People

Paul

 Senior Teacher

Paul Baranowski is the founder and principle teacher of Luminous Ground, a meditation group located in the heart of Toronto. Paul has been studying and practicing Buddhism and meditation since 2004. He is an ordained member of the Order of Interbeing in the Zen tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh, and author of Interdependent Liberation. Paul […]

Laurie

 Intermediate Teacher

Laurie has been practicing mindfulness and meditation since 2001. In 2002 he spent three days at Plum Village and was introduced to the teachings of Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh. He returned there many times, spending well over a year in total, learning how to touch life deeply simply by opening to present moment experience […]

Dawn

Dawn grew up in Seoul, Korea until moving to Toronto when she was 15 years old. In 2009, she started to attend a local meditation group in Toronto and she slowly started to discover her motivation to live with less struggle. With the help of her teacher, Paul Baranowski, and Luminous Ground members, she has […]

Jen

With a curious spirit, Jen began sitting at Luminous Ground’s weekly classes in the spring of 2016, shortly after meeting Paul through “Mind Your Business”, an event hosted at Shopify. Not long after joining this vibrant community of young professionals, Jen began the teacher training program to deepen her mindfulness practice, striving for more calm, […]

Christina

Christina is a jubilant animal-lover who has been vegan for 14 years. In that sense, she has been seeking to minimize harm to sentient beings and the planet for over a decade, but after her father’s death in 2007 is when she began to investigate spiritual practice as a means to cope with the tremendous […]

Reza

Reza was introduced to the path of spiritual awakening in 2012 through a colleague. He practiced exercises, read books and had many revealing discussions with his colleague all resulting in further insights towards spiritual freedom. In 2014, he learned that one of his sisters was on the same path who then introduced him to Paul […]

Kim

Kim Yee is a student and practitioner of Buddhist teachings. She discovered mindfulness and meditation through her work at Interaxon, the creators of MUSE: the brain-sensing headband, in 2014. Here, she met Paul Baranowski, VP of Development and Founder of Luminous Ground; he is now her principal Dharma teacher. Along with Paul, she co-founded “Mindfulness […]

Roxana

Roxana has been practicing meditation and studying Buddhist teachings since 2012 and has attended retreats in the Thich Nhat Hanh tradition and with Luminous Ground. Her enthusiasm and curiosity led her to explore several meditation groups, traditions and teaching styles, to find her home in Luminous Ground, under the training of Paul Baranowski. Roxana’s key motivation is […]

Matthew

Matthew began studying and practicing meditation in the Spring of 2013. His intention to experience peace, clarity and compassion in everyday life fuels his practice and mentorship with Paul Baranowski. He loves the adventure of life and delights in connecting with people with authenticity and joy. He aspires to help increase awareness of mindfulness, and the mindful use of technology, and to help […]

Sheva

Sheva has been practicing mindful meditation for the past two years under the mentorship of Paul Baranowski. With the support of her teacher and fellow practitioners, Sheva has gained insight and continues to learn how and when to use the right techniques and practices to find peace wherever she is at. Through practice, Sheva has discovered […]