Primož Korelc Hiriko was born in 1985 in Ljubljana (Slovenia), but grew up in Dolenjska. Hiriko spent many years as a Buddhist monk abroad, specifically in Great Britain, New Zealand, Thailand and Sri Lanka. During this period, Hiriko studied Buddhist psychology and developed self-reflection, which gave Hiriko a deeper insight into the mind and psyche. Hiriko's expertise focuses mainly on phenomenological research into the structure of the mind. After ten years of studying Buddhist philosophy and psychology, Hiriko obtained the title of acharya . 

In 2016, Hiriko founded the first Slovenian Buddhist monastery, Samaṇadīpa, in Goljek near Trebnje, where Hiriko was the abbot and teacher until 2023. Since then, Hiriko has been acting as its legal representative. Hiriko is also known for being the editor-in-chief of Path Press and the author of two biographical books, “The Hermit of Bundala” and “The Island Within”, as well as being a translator of ancient Buddhist texts. Hiriko is still actively working as a psychosocial and pastoral counselor and has specialized in logotherapy psychotherapy since last year. Hiriko also regularly leads meditation retreats and lectures on meditation in Maribor and Ljubljana.

For more information about Hiriko and the Samaṇadīpa Forest Buddhist Monastery, please see below:

https://hiriko.org/

https://samanadipa.org/sl/

For a link to Nyanamoli Thero's work that Hiriko mentioned, please see below:

https://www.youtube.com/@HillsideHermitage

We talked about guilt as a consequence of freedom and as inherent within the broader human experience, psychotherapy and spirituality, the experience of leaving home to pursue a monastic life and investigating the mind, founding Samaṇadīpa Forest Buddhist Monastery in Slovenia and transitioning to lay life, and the importance of knowing that the Buddhist path, though fulfilling, is not always easy.