The first American to be ordained a Tibetan Monk by the Dalai Lama, Robert A.F. Thurman is a scholar, author and tireless proponent of peace.
Why you should listen to him:
Tenzin Bob Thurman became a Tibetan monk at age 24. He's a professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist studies at Columbia University, and co-founder of Tibet House US, a nonprofit dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Tibetan civilization.
Thurman's focus is on the balance between inner insight and cultural harmony. In interpreting the teachings of Buddha, he argues that happiness can be reliable and satisfying in an enduring way without depriving others.
He has translated many Buddhist Sutras, or teachings, and written many books, recently taking on the topic of Anger for the recent Oxford series on the seven deadly sins. He maintains a podcast on Buddhist topics. And yes, he is Uma's dad.
"Thurman considers Buddhism to be primarily a system of education, a science that guides individuals to live life to its fullest."Kansas City Star
Blog Posts on TED
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Creativity, fulfillment and flow: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi on TED.com – October 23, 2008
Social theorist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi asks, "What makes a life worth living?" Noting that money cannot make us happy, he looks to those who find pleasure and lasting satisfaction in activities that bring about a state of "flow." (Recorded February 2004 in Monterey, California. Duration: 18:55.)
Watch Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's 2004 talk on TED.com, where you can download this TEDTalk, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances from our archive of 300+ TEDTalks -- including more talks on happiness.
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Habits of happiness: Matthieu Ricard on TED.com – November 1, 2007
What is happiness, and how can we all get some? Buddhist monk, photographer and author Matthieu Ricard has devoted his life to these questions, and his answer is influenced by his faith as well as by his scientific turn of mind: We can train our minds in habits of happiness. Interwoven with his talk are stunning photographs of the Himalayas and of his spiritual community. (Recorded February 2004 in Monterey, California. Duration: 21:06.)
Watch Matthieu Ricard's talk on TED.com, where you can download it, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances.
Read more about Matthieu Ricard on TED.com.
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Bob Thurman on happiness and becoming Buddha -- on TED.com – June 7, 2007
Amid TEDGlobal's talk of our global connection and interconnection, it's a fine time to present Bob Thurman, Buddhist monk and scholar, on the Buddhist view of the universe. In our hyperlinked world, we can know anything, anytime. And this mass enlightenment, says Thurman, is our first step toward becoming Buddha. When we can know everything, we can see how everything is interconnected -- and we can begin to feel compassion for every living being. (Recorded December 2006 in New York City. Duration: 12:17)
Watch this talk on TED.com where you can download it, rate it, comment on it and find other talks and performances.
Read Bob Thurman's profile on TED.com >>
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Matthieu Ricard's new humanitarian site: Karuna-Shechen – June 27, 2008
The "happiest man in the world," Matthieu Ricard balances his Buddhist contemplation of happiness (watch his TEDTalk on the habits of happiness) with an active life as a humanitarian in the Himalayas. Learn more about his projects -- and get involved -- at the new website for his Karuna-Shechen foundation. Karuna-Shechen brings medical help and education to people in Tibet, Nepal, India and Bhutan. Visit Karuna-Shechen >>
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Africa Cookbook Project launched at TEDGlobal – July 14, 2007
Fran Osseo-Asare is a sociologist who studies (and loves) the food of Africa -- check out Betumi: The African Culinary Network, and her blog, BetumiBlog. She's found that, on this continent with so many regional cuisines, authentic cookbooks can be hard to come by. Which may seem like a small point -- but as she says, cookbooks are "a record of popular culture, social history, [and] my specialty, culinary creativity." Culture, in short, is shared and honored through food.
Last month at TEDGlobal 2007, Osseo-Asare launched the massive Africa Cookbook Project, collecting cookbooks from all African nations and regions. She'll catalogue them and, eventually, digitize them. If you have African cookbooks, or want to learn more about the cuisines of Africa, get in touch.
And watch this space: Video from TEDGlobal 2007 will start appearing on TED.com this month.
