- Venerable Thubten Chodron

A Dhamma talk presented by Venerable Thubten Chodron from 9th - 11th December 2013 at the Tai Pei Buddhist Center, Singapore.

Bhikshuni Thubten Chodron graduated from UCLA and left a teaching career to study the Buddha’s teachings in India and Nepal.

She ordained as a Buddhist nun in Dharamsala, India in 1977 and received full (bhikshuni) ordination in Taiwan in 1986.

Founding Sravati Abbey fulfils a lifelong dream to offer training and support for Western monastics, thus enabling the treasury of Buddha’s wisdom.

Venerable Thubten Chodron is known for her clear, humorous style and practical teachings, which she shares internationally.

Her numerous books include Open Heart, Clear Mind; Buddhism for Beginners; Working with Anger; and Guided Meditations on the stages of the Path.

A student of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Tsenshap Serkong Rinpoche, Zopa Rinpoche, and other  Tibetan masters, Venerable Thubten Chodron is active in interfaith dialogue and prison work.

“Praise, fame, and honor are not conducive to my merits, long life, strength, health, or physical well-being.

If I recognize my own self-interest, what good is there in that for me?

If I want only mental pleasure, I should devote myself to gambling, drinking and so on.

For the sake of fame, some sacrifice their wealth, and even kill themselves. Yet what good are words? When one dies, who has that pleasure ?

At the loss of praise and fame, my own mind appears to me just like a child who wails in distress when its sandcastle is destroyed.”