Ralph Steele has taught meditation since 1987. He completed a year of intensive practice as a Theravada monk in Myanmar and Thailand; in 2000 he completed a four year teacher training with Jack Kornfield. Born on Pawleys Island, S.C., Ralph began his meditation practice while in high school in Japan. He studied with Tibetan masters Ven. Kalu Rinpoche and Lobsang Lhalungpa, and worked on H.H. The Dalai Lama's meditation team at the San Francisco conference of Nobel laureates. Ralph is a Vietnam veteran, and spearheaded the establishment of annual retreats for People of Color at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and Insight Meditation Society. He is the guiding teacher of Life Transition Meditation Center, and director of Life Transition Therapy, Inc a clinic offering meditation-based treatment for trauma in Santa Fe, N.M., and the author of Tending The Fire: The Path of War and Meditation.