About Hugh Byrne

All of the programs and services that I offer—classes, retreats, workshops, and individual sessions—are rooted in mindfulness and compassion.

Mindfulness is the practice of bringing a kind and non-judging awareness to our own experience, allowing us to access our inner wisdom and our connection with all of life.  Compassion is the natural response of the heart to suffering—our own and others.  Some highlights of my background and training, and some of the programs I offer:

• Student and practitioner of Buddhism for twenty years and a meditation teacher since 2000—studied with Christopher Titmuss, other Western and Asian teachers

• Completed four-year teacher-training program led by Jack Kornfield, author of A Path with Heart,  at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in California and the Insight Meditation Society (IMS) in Barre, Mass

• Senior teacher with the Insight Meditation Community of Washington (IMCW)—a community founded by Tara Brach, author of Radical Acceptance  
  
  
• Trained in and teach Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)—program  developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn at UMASS  to teach methods of reducing stress and enhancing well-being and peace in daily life
  
  
• Completed three-year training in Somatic Experiencing —a mind/body approach to healing trauma developed by Peter Levine
  
  
• Co-founder of the Mindfulness Training Institute of Washington —organization formed to bring the benefits of mindfulness into the workplace and non-traditional settings
  
  
• Co-founder of the Washington Buddhist Peace Fellowship —organization that works to bring the wisdom and compassion of Buddhist teachings to the suffering in our world today
  
  
• Teach classes, retreats and workshops in the Washington area and nationally
  
  
• Meet with individuals and groups to (1) help develop a regular meditation practice; (2) practice mindfulness in everyday
  life; (3) help cultivate beneficial states of heart and mind (compassion, generosity, concentration, tranquility, joy, equanimity) and to bring mindfulness to the challenges of work, relationships, chronic pain, trauma, and other stresses of life
  
  
• Educational background: Bachelor of Law degree (LL.B) from London University, Master’s degrees in African Studies and Political Science, and a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).  Author of El Salvador’s Civil War (Lynne Rienner, 1996)
  
  
  

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Hugh was able to get my attention
through a welcoming and inviting
environment.  In a little time I
began to notice a big difference.
There was no pressure from any
one person and there are no creeds
or rituals to follow.
This community offered by Hugh
is the only place where I feel taken
care of and cared for fully.
He knows how to help people
change from the inside.

—Steve Zappalla, Herndon, Va.