I started practicing in 1994. I studied with my first teacher, NDR*, for seven years. We talked every week on the phone and I sat retreat with him at his little farmhouse in the dairy country of upstate New York as often as I could.

In 2001, I moved to Colorado and met Zentatsu Richard Baker-Roshi. It was a revelation to discover there were monasteries in the United States: places where you could live fully immersed in dharma. I moved into Crestone Mountain Zen Center in early 2004 and stayed for six years.

Devon introduced me to the Vajrayana and some wonderful Tibetan teachers. I have studied with Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, Lama Drubgyu Tenzin, and others in this "three yana" system. Devon and I recently completed the full cycle of Shangpa teachings and transmissions.

Joseph Goldstein has been another beneficial influence for me. I began studying closely with him in 2013 and still follow his One Dharma Vipassana teachings and speak with him often.

Along the way I earned a PhD in counseling psychology at UW-Madison. I was very influenced by Richie Davidson, John Dunne, and other wonderful humans while I was there.

Most recently, devon and I completed a thirteen month meditation retreat, fulfilling a dream we’ve had for many years.

In terms of my teaching, I support budding meditation teachers in Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach’s Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program, mentor meditators one-on-one, and teach retreats in the Insight meditation tradition. (For some of what I’m up to, please click here.)

While I have spent a lot of time cultivating these practices for myself, I’m really not that scary. I'm happy to work with anyone who is committed to the path, whatever their level of experience or their life circumstances.

All the very best,
nico hase**

*NDR has since died. But he always wanted to remain anonymous. He never advertised and was very much not in the dharma scene. Hence the initials.

**also, I used to be called Craig. Click here for more on the name change.