Profiles: William Schindler

William Schindler, a.k.a., Brother William, founder and Spiritual Director of Ashram West, obtained a B.A. in Sanskrit from UC Berkeley (1975), where he also studied Hindi and Bengali, and a Master's degree in clinical psychology from Antioch University (1986). He has been studying and practicing traditional Hindu Tantra since 1969. He lived in India for two-and-a-half years between 1972 and 1977 first as a pilgrim, then as a student at Banaras Hindu University, and finally as a monk of the Ramakrishna Order. He worked as a psychotherapist in a variety of settings and founded and coordinated a counseling program for at-risk youth at the public high school where he also taught English for ten years. He corresponds with students all over the world, and he welcomes inquiries regarding spiritual practice and Ashram West.

Schindler is the author of two books. Gay Tantra contains the core teachings of Ashram West. Essays on Gay Tantra is a compilation of Ashram West newsletters from 1998-2000.