Teachers

Dharma Teachers

 

Rebecca Bradshaw is the Guiding Teacher at Insight PV.
She has been practicing vipassana meditation since 1983 in the United States and Myanmar (Burma). She teaches at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, MA, at other locations in the United States, and at Kyaswa Monastery in Sagaing, Myanmar. She is a psychotherapist and the Buddhist Advisor at Mt Holyoke College. Her teaching emphasizes love, gentleness, and balance as we open to the full range of life's experiences.
Please view Rebecca's Teaching Schedule for 2010 — 2011






Chas DiCapua started meditating in 1989 in the Soto Zen tradition. He sat his first Vipassana retreat in 1995 at IMS and has called IMS home ever since. He has practiced in both the Mahasi Style as well as the Thai Forest Tradition as taught by Ajahn Sumedo and others. Chas has served as Resident Teacher at IMS since 2003.
Please view Chas' Teaching Schedule for 2010

 

Jean Esther has been training in meditation practice since 1975 and teaching regularly since 2001. She has been a practicing psychotherapist in Northampton for over 27 years. Jean has also completed certification in Advanced Leadership Training with internationally known Jungian analyst Marion Woodman. This work includes the interface of psychology, spirituality and the arts through the perspective of the body.

Mark Hart has practiced Insight Meditation since 1981, studying primarily at Insight Meditation Society in Barre, MA. Since 2000 has also studied with teachers of non-dual awareness, including Adyashanti, and has incorporated that into his teaching. He is guiding teacher of the Bodhisara Dharma Community in Amherst, Massachusetts, and adjunct religious advisor to Buddhist students at Amherst College. He also has a private practice of psychotherapy in Amherst.
For more information please see: bodhisara.org






Lila Kate Wheeler began practicing Buddhism in 1977 and teaching it in the mid-1980s. She was ordained for some time as a nun, and practices in the Tibetan tradition as well as the Theravadin. She writes fiction and personal essays, and lives in Boston

 

Community Dharma Leaders

Adi Bemak has been practicing Insight Meditation for 30 years. She has been teaching Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) since 1993, and is at present an alternate teacher at the Center for Mindfulness at UMass Medical School. Adi has a mindfulness-based psychotherapy practice in Northampton and Amherst, and is a Community Dharma Leader, trained at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in California.






Peggy Gillespie has been a student of Insight Meditation since 1976.  She was on staff at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre in 1979 and Assistant Director of the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Program at UMass Medical Center in the l980's, where she also worked in the hospice unit.  She has just completed the Community Dharma Leader Program through Spirit Rock Retreat Center in California.

Kim Weeber started practicing meditation in 1987 in the yoga tradition, and studied Zen in Denver with Danan Henry Roshi for 8 years. She started practicing Vipassana in 1997 with Bhante Gunaratana, and studied the teaching of the Dharma with
Jacqueline Mandell, one of the early American Vipassana teachers. She has completed the Community Dharma Leader training program at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in California.Her teaching experience includes meditation instruction at aprison in Ohio for 2 years, and leading local sittings at InsightPV.



Founding Teacher


Arinna Weisman is the Founding Teacher of Insight PV. She has studied Vipassana (Insight) Meditation since 1979 and has been teaching since 1988. Her root teacher is Ruth Denison who was empowered by the great teacher U Bha Khin. She was the first resident teacher at Insight Meditation Society and is the founding teacher of Dhamma Dena Meditation Center. She teaches throughout the U.S. and Europe, including occasional visits to Insight PV.
For more information about Arinna see: arinnaweisman.org