In 1932, Buddhadasa founded his forest hermitage Suan Mokkh ('garden of release'), a center for study and serious practice in the Chaiya district, Surat Thani Province of southern Thailand.
Samanala Sandhwaniya (සමනල සංධ්වනිය ), also known as Butterfly Symphony is a 2013 Romantic film directed by Jayantha Chandrasiri and starring Yashoda Wimaladharma, Uddika Premarathna, Pubudu Chathuranga, Wilson Gunarathne, Punsiri Dayaruwan, Buddhadasa Withanachchi, Roger Seneviratne and Chathurika Peiris.
His Buddhist teacher, the famous monk Phra Buddhadasa from the nearby temple Wat Suan Mokkha in Chaiya, encouraged him to teach monkeys in a positive way, without the use of force.