Rupert Gethin is Professor of Buddhist Studies in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Bristol and President of the Pali Text Society since 2003. He holds a BA in Comparative Religion (1980), a master's degree in Buddhist Studies (1982), and a PhD in Buddhist Studies (1987), all from the University of Manchester. Prof. Gethin is a practicing Buddhist and one a world authority on the jhānas, the topic of his presentation