The Spark is Lit
I was in high school in a remote part of Colorado, and a teacher mentioned "yogis." This was decades before yoga became popular in the West. No one else seemed to hear what he was saying, but for me—every cell in my being suddenly woke up. I found the one and only book in the library on yoga asana and began teaching myself. The next year—1970—a teacher of Transcendental Meditation came to my small school and taught me how to meditate.
Training with the Source
I loved meditating from that very first day, and within a few years, I traveled to Europe to train directly with Maharishi to become a teacher of TM. I was in the first graduating class of Maharishi International University (MIU) and spent an additional year in Europe for long meditations and advanced training. It was a rigorous initiation into the mechanics of the mantra at its highest level.
The Thirst for Stillness
Despite this profound foundation, my practice eventually plateaued. I felt as though I was simply treading water—stable, but no longer progressing toward the awakening I sought. For a number of years, I stepped away from formal practice to engage with the ordinary world of business, finance, coding, and computer animation.
This detour was, in fact, my most vital training. By losing the thread, I learned exactly how it feels to navigate the friction of the mundane without the anchor of the soul. It humanized the path, teaching me the deep empathy required to guide those who struggle with the fatigue and resistance of a long-term practice. I returned to the cushion not as a theorist, but as a survivor of the drought.
The Opening of the Heart
I began sitting again on my own, stripped of formal labels. In that simple silence, I had an unexpected, profound experience of my spiritual heart—the Hrydaya—opening with an intensity of light and passion. This fire reignited my quest, leading me to Shri Anandi Ma to seek Shaktipat, the awakening of the dormant kundalini and the deeper mysteries of the mind.
Immersion in the Current
This opening led me to a decade of immersion in the Siddha Yoga lineage, sitting at the feet of Gurumayi Chidvilasananda and the profound teachings of Swami Muktananda and the great Bhagawan Nityananda of Ganeshpuri. This was a period of deep soaking in the current of Shaktipat, an accelerated transmission that profoundly impacted my life and teaching. It was here that I learned to navigate the powerful, subtle energies that would later become central to my work.
The Embodiment of the Path
Meeting Mark Griffin ended the search. He was a rare paradox: a towering, down-to-earth Westerner who spoke the intricate language of the ancient lineages with absolute clarity. He didn't just teach about Awakening; he radiated it from his own experience. In his presence, I found a teacher who could not only articulate the profound states I was seeking and experiencing but who offered a direct, tangible connection to the Siddha lineage.
Parsing the Master
My role with Mark became unique. Supported by my technical skills, I spent years editing the audio of his talks, publishing his books, recording his talks onto CDs and creating a bookstore for him. I translating the ancient text Shri Guru Gita into a form his group could use. I took my personal knowledge of how to teach meditation to all stages of meditators and created a carefully sequenced monthly correspondence course called Deepen Your Practice, which included my focused intro and one of Mark's talks on that subject.
Living inside his teachings like this allowed me to imbibe the knowledge deeply, distilling his intricate depth into the clear, accessible system that has shaped much of what Stop The Mind is today.
The University is Open
Today, after 56 years of inquiry, I serve as the "supporting technician" for your transformation. Stop The Mind is the culmination of that journey—a practical, directly usable curriculum of self-paced courses, with me by your side, to help you move from a quiet mind to a stopped mind.
The lineage is accessible. The university is open.
Explore the Teachings of the University
Twice-monthly distillations. Occasional insights into the mechanics of stillness. No noise, just the technology of silence delivered to your inner sanctum.
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The Kickstart
See how easy meditation can be. Build the engine of silence from the ground up.
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Begin learning the methods to unlock meditation's full potential. Move beyond simple relaxation.
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