Tracing the Untraceable Buddha

The essential teachings of the Buddha for students of vipassana meditation.

Born into a Bengali Buddhist family in 1915 and trained in Buddhist practice by the Burmese master Mahasi Sayadaw, Anagarika Munindra became a beloved and influential meditation teacher who contributed significantly to the dawn of Western Buddhism and the insight (vipassana) meditation movement. He taught many Western students in the 1960s and 1970s, and among them was Uffe Damborg, who lived with Munindra-ji in Bodh Gaya, India, for six years. Here, Damborg distills everything he learned from Munindra-ji and from his subsequent decades of practice and teaching to present the Theravada path of vipassana meditation in modern language.

Damborg unpacks the story of the Buddha’s spiritual journey and his core teachings on non-self, karma, perception, meditation, and the four noble truths—not as ideas to be intellectually understood but as meditative insights to be cultivated as one approaches the Buddhist goal of stream entry, a profound shift in consciousness that orients one’s life toward nibbana, or enlightenment. With reflections on Damborg’s formative years with Munindra-ji, whose teaching style emphasized direct experience over dogma, this uniquely personal work illuminates the path of vipassana meditation for beginners and experienced practitioners alike.“A good and clear exposition of the classic Theravada and Burmese meditation tradition.”
—Jack Kornfield, author of The Wise Heart: A Guide to the Universal Teachings of Buddhist Psychology

“The depth of insight from Damborg’s decades of vipassana practice shine through in Tracing the Untraceable Buddha. Combined with his understanding from his years studying with one of my main teachers, Munindra-ji, Damborg shares a comprehensive picture of the Buddha’s teachings.”
—Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness and Real Life

“Reading this book, my heart was touched by the comprehensive descriptions of the unfolding process of liberating wisdom. Hearing stories of Munindra-ji’s guidance brought back precious memories and immeasurable gratitude for his teachings.”
—Kamala Masters, guiding teacher at Vipassana Metta Foundation and Insight Meditation Society
UFFE DAMBORG holds a M.Sc. in psychology from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. In the 1960s and 1970s, he studied Buddhism and meditation in monasteries and hermitages in the East and lived for six years with renowned vipassana teacher Anagarika Munindra-ji in Bodh Gaya, North India. He lives in Sweden and regularly teaches vipassana meditation at Scandinavian retreats.Lessons from the lineage of Mahasi Sayadaw and Anagarika Munindra