Monte Vista Retreat Center 162/1 Nai Wok Beach, Moo1, Ko Phangan, Suratthani, Thailand, 84280 Outside Thailand: +66-89-212-9188 or +66-81-747-7329 In Thailand: 089-212-9188 or 081-747-7329 Website : www.montevistathailand.com - Email : montevistathailand@yahoo.com

About Us

Norman and Mohini Brown, working together for 13 years, share between them a variety of skills, talents and gifts which culminated in the creation of their Retreat Center.

Mohini, born in Germany, got her MA in Literature & Linguistics where she became a University professor. Wanting a change in her life, she became self-employed and opened her own business. Becoming very successful over the next few years gave her the opportunity to really focus on her spiritual growth, a desire from childhood. Shortly thereafter, she found the Sacred Breath practice and Reiki and after training, began to share the practice with individuals and groups. Feeling the sudden urge to go to India, which was never there before, she took her first trip where she spent a month at the ashram of Babaji in the foothills of the Himalayas. She would visit India over the next several years, spending time with Spiritual Masters like W.L. Punja and Ramesh Balsekar. On one trip, still searching for purpose and answers, she found herself at the ashram of Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, also known as ‘Amma’ or the ‘Hugging Saint’. There, she found ultimate bliss and completion. It was also where she met Norman and her life would never be the same.

Norman, born and raised in the US, was a seeker since childhood. Growing up, he spent much time with his Cherokee Indian grandmother learning ancient wisdom from his heritage and developing his innate psychic and clairvoyant abilities. Entering the military as a young man, he realized the deep social conditioning placed on individuals hindering their ability to become who they really wanted to become. This would be a main reflective theme throughout his life forcing him to shed society's expectations and pressures on himself, opening avenues to teach others how to live in freedom and in alignment with Divine Nature.

Norman married and had children; during this time, he became a natural counselor and mentor for those around him struggling with their life choices. He also reached out to foster children and runaways, bringing them into his home, working with them, and guiding them to live a better life. When he was 27, he was initiated into Transcendental Meditation which added to his spiritual growth. He moved to Iowa to live in the main community of meditators in the US which opened doors for him to teach a variety of self development and spiritual seminars and workshops. He began to push his psychic abilities further by studying Palm reading from an Indian Master in the US for many years. Today, he combines palm readings with his psychic abilities and counseling skills to give more comprehensive readings to clients.

During that time period in his life, he met and became a devotee of Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, also known as ‘Amma’ and followed her for years attending as many tours as he was able to in the US. In 1994, he finally freed himself from his duties and visited her in India. When he arrived in Amma's ashram, he had a profound spiritual revelation which permanently moved him beyond all doubt. It was there where he met Mohini over a cup of Chai in a Tea Shop outside the ashram.

They both spent several months at the ashram, spending time with Amma and serving the people together, doing healing, energy, and counseling work. It was also the place where Norman was able to give hundreds of palm and psychic readings, further fine tuning his abilities. It was clear to them that they needed to be together and their purpose was to serve mankind. For the next 7 years, they traveled and lived in Europe, Thailand, the US, and India, practicing their work and deepening their Path. They spent three years in Bangalore studying Mantras, Vedic Chanting, Meditation, and Healing with spiritual masters like Sri Karunamayi.

In 2001, after visiting Koh Phangan several times and using a retreat home for themselves on the property, they decided it was time to settle down and fulfill a vision they had of sharing all the practices that they learned in a retreat setting. The project took 2 years to complete, after finally getting the necessities like water and electricity, building the concrete driveway through the jungle themselves, restoring existing buildings on the property, and designing and building the remaining buildings and bungalows. Their combined effort and devotion to living in Truth, Simplicity and Love now expresses itself beautifully in the manifestation of Monte Vista Retreat Center, their life's dream. Monte Vista is as comfortable as it is beautiful and the peace and the silence seem to deepen with every person who comes and lets themselves fall into it.

In our own words, our mission...
We believe that all of Life is about expansion, expansion of understanding oneself and life, expansion of self-love, expansion of trust and friendship, expansion of joy, ease and peace. The exquisite beauty and the profound silence of nature provide the ideal backdrop for the soaring of heart, mind and spirit. Meet friends of similar vibrancy, enjoy the international feeling and the coming together as one multifaceted family. Our approach to wellness, healing, peace, and joy is holistic and simple. Monte Vista's wholeness in design, philosophy, and operation allows all of us to live our potential for Fun, Joy, and Magic. We are glad that you can share your time with us.

With love, Norman & Mohini