Ānanda (Chinese: 阿難; pinyin: Ānán, Burmese: အာနန္ဒာ [ʔànàɴdà]) was one of the ten principal disciples of Gautama Buddha. Amongst the Buddha's many disciples, Ānanda had the most retentive memory and most of the sutras of the Sutta Pitaka are attributed to his recollection of the Buddha's teachings during the First Buddhist council. For that, he was known as the Guardian of the Dharma.

Role in the Pali Canon

According to the Buddha every Buddha in the past and to come will have two chief disciples and one attendant during his ministry. In the case of Gautama Buddha the pair of disciples were Sariputta and Maudgalyayana and the attendant Ānanda..

The word 'Ānanda' means 'bliss' in Pali, Sanskrit as well as other Indian languages. It is a popular name in India and Indonesia.

In the Kannakatthala Sutta (MN 90), Ananda is identified with the meaning of his name:

Ānanda was the first cousin of the Buddha by their fathers, and was devoted to him. In the twentieth year of the Buddha's ministry, he became the Buddha's personal attendant, accompanying him on most of his wanderings and taking the part of interlocutor in many of the recorded dialogues. He is the subject of a special panegyric delivered by the Buddha just before the Buddha's Parinibbana (the Mahaparinibbana Sutta (DN 16)); it is a panegyric for a man who is kindly, unselfish, popular, and thoughtful toward others.

Ananda is a town in east-central Ivory Coast. It is a sub-prefecture of Daoukro Department in Iffou Region, Lacs District.

Ananda was a commune until March 2012, when it became one of 1126 communes nationwide that were abolished.

References

Ananda in the Himalayas is a luxury destination spa in Narendra Nagar, Uttarakhand, set in the Indian Himalayas.

Set in a 100-acre (40 ha) Himalayan mountain estate set amidst sal forests, overlooking the river Ganges, close to the towns of Rishikesh and Haridwar, it was established in 2000, and was India's first destination spa. Ananda focusses on Yoga and Ayurvedic practices, combined with international spa therapies. The property includes the royal palace of Narendra Nagar, of the Maharaja of Tehri Garhwal (an Indian princely state), and the restored Viceregal Palace which was added to the palace in 1910–11 by the Maharaja for an expected visit of the Viceroy of India. Though the visit never materialized, the edifice remains, and went to accommodate the likes of Lord Mountbatten of Burma, a later Viceroy of India.

Today it is considered one of the best spas in the world by the The Telegraph and rated No. 1 destination spa in the world by Travel + Leisure magazine.