In this dialog with Don George Professor Robert AF Thurman discusses the psychological & spiritual value of performing pilgrimages both in the modern day as well as in the life of Prince Siddhartha and his original group of followers. Podcast includes dialog with Don George and a short guided meditation for those performing pilgrimages to Buddhist sites. Excerpted from the Geo Ex talk “Every Journey Is a Pilgrimage” given at Cavallo Point in Sausalito, CA, on November 10, 2013. “Pilgrimage: Inner and Outer Pilgrimages – Ep. 114 of the Bob Thurman Podcast” is apart of the “Buddhist Pilgrimage Series” using field recordings of Robert AF Thurman and friends from his global docent tours benefiting the work of Tibet House US. To listen to more archive recordings from from past Robert AF Thurman teachings + public events please consider becoming a Tibet House US member. To Learn about the benefits of Tibet House US Membership please visit: www.tibethouse.us. The song ‘Dancing Ling’ by Tenzin Choegyal from the album ‘Heart Sutra‘ (2004) by Ethno Super Lounge is used on the Bob Thurman Podcast with artist’s permission, all rights reserved. Don George is Editor in Chief of Wanderlust: Literary Journeys for the Discerning Traveler. He has been Travel Editor for Salon.com and the San Francisco Examiner and Chronicle, as well as Global Travel Editor for Lonely Planet Publications. Don is the author of “The Way of Wanderlust: The Best Travel Writing of Don George” and of “Lonely Planet’s Guide to Travel Writing.” He has also edited eleven anthologies, including A Moveable Feast, The Kindness of Strangers, and An Innocent Abroad. To learn about upcoming Geo Ex Trips with Robert AF Thurman please visit: www.geoex.com Norbulingka Museum photo by Nevil Zaveri via Flickr.com

The imagery of Tibetan tantric symbolism is potent and often shocking to those unfamiliar with the meanings of Buddhist art. In this podcast Professor Thurman explores how art is used in Buddhist Cultures as a way to stimulate the mind to develop the imagination needed to conceive of enlightenment & Buddhahood. Using selections from the Tibet House US Repatriation + MET Collections Professor Thurman details the rituals, rites, and texts involved in the quest for spiritual detachment from the corporal body. This recording is an excerpt from the Annual Lecture on South and Southeast Asian Art talk “Ritual in Contemplation: Text and Tools in Tantric Buddhism” given at The Metropolitan Museum in 2012.

The story of the Chinese Invasion of Tibet & the resulting exile of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama vaulted the young leader onto the world’s stage in an unprecedented manner in 1959. Professor Thurman continues his exploration of the Tibet House US Publication ‘Man Of Peace’ starting with the dramatic events of 1959 and concluding with HHDL’s 80th Birthday in the West. To listen to the story of the Dalai Lama of Tibet’s life before 1959 as told in “Man Of Peace” please visit: www.bobthurman.com. Image from ‘Man Of Peace: The Illustrated Life of Tibet’s Fourteenth Dalai Lama‘ Graphic Novel by Robert Thurman, William Meyers & Michael G. Burbank, Published by Tibet House US + Distributed by Hay House. To learn more about + get your copy of the ‘Man of Peace’ Graphic novel please visit: www.tibethouse.us.

Citing the on-going industrialized savagery occurring post World War II Professor Thurman uses the example of Communist China’s self-created conflict & the potential reconciliation with Tibet’s His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama as a possible model for all countries + nations to not only survive but thrive the modern age of mutually assured destruction. This podcast is an excerpt from the talk “Civilizational Changes in the World” given by Robert Thurman in Moscow in 2012. The song ‘Dancing Ling’ by Tenzin Choegyal from the album ‘Heart Sutra‘ (2004) by Ethno Super Lounge is used on the Bob Thurman Podcast with artist’s permission, all rights reserved. Image from ‘Man Of Peace: The Illustrated Life of Tibet’s Fourteenth Dalai Lama‘ Graphic Novel by Robert Thurman, William Meyers & Michael G. Burbank, Published by Tibet House US + Hay House. To learn more about + get your copy of the ‘Man of Peace’ Graphic novel please visit: www.tibethouse.us.

Tibet’s Dalai Lama is one of the world’s most respected, influential & beloved yet little understood refugees. In this podcast Professor Thurman gives an overview of the life of the Buddha, The Four Noble Truths & their connection to the modern reincarnation of the Dalai Lama. This podcast is a part of the Buddhism 101 Series using classic teachings from the Robert Thurman Archives to elucidate basic concepts + key figures from the tradition. Excerpted from the talk “The Dalai Lama’s Millennial Ethic of Intelligent Nonviolence: Sources in Tibetan Buddhism and Prospects for Our Troubled World.” Recorded at the University of Vermont as apart of their Asian Studies program in 2002. Alex Grey Image from ‘Man Of Peace: The Illustrated Life of Tibet’s Fourteenth Dalai Lama‘ Graphic Novel by Robert Thurman, William Meyers & Michael G. Burbank, Published by Tibet House US + Hay House. To learn more about + get your copy of the ‘Man of Peace’ Graphic novel please visit: www.tibethouse.us. Listen to more archive recordings from from past Robert A.F. Thurman teachings + public events please consider becoming a Tibet House US member. To learn about the benefits of Tibet House US Membership please visit: www.tibethouse.us. The song ‘Dancing Ling’ by Tenzin Choegyal from the album ‘Heart Sutra‘ (2004) by Ethno Super Lounge is used on the Bob Thurman Podcast with artist’s permission, all rights reserved.

In this podcast Robert AF Thurman discusses the history of the Tibet House US publication graphic novel “Man of Peace” and his long time personal relationship with His Holiness the Dalai Lama. After more than a decade in the works Professor Thurman discusses the ‘Man of Peace: Illustrated Life of the Dalai Lama’ Graphic Novel publication + provides an introduction to the history of Tibet, Buddhism & the 14th Dalai Lama. “Why the “life story” of the Dalai Lama? It is a story of one man taking on an empire, calling for truth, peace, and justice for his Tibetan people. Here, in full color for the first time, people can come to know the whole drama of his lifelong struggle. Since the age of 15, the Dalai Lama has defended his people against one of the last great empires, the People’s Republic of China. Under its “dictatorship of the proletariat,” China began to invade Tibet in 1950, decimating and then continually oppressing its people. Since colonialism cannot be practiced in our era of self-determined nations, China always maintains that the Tibetans are a type of Chinese, using propaganda and military power to crush Tibet’s unique culture and identity. Yet the Dalai Lama resists by using only the weapon of truth—along with resolute nonviolence—even worrying some of his own people by seeking dialogue and reconciliation based on his more realistic vision. The great 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet has become the first global Dalai Lama, a prominent transnational leader of all who want to make the dramatic changes actually necessary for life on earth to thrive for centuries to come. Considered the incarnation of the Buddhist savior Chenrezig or Avalokiteshvara—archangel of universal compassion—he is believed to appear in many forms, at many different times, whenever and wherever beings suffer. Representing the plight of his beloved Tibetan people to the world, he has also engaged with all people who suffer oppression and injustice, as recognized in 1989 by his being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Most importantly, the Dalai Lama walks his talk throughout these pages, as he has throughout his life, and he radiates a powerful hope that we can and will prevail. Man of Peace presents the inside story of his amazing life and vision, in the high tension of the military occupation of Tibet and the ongoing genocide of its people—a moving work of political and historical nonfiction brought to life in the graphic novel form—here for all to see.” From Man Of Peace: The Illustrated Life Story of Tibet’s Dalai Lama To learn more about + get your copy of the ‘Man of Peace’ Graphic novel please visit: www.amazon.com. The song ‘Dancing Ling’ by Tenzin Choegyal from the album ‘Heart Sutra‘ (2004) by Ethno Super Lounge is used on the Bob Thurman Podcast with artist’s permission, all rights reserved.

A Special Losar (Tibetan New Year) Podcast celebrating the Fire Bird/Phoenix year with a detailed introduction to the Buddhist Sciences + the secular nature of the Historical Buddha’s teachings. In this podcast Professor Thurman discusses how the Buddha’s insight and resulting teachings were scientific in nature and can be applied to complex relationships + situations in our busy modern world. This special 108th podcast includes a retelling of the life of Prince Siddhartha, his act of renunciation within it’s spiritual, social & religious context and a special message of gratitude to podcast listeners. This podcast is an excerpt from the Force For Good Class “The Samaññaphala Sutta : The Fruits of the Homeless Life” held at Tibet House US in New York City Winter 2016. ‘A Force For Good’ is a Tibet House US course to further the Dalai Lama’s contemporary world initiatives, from His Holiness’ American Institute of Buddhist Studies and Mind & Life Institute science dialogues (Universe in a Single Atom) and His creation of Abhidharma 2.0 through the “Science for Monks” programs, his “secular ethics” (Ethics for the New Millennium and Beyond Religion), His nonviolent approach to conflict resolution, including His Nobel Peace Laureate activities to seek dialogue and a win-win reconciliation with China in the face of the ongoing ethnicidal policies in Tibet (Freedom in Exile and Man of Peace: The Illustrated Life Story of Tibet’s Dalai Lama) & along with his emphasis on positive activism (A New Reality: Charter of Universal Responsibility). To watch the full video archive of this teaching please visit: www.tibethouse.us. Force For Good : Buddhist Sciences – Episode 108 of the Bob Thurman Podcast Photo via www.scienceformonks.org. To listen to the continuation of this Force For Good class visit: Ananda, Jivaka + Devadatta : Buddha’s Entourage – Episode 164.

In this podcast Professor Thurman leads a reading of the early Pali Suttas known as the Digha Nikaya or The Long Discourses of the Buddha on the four foundations of Mindfulness. Includes a guided meditation using the Buddha’s instructions to bhikkhus & bhikkhunis. Recorded at the 2009 Tibet House US weekend retreat “Stress” with Sharon Salzberg at Menla in Phoenicia, New York. Image by Matjaz Krivic from the Tibet House US Exhibition “Silent Spaces” on Display through March 2017.

In this podcast Professor Thurman gives a brief history of the Western discovery of Buddhism and how there have often been misrepresentations of its central ideas—Dharma (or Dhamma), nirvana, karma—confusions some times brought over from the Asian sources countries, some imposed in attempts to modernize or Westernize Buddha’s expressions of how he sees the world. The podcast includes questions from retreat participants about nonviolence and the definition of what makes a society Buddhist. This podcast is apart of the ‘Buddhism 101’ Series using classic teachings from the Robert Thurman archive to elucidate basic concepts of the tradition. Recorded at the 2008 Hiking in the Catskills Retreat at Menla, Phoenicia, New York. Image by Matjaz Krivic from the Tibet House US Exhibition “Silent Spaces” on Display through March 2017.

Professor Thurman begins this podcast with a detailed exploration of the concepts of absolute + relative realities as taught through the Buddhist Inner Sciences with commentary by Mark Epstein M.D.. This recording is apart of the Tibet House US Member Archive. To listen to more from this & other past programs please consider becoming a member. Recorded at the 2009 Tibet House US Self & Selflessness Retreat at Menla in Phoenicia, New York. Image by Matjaz Krivic from the Tibet House US Exhibition “Silent Spaces” on Display through March 2017.