Michael Santi Keezing

Michael Santi Keezing was a monk (bhikkhu) in the Thai forest tradition, a meditation-centered branch of Theravada Buddhism. He lived for eight years as a monastic, and six as a fully-ordained monk, in monasteries, as a wanderer, and in traditional and Western lay-Buddhist communities. Prior to ordination, he lived a varied adult life of writing, teaching, and plenty of miscellaneous jobs; travel and settling down; relationships, marriage, and singleness; fatherhood. Both monastic life and all of these experiences continue to inform Santi’s developing spiritual practice and understanding, which integrates early Buddhist approaches with an engaged commitment to naturalism and humanistic values.

Since returning his robes and resuming lay life in 2024, he has been offering life counseling and coaching centered on meaning, healing, and purpose. In addition to this work, he leads meditation gatherings, offers talks and public dialogue, and writes on the intersections of Buddhism and post-Buddhism, modernity, personal and political life, conscious use of technology, and other spiritual themes.

Santi means “peace.” It was given to him as a monastic name, and remains an encouragement to himself and others to value and foster peace.