Ven. Bhikkhu Analayo was born in Germany in 1962 and ordained in Sri Lanka in 1995. In the year 2000 he completed a PhD thesis on the Satipatthana-sutta at the University of Peradeniya which was published as the highly regarded book Satipatthana: The Direct Path to Realization. At present, he is a professor at the Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, University of Hamburg, and works as a researcher at Dharma Drum Buddhist College, Taiwan.
Bhikkhu Bodhi is an American Buddhist monk originally from New York City. He lived as a monk in Sri Lanka for 24 years and now lives at Chuang Yen Monastery in upstate New York. Ven. Bodhi has many important publications to his credit, either as author, translator or editor, including The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha (Majjhima Nikaya, 1995) and The Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya, 2000). A full translation of the Anguttara Nikaya is due out in 2011. In 2008 he founded Buddhist Global Relief, a Buddhist organization dedicated to providing relief from poverty and hunger among impoverished communities worldwide.
I aspire to offer teachings that are encouraging, that support people to discover how they are an expression of Dhamma. I'm particularly interested in the interplay between stilling and settling the mind, and opening to greater kindness and generosity of heart.
Venerable Dhammananda Bhikkhuni is Thailand’s first fully ordained Theravada Buddhist female monk and abbess. She is the spiritual leader of Songdhammakalyani Temple located about an hour southwest of Bangkok. Ven. Dhammananda offers a unique perspective as both an ordained Theravada Bhikkhuni and a feminist, and has been internationally recognized for her work on women in Buddhism and environmental conservation. Prior to her ordination, she was an Associate Professor of Buddhist Studies at Thammasat University for 27 years. She is a tireless crusader for women’s ordination and has traveled the world speaking to audiences about the need to restore the “fourth pillar” of Buddhism.
Rather than teaching the theory of meditation through lectures and public forums alone, Bhanté’s teaching propels around the “Nirodha Retreat” making yogis benefit from a training of meditation lifestyle practice in a silent and secluded environment which many find as a life changing experience and immeasurable asset for self development.
In his quest for his own liberation, the layman Dhammaruwan took permanent ordination as a Buddhist monk on April 10, 2016. The ordination ceremony took place in the Bhavana Society’s Forest Monastery in West Virginia, USA before a large gathering of monks, lay devotees, his students and his friends
Heng Sure (Bhikshu) holds a Ph.D. from the Graduate Theological Union at Berkeley and has a Masters from the University of California at Berkeley in Oriental Languages. He currently lectures on the Buddhist Sutras and holds regular meditation classes.
Born in Canada, Sayadaw U Jagara, originally named Martin Boisvert, embarked on his spiritual journey in the mid-1970s under the guidance of Robert H. Hover. In 1979 he received ordination as a monk from the Venerable Mahasi Sayadaw in Burma. For the next 15 years, he resided in Sri Lanka, where he blended the practice of meditation with the study of Buddhist scriptures. He also made intermittent trips to India and Thailand for meditation retreats. During the 1980s, he assumed the role of a meditation guide, conducting retreats in the tradition of S.N. Goenka across India, North America, Europe, and Asia. In 1995, he began training under the esteemed Venerable Pa Auk Sayadaw, a revered Burmese meditation master known for his commitment to the Visuddhimagga. This text serves as both a practical roadmap to deep states of meditation (jhāna) and a meticulous guide to the direct analytical approaches of vipassanā. Sayadaw U Jagara began assisting Venerable Pa Auk Sayadaw in teaching the dhamma in the early 2000s and sustained his support up to the early 2010s. In the past decade, he has independently shared his wisdom and experiences across North America, collaborating with various meditation teachers. His teachings focus on life as continuous meditation, guiding students toward liberation through observation, wisdom, and compassion.
Sayadaw U Tejaniya began his Buddhist training as a young teenager in Burma under the late Shwe Oo Min Sayadaw (1913–2002). After a career in business and life as a householder, he has become a permanent monk since 1996. He teaches meditation at Shwe Oo Min Dhammasukha Tawya in Rangoon, Burma.
Sayadaw’s relaxed demeanor and easy sense of humor can belie a commitment to awareness he encourages his students to apply in every aspect of their lives. His earlier life as a householder gives him a rare insight into the challenges faced by his lay students. His book, “Don’t Look Down on the Defilements, They Will Laugh at You”, aptly characterizes his teaching style—accessible and true to the traditional teachings of the Buddha.
Adam Stonebraker has been practicing and studying meditation in various schools since 1999, and began teaching meditation, mindfulness, and yoga in 2010. He is a teacher and leadership council member with Sacred Mountain Sangha and leads teacher trainings, retreats, and workshops internationally, in yin yoga, meditation, and mindfulness.
Adam is a graduate of Sacred Mountain Sangha’s 2-year Dharmapala Training (DPT), is currently enrolled in the Nature Dharma Teacher Training (NDTT), and is a graduate and endorsed teacher with the Insight Yoga Institute (IYI). In addition, Adam earned his MA in Mindfulness Studies from Lesley University.
Adam is committed to an all-inclusive dharma, where no aspect of the human experience is ignored. He has particular interest in the transformative power of the natural world, inter-faith dialogue, and the bodhisattva way of life.
Adrianne Ross, MD, has been involved with meditation and healing since 1978 and has offered retreats in Canada and the US since 1995. She also teaches MBSR to people with chronic pain and illness.
Alan Clements is an author, performing artist, media activist, and founder of the World Dharma vision. As the first American to ordain as a Buddhist monk in Burma, he lived for nearly five years in a Rangoon monastery training in Buddhist psychology and mindfulness meditation under the guidance of two of the most respected meditation teachers of the modern era, the late Mahasi Sayadaw and his successor Sayadaw U Pandita. In 1984 he was forced to leave the country by the dictatorship, with no reason given. He has returned numerous times to witness and document the human rights violations in that country. Subsequently, he has been “blacklisted” from reentering the country by the regime.
He is the author of a number of books and films, including, “Burma: The Next Killing Fields?”, (co-author) “Burma’s Revolution of the Spirit,” “Natural Freedom — The Dharma Beyond Buddhism”, “Instinct for Freedom”, “Spiritually Incorrect - In Defense of Being Human,” “Swimming Through Stone,” and “The Voice of Hope — Conversations with Aung San Suu Kyi.”
He is the co-founder and director of the Burma Project USA, World Dharma Publications, and the World Dharma Online Institute (WDOI). Clements is also a political/spiritual satirist, and performs his acclaimed one-man show “Spiritually Incorrect: In Defense of Being Human,” to audiences around the world.
Dynamic lecturer, progressive scholar, and one of the most prolific writers and translators of Tibetan Buddhism in the West, B. Alan Wallace, Ph.D., continually seeks innovative ways to integrate Buddhist contemplative practices with Western science to advance the study of the mind.
Dr. Wallace, a scholar and practitioner of Buddhism since 1970, has taught Buddhist theory and meditation worldwide since 1976. Having devoted fourteen years to training as a Tibetan Buddhist monk, ordained by H. H. the Dalai Lama, he went on to earn an undergraduate degree in physics and the philosophy of science at Amherst College and a doctorate in religious studies at Stanford.
With his unique background, Alan brings deep experience and applied skills to the challenge of integrating traditional Indo-Tibetan Buddhism with the modern world.
Alex Haley is the Director of Mindfulness Programs at the University of Minnesota's Center for Spirituality & Healing where he teaches, assists with research and sets the strategy for the mindfulness program area. He has been trained by the Center for Mindfulness, the Somatic Experiencing Trauma Institute, Spirit Rock Meditation Center, the Insight Meditation Society and the Coaches Training Institute. He has practiced meditation for over 15 years, including many months of intensive retreat practice, and worked for start-ups, mid-sized companies and large multinationals both domestically and internationally in legal and business roles. Alex is a founding member of the Mindfulness for Students network and leads residential retreats around the country. For more info visit www.alexanderhaley.org.
Alex Haley has practiced meditation for more than 15 years, including many months of intensive retreat practice, and has studied in the Theravada, Tibetan and Zen schools of Buddhism. Alex completed Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader program in 2012 and graduated from the SRMC/IMS/IRC four-year teacher training in 2016 under the guidance of his mentors, Joseph Goldstein and Guy Armstrong. He currently teaches residential retreats around the country and leads a weekly meditation group at Yoga Sol in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In his role as Director of Mindfulness Programs at the University of Minnesota, he teaches undergraduate/graduate mindfulness courses, collaborates on research projects and oversees mindfulness initiatives in educational, organizational and virtual reality contexts. Alex is also a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, trained Co-Active coach, certified Myers-Briggs practitioner and founding member of the Mindfulness for Students network. Other areas of personal passion include social justice and technology for wellbeing. For more information, please visit the Midwest (ideally in winter!) or check out www.alexanderhaley.org.
Alexis has practiced Insight Meditation in India, Burma and the US since 2001. He has been a long-time student of Sayadaw U Tejaniya, including several years of training as a Buddhist Monk under his guidance. Alexis’ teaching emphasizes knowing the mind through a natural and relaxed continuity. He brings a practical, intuitive and compassionate approach to the development of wisdom and qualities of the heart.
Alisa Dennis, Ph.D., discovered meditation through her study of metaphysics and ancient Christian mystical traditions. She's explored many spiritual traditions since then, including indigenous shamanism, which has broadened the matrices through which she understands the nature of human existence. Within Buddhism, Alisa practiced within the S.N. Goenka tradition of Vipassana and the Zen Soto tradition. She studied mindfulness through the Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC) at UCLA and completed a multi-year training related to integrating contemplative practices into psychotherapy. Alisa is also a graduate of Spirit Rock Meditation Center’s 2017-2020 Teacher Training Program. Alisa has gravitated toward Insight meditation because of its emphasis on liberatory heart-opening practices and its growing community of practitioners committed to embodied awakening and transformative justice. Alisa is a licensed clinical psychologist in private practice in the Los Angeles area. She specializes in somatic oriented trauma release and integration work. In addition to drawing from contemplative wisdom traditions, Alisa practices depth psychology and dreamwork. She is passionate about the creative arts and exploring multi-dimensionality.
Amana Brembry Johnson has been a student and practitioner of multiple spiritual traditions throughout her life. Her journey of Vipassana practice and study began over 10 years ago as a result of the early People of Color Retreats offered at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. She completed the Community Dharma Leaders Program at Spirit Rock in 2017 and is currently a participant in the groundbreaking Spirit Rock Teacher Training Program (SRTT). Amana leads meditation and teaches contemplative yoga that interweaves the wisdom of the Dharma with movement. She mentors and coaches practitioners who wish to deepen their practice and understanding of the ancient wisdom teachings. An accomplished visual artist, Amana creates imagery that exposes emotional and spiritual barriers of the heart as gateways into kindness, compassion and self-love.
Amma Ṭhanasanti is a California born spiritual teacher dedicated to serving all beings. Since she first encountered the Dharma in 1979, she has been committed to awakening. As a former Buddhist nun of 26 years, she combines the precision and rigor of the Ajahn Chah Forest Tradition, compassion, pure awareness practices and a passion for wholeness. Amma has been teaching intensive meditation retreats in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia since 1995. She invites an openness to pause and inquire into the truth of the present moment, integrating what is liberating at the core of our human condition.
