The founder of the Authentic Mindfulness Studies
The founder of the Authentic Mindfulness studies is Mihajlo Pazanin, founder and head of the Shechen Buddhist Society in Croatia.
Mihajlo began practicing and researching Buddhist teachings in the mid-1980s as part of Mushindokai, the first former state society which combined karate with the study and practice of the ancient Buddhist meditation system of the Japanese Shingon tradition. He moved to Asia in the mid-1990s to study Buddha Mahavairochana for several months, making his way through the jungles of Taiwan, the Okinawa islands and all the way to the Himalayas, where he first met his future Tibetan teachers. Upon his return to Croatia, he worked on establishing the first Tibetan Buddhist Center and organized numerous visits of Tibetan teachers who began to present teachings from their traditions in this region.
In early 2001, in agreement with Rabjam Rinpoche, the main disciple and heir to the spiritual lineage of His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, one of the greatest and most respected Tibetan masters of 20th century mediation, he founded the Shechen Buddhist Society in Croatia, which began the systematic introduction of the Nyingma Spiritual Lineage (school of the ancient translations) in this region.
Over the years, Shechen’s activities have grown so much that in 2011 Croatia was selected as the only place in the world outside India to teach a complete system of learning from Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche’s personal lineage. Mihajlo Pažanin was selected as the leader of this worldwide unique project.
Mihajlo has been studying, exploring and practicing the art of meditation with some of the greatest living masters of Tibetan Buddhism for the past three decades, and today he is considered one of the leading experts in the Buddhist tradition of Tibet in this region. His main teachers include Rabjam Rinpoche, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche II, Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, Garchen Rinpoche and Chiwang Tulku.
Within ISOD organization, since 2015 Mihajlo begins to hold specialized mindfulness programs offering its students a program of step-by-step study and practical training of their own minds.
Starting in 2019, he launched an integral study of Authentic Mindfulness, a project that aims to bring ancient knowledge of mind liberation closer to the needs of 21st century modern man.
Mihajlo is the author of two books, “The Hidden Messages of Tibetan Buddhism” and “Conversations of Mindfulness,” which have achieved great success in the region. As a guest lecturer, he also collaborates with numerous companies, organizations and companies across Europe. At the invitation of “World.Minds” in Zurich in 2019, he becomes a regular member of that elite community that brings together the world’s leading experts in the fields of science, culture and business.
“For years I lived under the impression that I was the master of my life, and the CEO of my own personal brand. But a few hours of meditation were enough to show me that I hardly had any control of myself”
Authentic Mindfulness Studies
Authentic mindfulness studies have multiple levels that build on one another, like a house where the foundations are laid first and then built upon.
Along this path, all students are required to establish the basics of their own understanding and practice through the basic school level, and then, depending on their interest and motivation, can progress step by step in exploring deeper levels and mechanisms of their own perception. At the moment, the program comprises of four study units.
(On the photo: Mihajlo Pažanin with Matthieu Ricard)