Spiritual Teachers and Technology
Our foundation receives many inquiries from teachers of meditation and other spiritual practices seeking financial assistance to spread their teaching using technology. And in almost all cases we have declined direct support. We would like to take this opportunity to explain our thinking and offer a suggestion.
First of all, we would like to express our gratitude to all teachers, many of whom are doing valuable work with very little support. Good teachers are indispensable in a student’s spiritual journey.
Secondly, technology will play an increasingly important role in the evolution of humanity’s consciousness. Dharma (teachings), sangha (community), and teacher will all benefit from technology in ways which we cannot yet fully imagine. However, technology is a double-edged sword and can be — and has been — used to increase suffering by unscrupulous or unwise entrepreneurs. A core mission of our foundation is to encourage the use of technology to do the opposite: to reduce suffering and increase positive states through wise use of technology.
While each spiritual teaching is unique, their need for technology is extremely similar. And in our experience, teachers frequently underestimate the difficulty and complexities of technology. For example, building a quality mobile app costs hundreds of thousands of dollars, and the costs of marketing (so users download and activate the app) are greater still.
We do not believe that it is economically sustainable for thousands of teachers to have their own mobile apps. Rather, we believe one or two technology platforms will meet the needs of the vast majority of teachers, and for a tiny fraction of the cost to each teacher. The platform will be built and continuously improved upon by world class technologists and include a suite of features that help teachers manage existing student relationships, deliver online teaching, nurture a virtual sangha, and reach new students. The richness and innovation of these tools will be dazzling.
We also believe that the diversity of teachings and teachers is critical to avoid dogma and hierarchy. A neutral and open platform, where every teacher, whether famous or unknown, has access to the same tools, is critical for ensuring such diversity. If no such platform existed, a few well-resourced teachers will attract even more resources and are able to leverage technology more effectively, and less-known teachers will get left behind.
Of course, it is natural that certain teaching and certain teachers will have a larger following, but the playing field must be level so that choice is in the hand of the students. While we are not sure how different teachings will interact or complement each other — e.g., teachings with wide and immediate appeal vs. teachings with depth and a narrower appeal — we are certain that a world where Headspace and a few teachers dominate the airwaves is not good for humanity.
We think Insight Timer will be such a platform, so we’ve decided to put our resources behind them. There are still a lot of challenges ahead, but we trust the team at Insight Timer led by Christopher Plowman.
It is important to us that Christopher and his team care about teachers and users deeply. It is also important that their core motivation is not profit. While profit and sustainability are important, they are consciously balancing each decision between “doing good” and “doing well.” They don’t have all the answers but I have found them to be open-minded, aware, and sincere.
I know Insight Timer will roll out many new features in the coming year, based on the feedback of its 1600 teacher community. If you are a spiritual teacher, I encourage you to reach out to the team at Insight Timer to share your needs. (And here is a good podcast episode to get a sense of Christopher if you don’t know him already.)
With Gratitude,
Bo Shao
Evolve Foundation
