Robert Thurman - Air date: 12-24-02

Robert A.F. Thurman is the Jey Tsong Khapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies in the Department of Religion at Columbia University, President of the Tibet House U.S., a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Tibetan civilization, and President of the American Institute of Buddhist Studies, a non-profit affiliated with the Center for Buddhist Studies at Columbia University and dedicated to the publication of translations of important texts from the Tibetan Tanjur.
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.
Popularizing the Buddha's teachings is just one of Thurman's creative talents. He is a riveting speaker and an author of many books on Tibet, Buddhism, art, politics and culture, including Circling the Sacred Mountain, Essential Tibetan Buddhism, The Tibetan Book of the Dead, Wisdom and Compassion: The Sacred Art of Tibet, Worlds of Transformation, and, most recently, Infinite Life: Seven Virtues for Living Well. He is credited with being at the forefront of making Tibetan art accessible and understandable in the West and, with distinguished art historians, he collaborated in curating several important traveling exhibitions, including "Wisdom and Compassion," "Mandala," and "Worlds of Transformation," which set a standard in the art world.
Thurman's work and insights are grounded in more than 35 years of serious academic scholarship. He has a B.A., A.M. and Ph.D. degrees from Harvard and has studied in Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in India and the United States. A long-time advocate of Buddhist monasticism, in 1962, Thurman became the first American ordained as a Tibetan Buddhist monk. He gave up his robes after several years, however, when he discovered he could be most effective in the American equivalent of the monastery, the university. He is a popular professor in the Religion Department of Columbia University where he holds the Jey Tsong Khapa chair in Indo-Tibetan Studies. Students have described his classes as "life changing", and a college president recently said, "If I could be a student again, I'd want to be in his classes at Columbia."

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[BenjaminGage]

moronic interviewer

[hume12345]

this interviewer loves the sound of his own voice

[avisionofsorrow]

SHUT THAT BLOODY INTERVIEWER UP PLEASE!!!

[dollarability]

Indeed. But he selects exceptional guests. He interviewed R. Buckminster Fuller.

[Maxmanishere]

@uridev 500 years older here on earth, the dharma is eternal

[edwardsuprenant]

WE NEED nijha'S

[glrcmptn]

thought it was a great conversation.liked Harold Channer.he really livened it up.i'm a Thurman fan but his opinions are just that.they are not law.i think his solutions to things are just a little bit much.also the talk about terrorists is like hollering in a dark tunnel.both conversant talked over each other.just like kids.appreciated it.like to see mature intelligent men excited and upset over stuff.

[Estuvimos]

I got through half of this video and gave up! Harold Channer please be quiet while your guest is talking! It's no way to conduct an interview.

[msquestionmark]

@hume12345 LOL cracked me up too! HAHA

[msquestionmark]

i don't like how the interviewer is not letting Bob talk