Experts
Robert Thurman
Professor of Buddhist Studies, Columbia University; President, Tibet House U.S.
Robert Thurman believes organized religions inevitably become tools of cultural power rather than paths to personal salvation. Read More
A conversation with the Jey Tsong Kappa Professor of Buddhist Studies at Columbia University and the President of Tibet House U.S. Read More
Robert Thurman explains the Dalai Lama’s importance to Asia’s stability. Read More
East hasn’t met West, according to Robert Thurman. Both authentic Western and Eastern thought have been subsumed by a cancerous popular culture. Read More
Robert Thurman contends that true happiness occurs when we’re least aware of it. Read More
“A petty little tyrant like Ahmadinejad” could be toppled depending on U.S. actions in the region. Read More
"Why am I not happy?" Read More
Thurman's advice is, that even in the midst of life's gloom and doom, we should try to, "figure out how to understand things to be so joyful, that even if they kill you you'll die happy. Read More
Robert Thurman compares life to art. Read More
Thurman talks about what he loves about Chinese Civilization and China today. Read More
Thurman would go after the media and reestablish the Fairness Doctrine. Read More
Thurman talks about what needs to change in media and its affect on the political process. Read More
Thurman talks about what we need to do to fix it. Read More
Thurman talks about a recurring dream and why hes worried it will not become a reality. Read More
Thurman talks about how the United States was once the closest country in history to achieve certain Buddhist ideals, but that it has been subverted. Read More
Thurman talks about the major issues of the day and says that they are fixable if people put their minds to it. Read More
Columbia Professor, Robert Thurman explains some of the teachings of Buddha. Read More
Thurman talks about lessons he imparted to his children and talks about his celebrity daughter Uma. Read More
Thurman talks about his friend and inspiration, the Dalai Lama. Read More
Beyond not being thrown on the street by his wife and raising children, Thurman is proud of his translation called Central Philosophy of Tibet. Read More
About Robert Thurman
Robert Thurman is Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies in the Department of Religion at Columbia University, President of Tibet House US, a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Tibetan civilization, and President of the American Institute of Buddhist Studies. The New York Times recently hailed him as "the leading American expert on Tibetan Buddhism."
The first American to have been ordained a Tibetan Buddhist monk and a personal friend of the Dalai Lama for over 40 years, Professor Thurman is a passionate advocate and spokesperson for the truth regarding the current Tibet-China situation and the human rights violations suffered by the Tibetan people under Chinese rule. His commitment to finding a peaceful, win-win solution for Tibet and China inspired him to write his latest book, Why the Dalai Lama Matters: His Act of Truth as the Solution for China, Tibet and the World, published in June of 2008.
Professor Thurman also translates important Tibetan and Sanskrit philosophical writings and lectures and writes on Buddhism, particularly Tibetan Buddhism; on Asian history, particularly the history of the monastic institution in the Asian civilization; and on critical philosophy, with a focus on the dialogue between the material and inner sciences of the world's religious traditions.