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Shinzen Interviews

Shinzen Young  became fascinated with Asian culture while a teenager in Los Angeles. Later he enrolled in a Ph.D. program in Buddhist Studies at the University of Wisconsin.

Eventually, he went to Asia and did extensive training in each of the three major Buddhist traditions: Vajrayana, Zen and Vipassana. Upon returning to the United States, his academic interests shifted to the burgeoning dialogue between Eastern meditation and Western science.

Shinzen is known for his innovative “interactive, algorithmic approach” to mindfulness, a system specifically designed for use in pain management, recovery support, and as an adjunct to psychotherapy.

He leads meditation retreats throughout North America and has helped establish numerous mindfulness centers and programs. He also consults widely on meditation-related research, in both the clinical and the basic science domains.

He often says:

“My life’s passion lies in exploring what may arise from the cross-fertilization of the best of the East with the best of the West.”

Maria Gonzalez has been meditating for over 15 years. She has been studying with Shinzen Young since early 2006. She teaches Mindfulness in organizations as well as public classes, and does one-on-one coaching with individuals who wish to begin meditating as well as those with experience who wish to deepen their practice. She is also Vice Chair and a founding member of the Global Business & Economic Roundtable on Addictions & Mental Health.

In her professional life, Maria is President of Argonauta Strategic Alliances Consulting Inc., a global consulting business in the area of strategic alliances, business strategy and executive coaching. Prior to creating Argonauta, she held executive positions with a major financial institution and taught Corporate Strategy and Organization Development at McGill University in the Faculty of Management, as well as their Executive Institute. Maria has published a number of articles in her field and is a frequent speaker at conferences around the world.

She is an Alma Mater Fellow and holds B.Com. and MBA degrees from McGill University. 

She does considerable philanthropic work and has served on numerous boards. Most recently she has served as Chair of the McGill University MBA Advisory Board, a member of the McGill Faculty Advisory Board, and Chair of the Governance Committee for the Board of the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine. She has also served on the Government of Ontario System Design & Integration Sub-Committee of the Mental Health Implementation Task Force; and as a member of the Corporate Advisory Board for the Harvard Medical School – MacArthur Foundation study on depression and workplace performance.

For more information about Maria and her work, visit www.argonautaconsulting.com.

Stephanie Nash teaches meditation classes, retreats, and private sessions (in person & over the phone) integrating the teachings of Shinzen Young.

Some specific topics that her meditation classes have addressed include: Healing, Conscious Eating, Working with Stress & Spinning Mind, Letting Emotions “Flow”, Music & Sound Meditation, Developing Concentration, Happiness & Pleasure, Relaxation, and Being Present.

Stephanie has done at least 3-4 longer residential retreats a year with Shinzen since 1998, and has also done retreats with Leigh Brasington (jhana teacher), Ruth Denison, and other wonderful teachers -  and she does at least 2-3 self-retreats a year in solitude in nature. Steph has also participated in Native American ceremonies such as weekly sweatlodge ceremonies & the Hanblechia (Vision Quest ceremony.)

Stephanie has a psychology degree from Duke University and a Masters from the Yale School of Drama – and also works as a professional actress, and teaches & coaches actors in Los Angeles. She also teaches film directors at the Art Center School of Design in Pasadena, CA.

Steph wrote the study guide that accompanies Shinzen’s “TALKS on TEACHING” CD series (which she also edited) that trains meditation teachers, and she also wrote the article “POSTURE-PEDIA”  about the physicality of meditating. (See link here & on her website.)  Stephanie has been interviewed several times on KPFK (90.7 FM/Los Angeles) and she has interviewed Shinzen – see links to audio & video interviews.

Steph is presently working on a few projects that will hopefully bring a mainstream audience to the mindfulness practice, and she is quite grateful for the clarity Shinzen provides – and for his tireless devotion to helping all suffer less & experience more satisfaction in our lives.

For more about Stephanie and her work, visit www.NashArts.com.

Julianna Raye has had a daily sitting practice for 14 years. For the past 12 years, she has attended intensive week-long and two-week-long silent retreats 4 times yearly, with either Shinzen Young or Kyozan Joshu Sasaki. For 9 years, she has facilitated Shinzen Young’s students, helping them improve their practice. Her emphasis as a Personal Meditation Trainer is to collaborate with her clients to tailor make an evolving practice ideally suited to their interests and needs.

As a professional singer/songwriter and performer, Julianna is devoted to integrating meditative awareness into her preparation and performances. Her goal is to imbue those activities from which she derives her greatest sense of purpose with the effects of her practice. In the Zen tradition, there is an entire path (The Art of No) tying live performance with spiritual practice, the height of which is known as "Achieving the Flower." In Julianna’s own words "Whether publicly or privately, my hope is to encourage in others the singular experience, known as the "mystical experience" which is surprisingly available in our everyday lives and which has brought me so much satisfaction, healing and relief in my own life."

Julianna feels profoundly fortunate to have encountered her teachers and is happy to be of service to others on the path.

Soryu Forall (Teal Scott)  I left home to train at a Japanese Buddhist monastery when I was 19. At the time, I was overcome by confusion and despair regarding the suffering people create, and I wanted to face it directly. After searching for a teacher for some time, I found a true Zen Master, Shodo Harada Roshi, with whom I was fortunate enough to train for four years, and under whom I was ordained. I also trained, and served as head monk, at Sariputta Boudh Vihar, an Ambedkarite monastery in southern India, where I worked for the rights of those born into the lower castes and helped to raise thirty boys with the understanding that we are all inconceivably valuable, regardless of family circumstances.

I further trained at Hemis Gompa, a Kagyud Tibetan monastery in the far north of India, and Xue Feng Si, an ancient Ch'an monastery in eastern China. Since returning to the US, I have had the honor of participating in several Native American ceremonies, including the Sun Dance and a cycle of vision quests. I have led retreats and guided individuals in the Rinzai Zen style and in the 5 Ways. My greatest passion, other than using Buddhism to resolve the suffering of all living things, is using economics to resolve environmental problems. It is a blessing for me to have the chance to work with Shinzen Young on his Home Practice Program.

Janet Sims 
Janet M. Sims, PhD has meditated for over 25 years and worked as a clinical psychologist for 30 years. In 1997 Thich Nhat Hanh opened The Green Mountain Dhama Center just a few miles from her home in Vermont and Janet became deeply involved in Vipassana meditation. Another turning point came in 2003 when a friend mentioned The Science of Enlightenment series by Shinzen. After listening to that she made her first contact with Shinzen and has been studying with him ever since.   

In 2008 Janet moved to Oregon and co-founded Basic Mindfulness Portland, LLC. (bmindfulpdx.org) offering mindfulness-based psychotherapy/consultation and Basic Mindfulness Meditation Training (both in person and via Skype).  

Presently, Janet offers a weekly sitting group and teaches a dana-based series of Basic Mindfulness classes at Zen Center Portland. She also enjoys providing individual beginner instruction as a facilitator for Shinzen Young. A longer term project of hers is writing The Basic Mindfulness Toolkit, a manual for the application of Basic Mindfulness in psyschotherapy.  

Janet has taught Basic Mindfulness at: Dartmouth Medical School, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Portland State University's Contemplative Education Program and Providence St. Vincent's Medical Center.

Shelly Young  I became interested in meditation practice in 1980 as a result of immense suffering and a debilitating sugar and food addiction. I found my first teacher, Kozan Beck, a student of Kennett Roshi, and became devoted to meditation practice from then on. I went on to study with Sasaki Roshi in 1981 in the Los Angeles area, and met Shinzen at that time. We co-directed the Community Meditation Center of Los Angeles for 5 years and co-taught retreats throughout the U.S.

I have attended countless retreats with Shinzen, Sasaki Roshi, Pat Hawk and numerous mindfulness instructors and continue to do regular intensive practice.

I’m a licensed psychotherapist and certified addiction counselor, presently maintaining a mindfulness-based therapy practice near Boulder, Colorado.  I also offer a telephone counseling service. I work with eating disorders, addiction, trauma, obsessive-compulsive disorder, mood disorders, pain management and other issues of suffering. I am a national speaker and teach Shinzen’s methods to mental health professionals, offering continuing education seminars throughout the U.S. I write for www.HealthCentral.com and publish articles on mindfulness in the diabetes section of their website.

I have tremendous gratitude for my dramatic recovery from the sugar/food addiction and attribute the recovery to Shinzen’s methods and cognitive-behavioral techniques. In my book, Break Out Of The Sugar Prison, I discuss how I used the methods to break through overwhelming urges, finding bliss on the other side, and moving on to full recovery.

My only goal in life is to serve others through teaching and living the practice, demonstrating what is possible for any human being who truly wants the freedom that mindfulness practice offers.

For more information about Shelly and her work, visit www.MindfulnessNow.com.