Venerable Brian K. Smith (Lama Sumati Marut) has been teaching religion for 25 years. As a Sanskrit scholar and Professor of Comparative Religions, he taught at Columbia
University and the University of California, Riverside, where he is Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies. For the past decade, he has been a popular teacher of Buddhist and yoga philosophy, spirituality, and meditation.
Venerable Marut serves as a founding Board member and Staff Teacher of the Yoga Studies Institute (www.yogastudiesinstitute.org), a non-profit educational institute that grounds students in the classical tradition of yoga. He is also the founder and Spiritual Director of the Asian Classics Institute of Los Angeles (www.aci-la.org), ACI-Cape Ann (www.aci-capeann.org) and ACI-Reno (www.aci-reno.org). The three centers are charitable, non-profit 501(c)3 organizations dedicated to providing the authentic teachings of Mahayana Buddhism for serious study and personal practice. They serve their local communities and thousands of people worldwide via webcast by offering a full schedule of formal study courses, guided meditation, yoga classes, special workshops and community events.
His unique background and easy, down-to-earth style has attracted thousands of followers around the world of all ages and walks of life who gather to hear his call for a revolution of true and lasting happiness. He uses Western cultural signposts, pop references, and humor to help remove cross-cultural hurdles. A perfect combination of warmth and wit, Lama Marut makes even the most esoteric brain-busters of Eastern philosophy work as practical tools for immediate transformation.
