During a teaching that I attended in Nepal given by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche he reminded us that all of the Buddha’s teachings were given so that we may realize, in stages, the ultimate truth. If we limit ourselves to only conventional or relative truth, our understanding will remain narrow. It is said that meditative experiences are fle...

A landscape near Dzogchen Monastery, in eastern Tibet Near the monastery of Dzamthang, Patrul was sitting on a grassy mound, having just finished teaching The Way of the Bodhisattva to a large crowd of people. An old man who had attended the teachings came up to him and offered him a large piece of silver called “horse-hoof silver” becaus...

Patrul Rinpoche’s birthplace in Eastern Tibet. Photography by Matthieu Ricard. A biography of the famous hermit and spiritual master Patrul Rinpoche, has recently been translated from the Tibetan and published as The Englightened Vagabond. This volume includes excerpts from two biographies written by his direct disciples and over a hundr...

A monk sits above the site where Patrul Rinpoche was cremated in Khormo Olu, Dzachuka, Eastern Tibet. Down in the valley below is also the place where Patrul Rinpoche was born. Photography by Matthieu Ricard. Patrul Rinpoche (1808-1887) was one of the most revered spiritual masters in the history of Tibet, widely recognized as a scholar...

"Simplify, simplify, simplify". These refreshing words written by Henry Thoreau remind us that much of our suffering comes from adding unnecessary and disturbing complications in our lives. We seem to be continually weaving elaborate conceptual webs around even straightforward events. We distort reality and shroud it with complications by su...

According to Buddhism, our view of the self as a singular, distinct, autonomous and lasting entity is at odds with reality and, therefore becomes a source of frustration and suffering. An exacerbated feeling of self-importance, self-cherishing, and self-centeredness are the basis for impulses of attraction and aversion, which quickly develop...

Leonardo da Vinci wrote in his notebooks: “The time will come when people like me will think of the murder of an animal just as they think today of the murder of a man.” And George Bernard Shaw said, “Animals are my friends, and I don’t eat my friends.” It’s not a matter of denying that there are differences in intelligence between animals a...

In 2005 we visited a remote area of Eastern Tibet to check on the progress of our Karuna-Shechen projects there and look for new ways in which to help. While visiting one of our small clinics, I happened to enter a dark kitchen with my camera. In a dark corner near the hearth, was a little girl whose smile and direct gaze, completely devoi...

Matthieu, Psychiatrist Christophe André, and Philosopher Alexandre Jollien share their thoughts on the mechanisms for Forgiveness. Excerpted from their new book In Search of Wisdom: A Monk, a Philosopher, and a Psychiatrist on What Matters Most CHRISTOPHE A Question of Training • Training exercise: Every “I shouldn’t have” is with...