Claude AnShin communicates Zen Buddhist Teachings in a non-religious manner that is direct and drawn from life, with a deep-rooted sense of compassion and purpose.
Claude AnShin Thomas
Claude AnShin Thomas is a Vietnam combat veteran turned Zen Buddhist monk, author, and speaker. Claude AnShin communicates Zen Buddhist Teachings in a non-religious manner that is direct and drawn from life, with a deep-rooted sense of compassion and purpose. He is the author of the award-winning book AT HELL'S GATE: A Soldier’s Journey from War to Peace, which has been translated into several languages.
International Work
Claude AnShin divides his time between the U.S., Europe, and South America, speaking about the real costs of war and violence and how meditation practice can support healing and transformation. He is dedicated to bringing awareness to the culture of violence in and among individuals, families, societies, and countries.
His intimate and deep understanding of the nature of suffering has allowed him to serve people in a wide variety of settings including war zones, hospitals, schools, and prisons. He has led meditation retreats at sites of war and suffering, and he communicates with gang members, guerrillas, and refugees. He offers public talks and retreats that help participants to recognize and end repetitive cycles of suffering.
Work with Veterans
Claude AnShin Thomas regularly leads meditation retreats for veterans living with post traumatic stress and their family members. At these retreats, offered in locations around the U.S., veterans and their loved ones learn to practice meditation in a variety of forms including sitting, walking, working, eating, and writing, allowing them to begin the process of rebuilding their lives.
Thanks to the support of a private donor, Claude AnShin has been able to extend these retreats and teachings in ever expanding circles, offering them to helping professionals and universities that are expanding the awareness of the emotional, spiritual, and moral wounds of war.
Academic Work
Claude AnShin has been a guest teacher and scholar-in-residence at Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania. At these colleges he taught an undergraduate course entitled “Change Your Mind, Change the World,” which is an introduction to Buddhist philosophy, meditation practice, and how these can nurture societal transformation by addressing the roots of war and violence on the personal level.
Claude AnShin Thomas holds a BS in English Education from Slippery Rock University (Slippery Rock, PA), an MBA from Lesley University (Cambridge, MA), and an honorary Doctorate in Divinity from Moravian College (Bethlehem, PA).