

• Saddhammajotikadhaja Medal (1996) • Agga Maha Kammatthana Sariya Degree (2018) == References ==