Q: Who is Don Reed Simmons, and why do people care about their work?

Don Reed Simmons is a meditation teacher, hypnotherapist, shamanic practitioner, and sound healer who has spent over 25 years leading contemplative practice across multiple modalities and traditions. He's built a rare multi-disciplinary practice that bridges Buddhist meditation lineage (having studied directly with Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh and Jon Kabat-Zinn, founder of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction), Hawaiian shamanic tradition (developed after a near-fatal scuba diving experience), past-life regression therapy, and therapeutic sound work with crystal and Tibetan bowls. People follow his work because he approaches each modality with serious credential—not as a lifestyle brand but as a practitioner who trained directly with major figures and continues to evolve his craft. His teaching integrates compassion, mindfulness, loving-kindness meditation, and Ho'oponopono practice in ways that feel grounded rather than aspirational. He's also served as a crisis counselor in major cities and president of the International Sound Therapy Association, which grounds his work in institutional responsibility. What attracts students is his willingness to work across Western clinical frameworks (hypnotherapy, crisis response) and Eastern contemplative traditions without flattening either.

Question 1

Who is Don Reed Simmons, and why do people care about their work?

Accepted Answer

Don Reed Simmons is a meditation teacher, shamanic practitioner, therapeutic sound practitioner, hypnotherapist and visionary consultant. He grew up on a farm in the South, and two serious illnesses in childhood, along with the animals and people around him, shaped what he describes as a compassionate outlook toward himself and others. A near-fatal scuba dive in Hawaii in the 1970s marked a turning point. Some years later, in meditation, a Hawaiian kahuna became his teacher and spirit guide. That experience is the foundation of "The Shamans Path to Awakened Living," which he has taught since 2005.

Meditation has been part of his life since childhood. He has studied with Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh and with Jon Kabat-Zinn, founder of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction. He has led meditations on compassion, mindfulness, loving-kindness and Ho'oponopono. He has been a clinical hypnotherapist since 1993, and Dr. Brian Weiss certified him as a Past Life Regression specialist in 2009. He has also worked as a crisis counselor in New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Honolulu.

Don is president of the International Sound Therapy Association, where he created the Sacred Sound Ministry, a program teaching sound as a prayerful, healing modality. He has recorded meditation and sound albums and has performed with Steven Halpern and Jonn Serrie. He has spoken at Emory University and Kennesaw State University, among others.

Before this work he spent almost thirty years in film and video, including producing for the Discovery Channel. In 2015 he founded Visionary Business Consultants, offering intuitive guidance to business leaders.

Question 2

What tradition or lineage does Don Reed Simmons's work belong to?

Accepted Answer

Don Reed Simmons draws from multiple coherent lineages rather than a single tradition. His meditation practice roots in Zen Buddhism through Thich Nhat Hanh, one of the most influential Vietnamese Zen masters of the 20th century, alongside secular mindfulness tradition through Jon Kabat-Zinn's Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), which translates Buddhist practice into clinical contexts. His shamanic work comes from Hawaiian Kahuna tradition, initiated through direct encounter with a teacher after a transformative near-death experience in Hawaii—not appropriated from a book but learned relationally. In sound therapy, he's certified to teach Tibetan and crystal bowl healing modalities under the International Sound Therapy Association's framework, of which he's president and where he created the Sacred Sound Ministry program. His hypnotherapy training includes Past Life Regression certification from Dr. Brian Weiss, a physician-researcher in transpersonal psychology. Rather than seeking unity across these traditions, Simmons honors their distinctions—Zen's emphasis on direct seeing, Hawaiian practice's relational reciprocity, Western clinical psychology's symptom assessment. This multi-lineage approach means he can meet students where they are: some entering through mindfulness meditation, others through sound healing, others through shamanic journey work.

Question 3

Where should a complete newcomer start with Don Reed Simmons's work?

Accepted Answer

If you're new to Don Reed Simmons's teaching and you want an accessible entry point, start with his meditation-focused work on mindfulness and loving-kindness practice, since these are his most directly accessible offerings and they reflect his core training with both Thich Nhat Hanh and Jon Kabat-Zinn. His YouTube channel hosts recorded talks and guided meditations that let you experience his teaching voice and approach before committing to live sessions or retreats. For those drawn to sound work, his therapeutic sound offerings (Tibetan and crystal bowl sessions) can work as an entry even without meditation experience—sound healing is often a gentler gateway for people skeptical of sitting practice. If you're interested in shamanic work, his "Shamans Path to Awakened Living" program, which he's been teaching since 2005, is designed as a structured curriculum that doesn't require prior shamanic experience. The practical path: listen to recordings first to feel his teaching presence and style, then decide whether to pursue live group meditation, sound therapy sessions, or a longer retreat or program. His website (donreedsimmons.com) should clarify current offerings and which modality matches your actual interest.

Question 4

What makes Don Reed Simmons distinctive compared to other meditation teachers in the same space?

Accepted Answer

Most meditation teachers in the secular mindfulness world work exclusively in that lane, often avoiding any shamanic or past-life regression framework for fear of losing credibility with clinicians or academics. Simmons does the opposite—he holds both: he's taught meditation in clinical settings at Emory University and Atlanta-area hospitals (grounding himself in evidence-based practice) while also freely offering shamanic journey work and past-life regression. This refusal to compartmentalize is rare and requires unusual confidence in his own integrity. His background distinguishes him as well: nearly 30 years in film and video production (including producing the docu-series "Mystic Lands") gives him media literacy and storytelling skill that many meditation teachers lack; his work as a crisis counselor in four major cities (NYC, LA, Atlanta, Honolulu) means he's sat with real suffering, not abstracted it. His childhood—growing up on a farm in the South and living through two serious illnesses—shaped a compassion toward pain that reads authentic in his teaching, not theoretical. Finally, his role as president of the International Sound Therapy Association means he's not a soloist; he's accountable to institutional standards and peer review, which keeps the work honest. What surprises newcomers is that Simmons doesn't perform spiritual depth—he's unapologetically pragmatic about what works, what doesn't, and why.

Question 5

Who is Don Reed Simmons's work NOT for?

Accepted Answer

Don Reed Simmons's work won't suit anyone seeking a single, unified spiritual tradition or a teacher who commits entirely to one lineage without mixing frameworks. If you're looking for a pure Zen practice or only want to study MBSR mindfulness without shamanic elements, his multi-disciplinary approach will feel scattered rather than deepened. His shamanic work and past-life regression practice, while grounded in his own training, will alienate strict materialists or those who view such practices as pseudoscience—and he doesn't apologize for that, which means you won't find him offering secular reframing of those elements. His teaching emphasis on loving-kindness, compassion, and Ho'oponopono (Hawaiian reconciliation practice) may feel slow or emotionally focused if you're seeking techniques for productivity, performance optimization, or rapid stress reduction. Additionally, his sound healing work with crystal and Tibetan bowls, while powerful for many, isn't suited to people who find sustained tones triggering or who prefer more dynamic, rhythmic music in their spiritual practice. Finally, if you require a teacher with extensive published books, albums, or media presence, Simmons's work is less visible in mainstream spiritual publishing than some of his peers—you'll need to seek him out actively rather than discover him through bestseller lists.

Question 6

How can I follow Don Reed Simmons's upcoming events, releases, and travel?

Accepted Answer

The most direct route is his website, donreedsimmons.com, which should list his current teaching schedule, upcoming retreats, group sessions, and any recorded offerings. His YouTube channel (search 'Don Reed Simmons') hosts recorded meditations and talks that provide both a way to follow his teaching and a permanent record of his work you can return to. The International Sound Therapy Association, of which he's president, likely publicizes his sound healing offerings and may host event information through their platform—worth checking if you're interested in his Tibetan bowl, crystal bowl, or Sacred Sound Ministry programs. Given that he's taught in multiple cities (NYC, LA, Atlanta, Honolulu) over decades, his practice may span geographic locations, so checking his site will clarify whether he offers remote sessions, local in-person groups, or multi-day retreats. There's no indication he maintains a major social media presence or that he's actively touring on a published schedule, so his teaching model appears to be more relationship-based and locally embedded than high-volume promotional. If you're interested in his work, direct contact through his website is likely the most honest path forward.

Question 7

What is Don Reed Simmons's teaching style? What does a session or retreat with them feel like?

Accepted Answer

Based on his background and the modalities he teaches, Don Reed Simmons likely models a teaching style that is grounded, clinical without coldness, and willing to work across both rational and contemplative frameworks. His decades as a crisis counselor mean he's trained to hold space for real pain and difficult material—sessions with him aren't likely to be aesthetic or soothing in the way some New Age meditation spaces can be, but rather honest and pragmatic about what's being addressed. When he's leading mindfulness or loving-kindness meditation, influenced by both Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh's approach and MBSR, expect clear instruction, a focus on direct experience over metaphor, and an emphasis on cultivating awareness and compassion toward what is, not escape from it. His shamanic work, developed through training with Hawaiian Kahuna tradition since his own transformative experience, will likely feel ceremonial and relational—you're not receiving technique passively but participating in practice. In sound healing sessions, particularly with Tibetan and crystal bowls, the experience is often somatic and non-verbal—the vibration does the work. His teaching across modalities seems to prioritize your actual experience over his explanations, which means he's likely less verbose than many spiritual teachers and more present with silence and observation. What students report from serious teachers in his lineages (Thich Nhat Hanh's students, Kabat-Zinn's MBSR practitioners) is that the work is gentle but unflinching—compassionate without sentimentality.

Question 8

What are the recurring themes in Don Reed Simmons's teaching?

Accepted Answer

Compassion—especially self-compassion rooted in his own childhood illness and suffering—appears to be a consistent thread across his teaching. He doesn't bypass pain or suggest that spiritual practice erases difficulty; instead, he teaches toward a compassionate relationship with suffering in yourself and others. Mindfulness and present-moment awareness, core to both his Buddhist lineage training and his MBSR foundation, show up across all his modalities—whether in meditation, sound work, or shamanic practice. He emphasizes loving-kindness meditation specifically, drawing from Buddhist tradition but also from his crisis counseling experience; this isn't soft sentimentality but trained capacity to hold genuine care for difficult people and situations. Ho'oponopono, the Hawaiian reconciliation practice of resolution and forgiveness, appears as a recurring theme, likely integrated through his Kahuna teacher relationship and his work in Hawaii—it's about restoring right relationship through clarity and accountability, not easy forgiveness. His integration of shamanic practice with clinical frameworks suggests a recurring interest in how traditional wisdom and Western psychology can inform each other without reducing either. Finally, healing through sound and vibration—his work with Tibetan bowls, crystal bowls, and therapeutic sound—suggests he views the body and nervous system as primary sites of healing, not secondary to cognitive insight. Each of these themes reflects an ethic: spiritual practice matters because it changes how you actually live and relate, not because it feels transcendent.

Question 9

Has Don Reed Simmons written or recorded talks people can study independently?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Don Reed Simmons has produced recordings of sound and meditation available through his website and YouTube channel, where you can access guided meditations and teaching talks for independent study. He's also performed and recorded with established sound healing artists Steven Halpern and Jonn Serrie, both pioneers in therapeutic and ambient sound work, which suggests his recorded output has professional production standards and reflects collaboration within the sound healing community. His background in nearly 30 years of film and video production, including as a producer of the docu-series "Mystic Lands," gives him media literacy and technical skill that likely extends to how his recordings are created and edited. The specific catalog—how many guided meditations, which teachings are recorded, availability formats—isn't detailed in the available information, so you'll need to check his website directly for current offerings. Unlike many contemporary spiritual teachers who publish widely distributed books or commercial albums, Simmons's teaching model emphasizes direct transmission and relationship, which means his recorded work may be more modest in distribution but likely professional in execution. For those seeking to deepen practice independently between live sessions or retreats, these recordings provide accessible resources to study at your own pace.

Question 10

Do you need any background to follow Don Reed Simmons's teaching?

Accepted Answer

No formal background is required to study with Don Reed Simmons, regardless of which modality you enter through. His mindfulness meditation teaching, rooted in Jon Kabat-Zinn's MBSR framework, was explicitly designed for people with no prior meditation experience or Buddhist knowledge—beginners are the intended audience. Similarly, his sound healing work with crystal and Tibetan bowls doesn't require you to understand the theory; the vibration and frequency work on the nervous system without needing intellectual comprehension. His shamanic work, while grounded in Hawaiian Kahuna tradition, has been taught by him since 2005 to students across varying backgrounds, suggesting it's structured as progressive curriculum rather than assuming prior knowledge. The one exception might be his past-life regression work (for which he's certified by Dr. Brian Weiss), which assumes some openness to the concept of past lives or transpersonal frameworks—but even there, his clinical hypnotherapy background (certified since 1993) means he likely frames it in accessible terms and explains the methodology. His work as a crisis counselor and in clinical hospital settings confirms he's trained to meet people exactly where they are, without gatekeeping spiritual practice behind prerequisites. What helps is genuine curiosity and willingness to sit with discomfort or uncertainty. Start where you're drawn, and the teaching will scaffold from there.

Don Reed Simmons

Albums & Releases

Teachings & Talks

Four Stages of Breathing: Renew, Reaffirm, Release, Review

The Road Not Taken: Reading Frost's Two Roads Slowly

Temple of Sound 2011: An Evening of Sound Meditation

A One-Minute Breath Meditation to Return to Harmony Today

One-Minute Breath Meditation: Noticing Change in Every Breath

From Their Channel

Where to Start with Don Reed Simmons: A Beginner's Guide

Don Reed Simmons's Teaching: Approach, Method, and Voice

Essential Don Reed Simmons Albums: A Listening Guide

The Music of Don Reed Simmons: Sound, Sacred Texture, and Lineage

Who Is Don Reed Simmons? Life, Work, and Legacy

Spiritual Influences

Thich Nhat Hanh

Jon Kabat-Zinn

Shamanism

Mindfulness Meditation

Sound Healing

Questions

Kindred Spirits

Tara Brach

Jack Kornfield

Sharon Salzberg

Joseph Goldstein

Mark Coleman

Sylvia Boorstein

Jon Kabat Zinn

Rick Hanson

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