Meet Your Instructor

Michael Hess brings a unique perspective to the development of meditation in the West. His background combines many years of successful entrepreneurial experience with a dedicated long-term meditation and spiritual practice.

During the first 20 years of his career, Michael founded and managed a private investment company that launched two publicly traded financial services firms. Since then, Michael has served as a consultant and advisor to middle market companies and real estate firms seeking to raise capital and expand internationally.

Michael integrated a dedicated meditation practice into his life as an antidote to the pressures of his responsibilities as CEO. He discovered a deep connection to Tibetan Buddhism and took a two-year sabbatical to immerse himself in the language, culture and practices of this ancient tradition. In 2004, Michael became one of the few westerners ever granted permission to live in Lhasa, Tibet. Since then, he has returned many times to the Himalayan regions of India, Nepal and Tibet for spiritual pilgrimage, study and retreat. 

Michael has been meditating for 28 years and has taught meditation and pranayama to practitioners at all levels of experience, including meditation and yoga teachers, private clients, Buddhist and secular groups, non-profits, government organizations, and multi-national corporations including the Fortune 50. He has lived and studied in both India and Tibet, and has trained for many years in the most advanced methods of meditation and pranayama. 

Michael recently returned to the USA after a year-long solitary meditation retreat at Pangan Gonpa, a remote Tibetan Buddhist monastery in the north Indian Himalayas. Upon returning from retreat, Michael founded Discovering Mind to spread the joy and benefits of meditation for individuals seeking an authentic path to this Eastern spiritual tradition.  Discovering Mind offers meditation teacher training, long-term mentoring programs, classes, workshops and retreats for aspiring teachers as well as practitioners at all levels of experience. 

Michael is an authorized instructor of The Relaxed Mind seven-step approach to learning meditation developed by Dza Kilung Rinpoche.  He is certified by Yoga Alliance as a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT 200).  He looks forward to sharing his experiences, insight and stories with you.