Tricycle Talks A Fearless Heart with Thupten Jinpa
Jul 16, 2025
Thupten Jinpa, a Tibetan Buddhist scholar and former monk, shares wisdom from his forty years as the Dalai Lama's English translator. He explores the vital connection between compassion and courage, emphasizing that true empathy requires embracing our vulnerabilities. Jinpa reflects on his journey from refugee to translator, revealing the complexities of conveying compassion across cultures. He also discusses societal resistance to compassion and the importance of incorporating it into our lives for personal and collective well-being, guiding listeners through a meditation on self-compassion.
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Sustain Compassion to Prevent Burnout
- Avoid stigmatizing burnout and understand it is caused by caring deeply, not by a lack of it.
- Balance compassion and wisdom within yourself to sustain caring without exhaustion.
Jinpa's Early Monk Path and Role
- Thupten Jinpa was inspired to become a monk by kind, radiant teachers he met at Tibetan refugee boarding schools.
- His English translation role for the Dalai Lama began unexpectedly when he was asked to fill in during an absence.
Compassion Is Our Natural Nature
- Compassion is an inherent natural quality rooted in our social nature and evolutionary survival mechanism.
- It is fundamental to human nature, expressed as concern and connection, not just a learned behavior.
