Richard Olsen

I am a retired professor of western and Asian philosophy from Adelphi University. I received my Ph.D. from Brown University in 1971. In 1973, I lived for a time as a Theravadin Buddhist monk in Thailand while studying vipassana (mindfulness) meditation with Ajahn Vorasak Kammamito. When I finished this course of study, he gave me permission to teach meditation, which I have since that time done, both at Adelphi and in the community. I have also continued my study of meditation with Ajahn Sobhan Namto, under whom I served as an assistant teacher, and Bhante U Indica, the abbot of the Burmese-American temple in Brooklyn,N.Y. I have, in addition, studied the Buddhist Abhidhamma psychology of meditation with Bhante Indica. My other interests in philosophy include philosophical logic and the philosophy of science.