The biography, briefly
Richard Bandler (born 1950) was a mathematics and psychology student at UC Santa Cruz when, with linguist John Grinder, he began modelling the work of Fritz Perls and Virginia Satir — transcribing and codifying their language patterns. That modelling project produced The Structure of Magic (1975) and became NLP. Through the 1970s–80s Bandler developed the early technique canon and, later, DHE (Design Human Engineering).
The certification lineage
- The Society of NLP carries his licensing standard
- "Trained by Bandler" means attendance at his trainings — a provenance fact, not a skill guarantee
- Many excellent trainers have no Bandler lineage; several weak ones do
Reading lineage claims honestly
In the Indian market, Bandler's name appears on two kinds of claims: genuine trainer histories (verifiable in rough outline) and borrowed authority (a badge that stops meaning anything). Ask what the trainer learned, when, and — always — watch them demonstrate.