Hi, I’m Bodhipaksa, and I set up Wildmind in 2001 with the help of several friends who offered me their time and technical support when I was a grad student with no financial resources at all. I’m a member of the Triratna Buddhist Order, I’ve been a practicing Buddhist since 1982, and I’ve been teaching meditation since the late 1980’s.
I’m the author of Wildmind: A Step-by-Step Guide to Meditation, a book called Living as a River, which explores the Buddhist teaching of not-self though a traditional reflection on interconnectedness called the Six Element Practice, and Vegetarianism: A Buddhist View, which is a book on Buddhism and the practice of vegetarianism. Additionally, I’ve written I Can’t Believe It’s Not Buddha! (a book on fake Buddha quotes), This Difficult Thing of Being Human (on self compassion), and A Year of Buddha’s Wisdom (which is a collection of daily readings, reflections, and meditation suggestions). I’m also the author of ten audiobooks of guided meditations.
In Oct 2012 gave a TEDx talk on compassion.
I was given the name Bodhipakṣa when I joined the Triratna Buddhist Order in 1993 (although at that time it was called the “Western Buddhist Order”). “Bodhi” means enlightenment and “paksha” (there’s a dot under the “s” which gives it a “sh” sound) means “wings.” So my name means “Wings of Enlightenment.”
I was born and brought up in Scotland, although I now live in the US. For three years, I was the director of Dhanakosa retreat center, in the Highlands of Scotland, and after that I ran the Edinburgh Buddhist center. For three years, I taught Buddhist meditation in the Religious Studies department at the University of Montana, before moving to New Hampshire.
I love teaching meditation. It’s had a tremendously positive effect on my own life, and I’ve seen it have an equally large effect on the lives of my students. Over and over again, students have told me how learning to meditate has changed their lives.
For many years I’ve been excited by the potential for bringing the benefits of meditation to millions of people over the Internet. That enthusiasm is what led to me setting up Wildmind.
Wildmind started as a project while I was completing a Masters degree in Montana. Supported by a grant from the American Council of Learned Societies, I worked with Dr. Alan Sponberg to develop an innovative Internet based meditation course for the University of Montana, and that experiment formed the basis of Wildmind.
I hope you find these materials useful, and I’d love to hear from you. Please feel free to drop me a line using the comment form below. If you want to write more privately use the “contact” link above — the message will get to me.
I also have a personal website where you’ll find links to all my publications, YouTube videos, etc., as well as information about the meditation coaching that I do. It’s at Bodhipaksa.com.
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I have been listening to your Guided Meditations for calmness, awareness and love. It seems to be helping.
Thank you
Can you please tell me what Bodhipaksa means..? I know what Bodhichitta means and Bodhisattva, but what does bodhipaksa mean?? thanks
Did I forget to say what my name means? Phonetically it's Bodhipaksha (there's a dot under the "s" which makes it a "sh" sound) and it means Wings (paksha) of Enlightenment (bodhi).
hi,
I want to thank you for your guided meditation for stress reduction cd. i've been struggling with insomnia and depression for some time and listening to your cd at night has been a life saver, truly. Your voice is incredibly soothing and I feel guided and oddly safe. your good intentions really come through. I'm very grateful to you for this.
Can you tell me what other cd's you "narrate" (for lack of a better word)?
thank you,
c.
Thanks for the kind comment, C. It's always good to hear from people who have benefited from what we do.
If you check out Wildmind's online store you'll find my other CDs listed there.
All the best,
Bodhipaksa
Hi Bodhipaksa,
I wanted to thank you for your guided meditation cd. I have been using it almost every day for about two years and I have found it truly wonderful and beneficial. It has allowed me to slowly open my heart more and more and to become more and more alighned with my higher self. It is like a good friend that is always there to turn too with it's calm reassurance.
Thank you for shining a bright light in my life,
Much love, Tracy xxx
You're very welcome, Tracy, and I'm really delighted to hear of the benefits you've been experiencing.
Hello Bodhipaksha,
I used to be a student at the U of M in Missoula, circa 2001-2. It has been several years since I have been back or spoken to anyone who introduced me to Buddhism. I just wanted thank you (and Satayaloka, Saramati, and co.) for teaching me how to meditate and exposing me to the path of Buddhism. I doubt that you would remember me, I'm sure you had hundreds of students at the time, but the impact that you and Saramati and Satyaloka had on me is something that has changed me for the better ever since. I am a special education teacher in Chicago, and a regular practitioner of meditation. I have been practicing with a group out here called the New Kadampas, a Tibetan tradition, and my life is far richer because of this practice. I would never have known of meditation or the Buddhist path had it not been for you guys. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and your practice with me. I owe you a great debt of gratitude. Please continue to spread the word. Thanks.
Erik Iwersen
Hi Erik,
It's great to hear from you! I have a picture of a tall guy with fair hair (and maybe glasses) come to mind when I hear your name. I wonder if that's you?
Anyway, good luck with your practice, even if luck doesn't have much to do with it!
With metta,
Bodhipaksa
i first found your guided meditations on Itunes. i have just completed the UMass MBSR course. i liked it so much i took it twice in a row. But I wanted to investigate other meditative approaches, so I discovered your stuff. I have suffered from clinical depression off and on since I was 16 years old (40 years ago, and was hospitalized 3 times as a result.) I think meditation can be an amazing tool in the treatment of depression in conjunction with exercise or medication etc. For me it tends to require a multiple pronged approach. However, the fact that meditation does not bring the side effects of medication with it and can engender better physical health makes it a very important tool. I live outside of Boston. i was just wondering if you run any in-person workshops? i went to dartmouth, and both my parents used to live in NH so i'm used to driving all over the place up there.
Overall, i think the website is very well done. I think the melding of eastern thoughts and techniques with western analytical processes (by the scientists) are one day going to conquer depression.