Insight Meditation Houston was founded in 1980 by Rodney Smith, who had ordained with Mahasi Sayadaw in Burma and then had practiced for three years with Ajahn Buddhadasa in Thailand. Returning to the West, Rodney worked in hospice care and taught Vipassana meditation throughout the U.S. Since he left Houston in 1983, IMH has continued to meet weekly in the city and to sponsor two or three retreats each year at the Margaret Austin Center, which is located in a tranquil rural setting near Chappell Hill, Texas.