I grew up in the Seattle area, and in my adult life worked for many years as a university researcher in molecular biology and bacterial genetics. Although at best a mediocre student of Dharma, I’ve had the fortune of being accepted by extraordinary Dharma teachers. In 1971 I moved to Boulder, Colorado to become a student of Chögyam Trungpa, and in 1983 I migrated to Nova Scotia (Canada) when Trungpa Rinpoche was moving his seat there. During that time I was also a student, and later an instructor, of kyudo, the art of Japanese Zen archery, under the guidance of Onyumishi Kanjuro Shibata. Having met Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche at Trungpa Rinpoche’s cremation in 1987, in 1991 I inevitably became his student, and under Rinpoche’s guidance undertook three year retreat in the Dordogne (France) between 1994 and 1997. In 2003 Rinpoche assigned me to develop curriculum for three year retreats at Vajradhara Gonpa (Australia) and I subsequently served as retreat master there, amongst the wallabies and carpet snakes, through two retreat cycles.

Since my three year retreat in France, I have participated as an amateur translator in bringing various Khyentse lineage liturgical materials from Tibetan into English. When not at home in Ballina NSW (Australia) I enjoy spending time in Bir, Himachal Pradesh (India).