Sharon Salzberg Biography & Facts
Sharon Salzberg (born August 5, 1952) is an author and teacher of Buddhist meditation practices in the West. In 1974, she co-founded the Insight Meditation Society at Barre, Massachusetts, with Jack Kornfield and Joseph Goldstein. Her emphasis is on vipassanā (insight) and mettā (loving-kindness) methods, and has been leading meditation retreats around the world for over three decades. All of these methods have their origins in the Theravada Buddhist tradition. Her books include Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness (1995), A Heart as Wide as the World (1999), Real Happiness - The Power of Meditation: A 28-Day Program (2010), which was on The New York Times Best Seller list in 2011, and the follow-up Real Happiness at Work (2013). She runs a Metta Hour podcast, and contributes monthly to a column On Being.
Early life
Born in New York City to a Jewish family, Salzberg had a troubled early life after her parents divorced when she was four and her father abandoned the family. At nine, her mother died and she went to live with her father's parents. Though her father returned when she was eleven, he soon overdosed and was subsequently hospitalized. He was placed in the mental health system, where he remained until his death. By 16, Salzberg had lived with five different families.
In her sophomore year at the State University of New York, Buffalo in 1969, Salzberg encountered Buddhism during a course in Asian philosophy. The following year, she took an independent study trip to India, and in January 1971 attended her first intensive meditation course at Bodh Gaya. In the next several years, she engaged in intensive study with various Buddhist teachers including S.N. Goenka. After returning to US in 1974, she began teaching vipassana (insight) meditation.
Career
Salzberg is a student of Dipa Ma, Anagarika Munindra, Sayadaw U Pandita and other Asian masters. She, Jack Kornfield and Joseph Goldstein founded the Insight Meditation Society at Barre, Massachusetts, in 1974. She and Goldstein co-founded the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies in 1989 and The Forest Refuge, a long-term meditation retreat center 9 years later. Today, she is a notable teacher of the Vipassana movement.
An in-depth interview with Salzberg appears in the book Meetings with Remarkable Women: Buddhist Teachers in America, by Lenore Friedman. (Boston:Shambhala, Revised and Updated edition, 2000. ISBN 1-57062-474-7)
Honors
Salzberg was honored by the New York Open Center in 1999 for her "Outstanding Contribution to the Mindfulness of the West".
Appointments
Mind and Life Institute 2005 Investigating the Mind Conference, Panelist.
Oprah Winfrey’s O Magazine, Contributing Editor.
On Being with Krista Tippett, Weekly Columnist.
Books
Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness (1995) ISBN 1-59030-187-0
Heart as Wide as the World (1999) ISBN 1-57062-428-3
Voices of Insight (2001) ISBN 1-57062-769-X
Faith: Trusting Your Own Deepest Experience (2003) ISBN 1-57322-340-9
The Force of Kindness: Change Your Life with Love and Compassion (2006) ISBN 1-59179-355-6
The Kindness Handbook: A Practical Campanion (2008) ISBN 978-1-59179-655-8
Real Happiness - The Power of Meditation: A 28-Day Program (2010) ISBN 978-0-7611-5925-4
Real Happiness at Work: Meditations for Accomplishment, Achievement, and Peace (2013) ISBN 978-0761168997
Love Your Enemies: How to Break the Anger Habit & Be a Whole Lot Happier, with Robert Thurman (2014) ISBN 1401928153
Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection (2017) ISBN 978-1250076502
Real Life: The Journey from Isolation to Openness and Freedom (2023) ISBN 978-1250835734
Audio publications
Insight Meditation: A Step-By-Step Course on How to Meditate (2002), with Joseph Goldstein ISBN 1-56455-906-8.
Lovingkindness Meditation (2005) ISBN 1-59179-268-1
Guided Meditations For Love & Wisdom: 14 Essential Practices (2009) ISBN 978-1-59179-707-4
Unplug: An Interactive Kit for Giving Yourself a Break (2009) ISBN 978-1-59179-638-1
Articles
A Teaching in Shambhala Sun Magazine
Life of One Piece, PBS The Buddha
How Silence Can Help Us Unplug, HuffingtonPost.com
How Doing Nothing Can Help You Truly Live, HuffingtonPost.com
Meditation Practice: A Paradigm Shift, HuffingtonPost.com
12 Tips on Exploring Spirituality, Blogher.com
The Benefits of Meditation, AARP.org
Opening the Heart with Lovingkindness, HuffingtonPost.com
Buddha Nature, RebelBuddha.com
What's Better for Creativity: Depression or Happiness? HuffingtonPost.com
Interviews
Under the Skin with Russell Brand: Will Spirituality Solve Our Global Problems?
Interview with Sharon Salzberg on CBS Religion & Culture.
Audio Interview Series on Buddhist Geeks
Salzberg interview with Dan Harris for ABC News
Huffington Post Interview with Elisha Goldstein, Ph.D.
Yoga and Buddhism's adaptation in the West: An interview with Ascent magazine.
Salzberg discusses meditation, happiness & social media with Danny Fisher for Shambhala Sun
PBS Religion & Ethics Newsweekly Interview, 2/18/2011
LA Times Interview 2/19/2011
Healthy Radio Interview 2/23/2011
References
External links
Official website
Sharon Salzberg on Twitter
Sharon Salzberg audio from the DIY Dharma site. Discover the Sharon Salzberg popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Sharon Salzberg books.
