So both of my parents are actually time practitioners, they both met lama for the first time in 1994, if I remember correctly. And I myself met my root lama first in 1996, so only a year after I was born.

Albert recalls his first experience walking into the Buddhist Temple of Chicago, describing the imposing yet intricately designed doors that symbolized the beginning of his journey. Upon entering, he was struck by the diverse and down-to-earth community, challenging his expectations of a predominantly Asian congregation. The fact that the reverend was a female resonated with Albert, emphasizing the equal respect in Buddhism. Curiosity led Albert to explore the temple's teachings, appreciating the absence of emotional manipulation and the focus on understanding oneself and fostering interconnectedness. The chants, like the golden chain, and the absence of labels provided a liberating experience. Albert delved into Buddhism's varied forms, including Pure Land Buddhism, which allowed him the freedom to be himself and practice responsibility without conforming to specific rules.

I encountered spiritual practice through reading BKS Iyengar’s Light on Yoga when I was 18 and immediately trying a number of the forbidden pranayama techniques that he described in the back of the book, because of course this is what you do when you’re 18.

As she reached the limits of her knowledge in Hinduism, Shinchok turned her attention to the Mahāmudrā, discovering that Buddhist teachings provided the answers she sought. Her desire for a genuine meditation master led her to a Buddhist center where she encountered the teachings of Je Tsongkhapa. Feeling a profound connection, she embraced Buddhism and its emphasis on devotion, recognizing it as a path to crack open her heart and discover her true self.

I remember seeing Buddhist images on trips to India with my family. Seeing Zen images associated with martial arts, I started when I was 7.

My first exposure to dharma was during my undergraduate studies majoring in Philosophy/Asian Studies. However, this didn’t translate to a personal practice until a few years later when I lost two friends to suicide in a six-month period. The bereavement related to their deaths was so overwhelming that it forced me to seek out additional community and support.

I walked into Against the Stream Nashville Meditation Center in January 2012,  shortly after coming out of rehab for alcohol dependence.   It was suggested that meditation could be helpful in further recovery.  I remember in one of the first talks Dave Smith mentioned that, sitting was just sitting.  Whether you were in traffic, the motor vehicle department or sitting comfortably on your  own couch that the experience of sitting was all the same.  

I was more connected to the teacher than the teaching at first. I had a vision of a teacher, in the way you generate a visualization of a deity during some Vajrayana practices, while the lines of “Crying to the Guru from afar” started playing in my head. I had only ever read the text once, so was quite surprised to learn that I had memorized it.

My first year of high school I attended an independent Episcopalian school that required us to take a course teaching “world history” and “world literature” as seen through the lens of the religious traditions of the world. The course was constructed explicitly as a rite of passage, and the challenges were so intense that every one of us was transformed by the experience.