Pierce Salguero, Ph.D.
I have studied religion and spirituality for most of my life through texts, travel, and deep immersion into practice. As a practitioner, I am most familiar with hathayoga, meditation, shamanic ancestral rituals, spirit healing, Thai medicine, and Buddhist philosophy, all of which I studied for many decades. I am also an avid scholar of religions, having earned a BA in anthropology and cognitive science (U.Va., 1996), an MA in East Asian studies (U.Va., 2005), and a PhD specializing in Buddhist medicine (Johns Hopkins, 2010). Since earning my doctorate, I have been a professor of Asian history, religions, and healing traditions, and I continue to actively conduct research and publish in all of these areas. (See my professional website for more about my scholarship.)
I have decades of experience exploring religion and spirituality from different angles. I’ve done the practices and have had profoundly transformative spiritual experiences as a result. But, I’ve also trained in the languages, studied the histories, and examined the downsides of these traditions. I like to say that I am a student, friend, and fan of spirituality but also a researcher, a skeptic, and a critic. This website distills the lessons from a lifetime of exploration of spirituality, presented in a digestible way for modern seekers.
I am not a spiritual teacher and do not offer any private support sessions, but I do engage in some interactive Q&A and guidance via my weekly “Office Hours.” If you are interested in joining or being notified about what’s going on in the future, I welcome you to sign up for updates at the bottom of the homepage. There is also a Multidharma Facebook group where you can ask me questions and stay up to date. Enjoy!