Archives: Authors

Eileen Ybarra began studying Theravada Buddhist meditation practices in 2004. Her first meditation teacher was Trudy Goodman. Since 2004, she has also studied with a variety of Dharma teachers through the Against the Stream Meditation Society, Insight Meditation Center of Redwood City, Durango Dharma Center, and Spirit Rock Meditation Center. Her profession is public librarianship, a meaningful practice of service and mindfulness, which she is grateful for. She has also been a mindfulness meditation and dharma instructor since 2009 for various meditation centers such as Against the Stream Meditation Society, Boston Meditation Center, San Francisco Dharma Collective, Insight Meditation Center of the Desert, and InsightLA.

Jill Shepherd

Jill Shepherd began practicing insight meditation in Thailand in 1999, and since that time has lived and worked at several meditation centers and monasteries in the US, Australia, England, and Thailand. She spent seven years on staff at the Insight Meditation Society (IMS) in Barre, Massachusetts, where she participated in several long retreats and Buddhist study programs, as well as offering weekly meditation classes at a nearby prison. She is a graduate of the IMS / Spirit Rock teacher training program in the US under the guidance of Joseph Goldstein and Gil Fronsdal. She lives in Aotearoa / New Zealand, and teaches internationally, offering insight / vipassanā and brahmavihāra retreats as well as ongoing study and practice groups focused on bringing the dharma into daily life. She also leads courses and non-residential workshops exploring the relational practice of Insight Dialogue, as developed by Gregory Kramer and colleagues.

Marlon Barrios Solano

Marlon Barrios Solano combines a diverse range of skills in software engineering, generative AI, deep learning and mindfulness, applying these to his work in digital therapeutics, education, and creative practices. As a certified Vipassana/Mindfulness Meditation Teacher by Spirit Rock and mentored by Stephen Batchelor and Chas DiCapua, Marlon uses the intersection with programming to offer a mindfulness approach that balances traditional practices with a contemporary, art-tech-informed approach. Marlon’s consulting and teaching services extend to guide individuals and organizations in applying mindfulness and AI to a range of domains. His work with Sati-AI, an AI-driven meditation assistant, reflects his ability to apply AI and deep learning to the field of mindfulness, demonstrating the potential of technology in enhancing meditation practices and its transmission. Marlon also leverages his software engineering background to develop digital solutions for embodied presence practices in online environments. While his focus is broad, spanning from digital therapeutics to synthetic cognition and creativity, Marlon maintains a grounded, pragmatic approach to his work, guiding clients and students through the complexities of combining traditional practices with cutting-edge AI technology. Find out more about him <a href="https://linktr.ee/marlonbarriososolano/">here</a>.

Rev. Ryuei Michael McCormick

Ryuei Michael McCormick is a Buddhist priest of the Nichiren Shu, a Mahayana Buddhist lineage established in Japan by Nichiren Daishonin in 1253. In 1997, he became a disciple of Bishop Ryusho Matsuda of the Nichiren Order of North America, receiving full ordination at Kuonji Temple on Mt. Minobu in 2001. He is currently serving as minister to the Nichiren Buddhist Sangha of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Dechen Rochard

Dechen Rochard has a B.A. (Hons) in Philosophy (University of London) and a PhD in Buddhist philosophy (University of Cambridge). She also completed a traditional ten-year study program in Buddhist Philosophy at the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics (Dharamsala, India). She is currently working for The Dalai Lama Trust translating texts.

Laura Burges

Laura Burges, a lay entrusted dharma teacher in the Soto Zen tradition, lectures and leads retreats at practice centers in Northern California. She received monastic training at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. A teacher of children for 35 years, she now mentors other teachers and helps bring mindfulness practice into the elementary classroom. Burges co-founded the Sangha in Recovery Program at the San Francisco Zen Center and is the abiding teacher at Lenox House Meditation Group in Oakland. She is the author of The Zen Way of Recovery, Zen for Kids, and Buddhist Stories for Kids.

Rev. Heng Sure

Rev. Heng Sure serves as director of the Berkeley Buddhist Monastery and president of the board of directors of the Dharma Realm Buddhist Association. A composer and performer of Buddhist music, he has released three albums (Paramita, Buddhist Stories for Awakening, and Dharma Radio) and has authored numerous publications including Highway Dharma Letters: Two Buddhist Pilgrims Write to Their Teacher (with Heng Chau).

Ruben Habito

Ruben Habito is the founding teacher of the Maria Kannon Zen Center in Dallas, a theology professor at Southern Methodist University, and a former jesuit.

Sanriki Jaramillo

Sanriki Jaramillo was born in Medellín, Colombia, where he serves as the resident priest at the Zen community Montaña de Silencio, a San Francisco Zen Center branch. Sanriki is also a medical doctor and a University Professor.