Do You Meditate? Who's your Favorite Buddhist Meditation Teacher?

Pema Chodron really brought me to the Dharma and Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche and Noah Levine have been huge influences.
Unfortunately - I have yet to find a teacher I can interact with personally.
Afraid to take that first step - I live in Phoenix Az and I live very close to the local Shambhala center...

oh, and Thanissaro Bhikkhu for sure. Monk, writer, grand example of how to teach as true to the letter of the Dharma as might even be possible, and still innovate and reach people of all kinds.

My own teacher is Steven Tainer, who was designated the Dharma heir of Tathang Tulku, a Nyingma lama who still teaches. He turned down the honor, however, and has been teaching on his own, outside of a Tibetan lineage, for many years, in Berkeley. His teachings are a combination of Vajrayana, Chan/Zen, and some Taoism and even Confucianism, but the central teachings are Chan and some Vajrayana.

I'm quite fond of the Shambhala teachings and teachers as they are quite in accord with the approach we take in our school, particularly the Vajrayana/Dzogchen view. Another favorite of mine is Shunryu Suzuki who was one of Trungpa's favorites as well.

Personally, I study with Reggie Ray, a longtime student of Chogyam Trungpa. I found Reggie and his work at a pivotal point in my life, that is, during a time of intense struggle with lost love and alcohol addiction. What I appreciate about Reggie's approach is his use of a universal, amost scientific, language; his scholarly foundation; and his intense focus on bodywork. Through my work with Reggie, I, like many in the West, discovered that I was an incredibly heady person, meaning, I lived most of my life literally in my head. I lacked a healthy body awareness; I lacked a vital balance between mind and body. Reading Reggie's excellent texts, listening to his dharma talks, attending his retreats - including dathun last winter in Colorado - and engaging in his sangha - these forms of study have revealed the teachings of the Buddha to me, and in that way, Reggie and his teacher Trungpa - and Trungpa's teachers and his teachers' teachers - have shown me the view and saved me from a much more treacherous path.

I fell in love with Buddhism after I read just the part of The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, by Sogyal Rinpoche, on Tonglen. I tried it and it turned everything inside out-I fell in love with Bodhicitta, Wisdom and Compassion.

I practice with a sangha in Cambridge, MA "Open Awareness Sanga", and also with Lama John Makransky and his "Foundation for Active Compassion", and with Lama Willa Miller and her "Natural Dharma Fellowship". Both teach from the Dzogchen or Mahamudra "view" and the practices they teach are incredibly helpful. Both are into socially engaged Buddhism, compassion in action, and the application of practice in life and community. Its my interest in this socially engaged aspect that leads me to this blog site BTW-the ID project and One city. This socially engaged practice is where the wisdom of compassion manifests, IMHO. Happy to share info on my teachers with you.

Yes! I actively practice meditation. However, I am very new to Buddhist teaching as well to the practice of conscious meditation whether it is sitting, walking, eating or otherwise. I kinda liken myself to being in the proverbial diaper wearing stage in the practice; I am a sponge and can loosely associate broad concepts but have not yet developed any fine motor skills to speak of.

Being that I am so very new I have only had the opportunity to study under a few teachers. In order of occurrence I have read from the following teachers - both through their books as well as their online writings, viewing web videos and, listening to DVDs - Thich Nhat Hanh, His Holiness The Dalai Lama, Ethan Nichtern and, Sakyong Mipham.

In all my newness, it is far too challenging for me to select one that stands out from the others as each of them has equally held the title of "favourite" as I have delved into their teachings. I can say this however, in each case the message is delivered with compassion, commitment and humour. Please note, that this is a very simplistic summary of my experience but it is those qualities that keeps bringing me back to the practice.

Peace out,
H

I highly recommend Tsem Tulku Rinpoche. His knowledge and application of the Dharma is phenomenal. He knows the minds of East and West because he has experienced first-hand the culture of America and the hardcore monastic life of the Gaden tradition. He blends the two until there are no boundaries. His integration of instruction and allegory is seamless perfection. His organization Kechara House is amazing in the amount of work and dedication they exert to do the Dharma work and to maintain the lineage set forth by Lama Tsongkhapa.

www.tsemtulku.com

Also he has an extensive collection of Dharma teachings on YouTube. Be prepared to sit and watch for hours because his style is so lucid and the clarity of the teachings comes through like the sun breaking through the clouds.

www.kechara.com

The cats I've met and known through my life have taught me a lot about meditation. They are always focused on one thing, and acutely aware of their environment.

Among my human meditation teachers: David Nichtern (the only one I've studied with in person)... readings by many of the well-known Buddhist meditation authors...

I must especially acknowledge Rodger Kamenetz for his book, The Jew in the Lotus, for my definitive introduction to Buddhism while retaining my Jewish heritage back in 1999.

A Shambhala center opened up in my neck of the woods recently. I look forward to visiting it to find out if my time has come to actively study with a new human teacher.

Gotsa give a shout to my homedog Gil Fronsdal.

I often think our connection we have with teachers is more emotional bond than practical instruction, looking to them as mothers and fathers rather than educators or facilitators.

Anyway, I can honestly say that I didn't really know what the words "concentration" or "compassion" really meant before I met Gil. Great man.

I love Pema Chodron and Chogyam Trungpa - my tradition.

But I sample the whole spectrum, including Shinzen Young (hat tip to ~C4Chaos), Daniel Ingram, Thanissaro Bhikkhu, Lama Surya Das, Thich Nhat Hanh, Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, Roshi Joan Halifax, and many others. Depends on my mood.

Oh yeah, Gary Snyder, Dogen, Li Po, Tu Fu, Jane Hirshfield, Ikkyu, Ryokan -- all great Buddhist teachers in poetry.

Peace!

I am a meditator. In addition to my daily practice, I attend a weekly sitting group, but have heavily supplemented those sessions with listening to podcasts. My favorite teachers in my virtual sangha:

Ken McLeod - for his systematic, logical approach to presenting and breaking down incredibly difficult concepts. appealing to the academic in me. he's posted mostly retreats/workshops. and presumes more than an elementary level of meditation and mindfulness.

Thich Nhat Hanh - for his simple and poetic translations of dense texts, e.g., the heart sutra. also, this guy is pure. I saw him give a public talk once. didn't hear much of what he said, but my heart chakra was going crazy for an hour.

Gil Fronsdal/IMC - for his very clear sitting instructions. the podcasts on beginning and intermediate meditation are fantastic. the others are incredibly helpful in identifying the flavors of the automatic inner editor (5 hindrances) and ways to stop it (5 faculties).

Ethan Nichtern/IDP - for his thoughtful, engaging, often funny 21st century applications and interpretations of Buddhist teachings.

I saw a video of Pema Chodron once. enjoyed the talk, but have no other insight.

Its really cool to see all the teachers people have listed here. I sometimes feel badly that I haven't been able to connect with a teacher in person so it is encouraging to read some of these comments and find that I'm not alone. I started learning about the dharma through podcasts in my last two years of college at Ohio State and did not really have the ability to find a sangha in Columbus. I live in Wichita now and let's just say that Buddhism isn't all that "big" in Kansas. I have found a Zen sitting group that has been helpful as a sangha but our teacher is in Atlanta and only comes to Kansas yearly so I've only met him twice for Dokusan.

That being said. I also have to give mad props to Gil Fronsdal. It was his audio dharma that introduced me to Buddhist practice about 4 years ago now.

I did make it to Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche's talk in Kansas City. He is truely an amazing and kind person and I feel honored to have at least met him.

I, too, enjoy Suzuki Roshi. "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind" is definitely a classic.

Lately, thanks to the ID project and Buddhist Geeks I've been digging Daniel Ingram. I like his down to earth "hardcore" take on things.

@ Amy Dara: Yes David Nichtern is a great teacher.

@ Jamie: I really liked Daniel Ingram's book.

@ Brian Naas and others: yes Gil Fronsdale seems to have helped many folks. BTW how are you Brian? Glad you checked in on the blog.

@ Ian: Yes, transmitting genuine humor is an amazing experience.

@ Everyone thanks for listing all the wonderful teachers. Keep them coming!

Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche is my main teacher, heart and soul. I agree with everything Ethan said about him and his teachings. He is a living example of discipline, prajna, loving kindness and astounding generosity. Shambhala also practices a social/societal view that focuses on integrating buddhist principles into daily, secular life as well as individual meditation practice.

Lama Tharchin Rinpoche is sweet nectar personified. His gentle retreat center, Pema Osel Ling, in the Santa Cruz mountains gives "refuge" new meaning. His organization is called Vajrayana Foudation and is a very welcoming, sweet, traditionally Tibetan scene. Did I mention sweet?

Jigme Rinpoche, the son of His Eminence Namkha Drimed Rinpoche and Sakyong Mipham's brother-in-law, is a dynamic and very hip young tulku who is definitely worth checking out. He's based in Paris, but teaches in North America with some frequency.

"If you meditate or study Buddhism, you eventually have to find a meditation teacher"

Why? Can one not just sit? Can you tell my practice is Zen? ;)

That said, I took initial instruction from Roshi Khojlede at the Rochester Zen Center, and from the center's head of zendo. This was about 3-1/2 months ago, and my sessions are, in one sense, rather pathetic. But they simply are what they are. I mostly am not concerned about "results"; when I find myself thinking that way, I catch myself and let those thoughts go.

Those thoughts will return, but I will again let them go. There's a reason it's called practice.

Favorite teachers/authors, etc.

His Holiness The Dalai Lama
Pema Chondron
Thich Nhat Hanh
Loden Jinpa aka Clarke Scott

Also many thanks to the Harvard professor whom wrote a book about lowering your blood pressure without medicine- Forgot both his name and of book (sorry)

The above list the top 3 unfortunately never met- Loden Jinpa has a website and he is a very attentive person- he doesn't like to think of himself as a teacher but I believe he is working on it!

Your dad, David Nichtern, is my favorite because of how excited he gets about his students' questions. My relationship with my dog, Seymour, is also an amazing teacher.

Some of my favorite teachers:
Chogyam Trungpa is so smart and surprising.
I also love Jack Kornfield because he's deceptively incisive and so literary.
Daniel Ingram, of course.
Gil Fronsdale is wonderful.
I took the refuge vow with Eric Spiegel, he is so great to hear talk.
Tenzin Palmo is fascinating and inpsiring
As is Robina Courtin.
I got down with Suzuki Roshi's Beginner's Mind this year and finally wasn't so frustrated with Zen.
All the teachers are my favorites.
And finally there's nothing like being friends with your dharma teacher for extra plus teachings, so Ethan, you get the biggest props.

My favorite meditation teacher is the sea- the waves and the ripples, like breath, the tides-- breath over time, time, life, death.

P.S. i second Daniel Ingram's mention on this thread. he's not technically my teacher but his book, "Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha" and the online forum DharmaOverground which he started, influenced my practice and attitude towards practice in a lot of helpful ways.

there are dharma, and there are kick ass dharma. MCTB is the best kick ass dharma i've encountered. if you can look past Ingram's irreverence, then this will be a big help for you and your practice.

~C