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The Teaching Faculty of the GWV

Jeffrey S. Brooks (Arahatta Jhanananda) is the founder of the GWV. Since 1973 he has been an engaged Buddhist who has maintained a daily meditation practice that has born the superior fruit (maha-phala) of the contemplative life, and he has been committed to a life of sobriety since 1974. Through this rigorous, self-aware, ethical and contemplative life he has become saturation in the bliss, joy and ecstasy of meditative absorption (jhana, samadhi) which has eradicated the 10 fetters: Narcissism & clan identification (sakkaya-ditthi), skepticism and doubt (vicikiccha), clinging to rules, rights and rituals (silabbata-paramasa), erotic craving (kama-raga), Ill-will and aversion (vyapada), craving for material existence (rupa-raga), craving for immaterial existence (arupa-raga), conceit (mana), restlessness (uddhacca), & ignorance (avija). Through his rigorous, self-aware, ethical and contemplative life he has also never loses consciousness during the sleep cycle, thus he has entered the deathless (amata). Jhanananda is therefore an Arahatta and will therefore return no more to material existence. He also has three University degrees, he is a genius with an IQ of 145; and he is an accomplished writer, artist, and scholar of mysticism and translator of early Asian literature. He has completed two 3-year retreats, and he now lives in Sedona, AZ, USA, and teaches Charismatic Meditation and Ecstatic Buddhism, counsels charismatic contemplatives and writes essays, articles and books on the religious experience.

Michael Hawkins has been a contemplative since 1991. He began to explore the altered states of consciousness of the meditative absorption states beginning in 1995 and he has maintained a daily meditation practice that has born the fruits (phala) of the contemplative life since the summer of 2003. Through this rigorous ethical and contemplative life he has become saturation in the bliss, joy and ecstasy of meditative absorption (jhana, samadhi) which has eradicated the first 3 fetters: Narcissism & clan identification (sakkaya-ditthi), skepticism and doubt (vicikiccha), clinging to rules, rights and rituals (silabbata-paramasa), he is thus a Sotapanna and will therefore return only seven more times to material existence. Having worked in various “hardhat and lunch pail” factories across the western U.S. from 1982 to 1991, he completed a B.A. in Sociology from the University of Colorado in 1995. From 1991 through 1997 he worked in the music industry, ending as Western U.S. Marketing Representative for Capricorn Records. He then became a professional Archetypal Astrologer, dreamworker and Tarot reader, having completed certification as a Jungian Archetypal Therapist in 1995. He enjoys fiction writing, cooking, blogging and spending time in local coffee shops. He is happily married and lives in Boulder, CO, USA.

D. Ernest Wachter is an engaged Buddhist, who has been a contemplative since 1987 and he has maintained a daily meditation practice that has born the fruits (phala) of the contemplative life since early 2006. Through this rigorous ethical and contemplative life he has become saturation in the bliss, joy and ecstasy of meditative absorption (jhana, samadhi) which has eradicated the first 3 fetters: Narcissism & clan identification (sakkaya-ditthi), skepticism and doubt (vicikiccha), clinging to rules, rights and rituals (silabbata-paramasa), he is thus a Sotapanna and will therefore return only seven more times to material existence.  He has a Batchelor of Arts in Sociology, a Master of Pastoral Studies with a focus in Eco-Spirituality, and a Master of Science in Library Science. He has a strong passion for the apophatic meditation tradition of Christian mysticism and the teachings of the historical Jesus. Ernest is also an accomplished musician and scholar of early Christian literature and Christian mysticism, and a Board Member of the Great Western Vehicle. ErnestŐs work involves the teaching of meditation and counseling based upon the Enneagram and ancient forms of divination as a tool for spiritual direction, such as Tarot, the I Ching, and the Manjushri Oracle. He lives in Altoona, PA, USA, where he leads an ecumenical ministry called The Ministry of DEW, which seeks to promote both engaged social activism as well as a charismatic and contemplative spirituality.

Teacher Certification and Ordination in the Great Western Vehicle

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[Pali & Buddhist Studies] [Tipitaka Index]  [Buddhist Timeline] [Pali-English Dictionary] [Sanskrit & Vedic Studies] [Ecstatic Meditation Archive]