Buddhist Monk Matthieu Ricard on True Happiness

"If we can cultivate compassion, that's the very best thing we can do both for ourselves and for others."

In this episode of the Mindspace podcast, Dr. Joe welcomes Matthieu Ricard, Buddhist monk, writer, translator, humanitarian, and photographer.

Matthieu was born in France in 1946, to French philosopher Jean-François Revel and artist Yahne Le Toumelin. He trained as a scientist and got a Ph.D. in molecular genetics in 1972, but moved to Nepal to become a Buddhist monk, rather than pursue an academic career. He has been in Nepal ever since.

Matthieu's unusual journey and training give him a truly unique perspective on the intersection between contemplative traditions and contemporary science. He shares these insights in his long-standing involvement with the Mind and Life Institute, translation of ancient Buddhist texts, public speaking, and writing best-selling books, including Happiness, the Art of Meditation, and In Search of Wisdom. He is also the Dalai Lama’s French interpreter and close friend. In 2000, after exhibiting never-before-seen brain activation while meditating in a brain scanner, he was playfully nicknamed “the happiest man in the world.”

Matthieu is also highly active as a humanitarian, supporting animal rights and creating Karuna-Shechen, an organization dedicated to “developing and managing programs in primary health care, education, and social services for the under-served populations of India, Nepal, and Tibet.” All of the proceeds of Matthieu's books, photographs, and events are donated to Karuna Canada, the Canadian chapter of which is based in Montreal.

Matthieu is actually going to be in Montreal this month (Saturday, April 13th), for an event put on by Karuna-Shechen, called Meeting of the Minds: Taking Care of Life. On the panel sits people from all walks of life: Steven Laureys, a neurologist, Maria João Pires, a world renowned pianist, Alexandre Jollien, a philosopher, and a worker who spent 15 years in animal slaughterhouses. Matthieu hopes the event will be "a two fold fulfillment of aspirations of oneself and that of others."

All proceeds of the event will go to Karuna Shechen projects in Asia.

I'd like to apologize for the quality of the audio for this episode. Unfortunately, this interview came together at the very last minute, and Matthieu's internet was not working correctly. However, you'll find a full transcript of the interview at our blog: https://www.mindspacewellbeing.com/episode-14-true-happiness-with-buddhist-monk-matthieu-ricard/

In this conversation, Dr. Joe and Matthieu spoke about:
- Matthieu's thoughts on the explosion of the popularity of mindfulness
- The fundamental research he is involved with in regards to meditation
- His concerns about modern society and the environment and climate change
- What he calls happiness
- How altruism and love can save yourself and the world