Gyanashree Mahathir
Gyanashree Mahathero (, born 18 November 1925) is a Buddhist guru in Bangladesh who is the highest religious guru of the native Buddhists. The Government of Bangladesh awarded him the Ekushey Padak in 2022 for his significant contribution to social service. Biography. Gyanashree Mahathir was born on 16 November 1925 in the village of Domkhali, North Gujra, Raozan, Chittagong District. He has been staying in the Chittagong Hill Tracts since 1958. He became a shramana in 1944 and a monk in 1949. He studied till the entrance. He took the initiative to spread the economic, social, religious and educational  life of the Buddhist common people in the Chittagong Hill Tracts. He established many religious and educational institutions in the hilly and plain areas. In 1974, he set up a monastery, where residential schools were set up to provide general education to poor, orphaned and helpless Buddhist children. He established several Buddhist educational centers at Joypurhat and Rangpur.