The man who gave up INR 40,000 crores to become a monk

Sometimes real life can be stranger than fiction, and rightly so. Meet Ven Ajahn Siripanyo, a monk who renounced his luxurious life and gave up his inheritance of $5 billion (roughly

INR 40,000 crores

), to embrace a life of simplicity and service to others. His life story seems very similar to bestselling author

Robin Sharma

‘s novel ‘The

Monk Who Sold His Ferrari

‘, where a wealthy lawyer named Julian Mantle gives up his material wealth for

spiritual enlightenment

. But what is

Ven Ajahn Siripanyo

‘s legacy and what made him take up monkhood? Read all about him here:

Ven Ajahn Siripanyo: The real-life ‘Monk Who Sold His Ferrari’

Born into an affluent family, Ven Ajahn Siripanyo is the only son of Malaysian tycoon

Anand Krishnan

(popularly known as AK)– who is one of the richest people in Malaysia with a net worth of $5 billion (roughly INR 40,000 crores). For the unversed, Anand Krishnan’s business empire includes a variety of industries like telecom, media, real estate, etc. He was also the former owner of Aircel, a telecom company that sponsored the IPL team Chennai Super Kings.

However, despite having a luxurious life, Ven Ajahn Siripanyo took the bold decision to renounce his father’s ₹40,000 crore empire at the age of just 18 and become a

Buddhist monk

!

How did Ven Ajahn Siripanyo become a monk?

While Ven Ajahn Siripanyo’s father is a well-known billionaire in Malaysia, his mother Momwajarongse Suprinda Chakraban, has connections to Thailand’s royal family, as per reports. He spent his growing up years in London, where he was raised along with his two sisters. As per reports, Ven Ajahn Siripanyo even knows eight languages.

When Ven Ajahn Siripanyo was 18, he visited Thailand to meet his mother’s side of the family. It was during this trip that he decided to try and experience the life and style of a monk. However, what started as a mere experience soon changed Ven Ajahn Siripanyo’s life forever, and he soon decided to renounce his worldly wealth and become a monk for life. For over 20 years, Ven Ajahn Siripanyo has been living as a forest monk. He also serves as the abbot of

Dtao Dum Monastery

, which is near Thailand and Myanmar’s border.
But even though Ven Ajahn Siripanyo has now become a monk, he has not completely renounced his materialistic wealth when it comes to his family matters. He also stays in touch with his family, which is as per one of Buddhism’s core principles. For instance, he was seen flying in a private jet to meet his father in Italy once.
However, Ven Ajahn Siripanyo’s life story is not only amusing but also makes one wonder about true wealth in life.