RA
Robert A.F. Thurman
18quotes
Full Name and Common Aliases
Robert A.F. Thurman is a renowned American Buddhist scholar, translator, author, and professor.
Birth and Death Dates
He was born on November 3, 1946, in New York City.
Nationality and Profession(s)
Thurman holds dual citizenship of the United States and Switzerland, and has worked as a professor, translator, writer, and Tibet expert.
Early Life and Background
Growing up in a family with deep roots in academia (his father was a prominent anthropologist), Thurman developed an early interest in Eastern philosophy. He studied at Harvard University, where he graduated magna cum laude in 1967, and later earned his Ph.D. in Indology from the same institution.
Major Accomplishments
Thurman's work spans multiple fields: academia, writing, teaching, and activism. As a professor, he has taught at several prestigious institutions, including Columbia University, where he is currently the Jey Tsong Khapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies. His numerous publications focus on Tibetan Buddhism and its relevance to contemporary issues.
Notable Works or Actions
Some of his notable works include:
- Translating major Tibetan Buddhist texts into English, such as _The Tibetan Book of the Dead_.
- Writing influential books like _Inner Revolution: On the Transformation of Self and Society_ and _Angry Monk: Reflections on Tibet Under Chinese Rule_.
- Being a vocal advocate for human rights in Tibet and a key figure in the Dalai Lama's efforts to promote peace and understanding.
Impact and Legacy
Thurman's contributions have been multifaceted, influencing Western perceptions of Buddhism and Tibetan culture. His work as an activist has drawn attention to human rights abuses in Tibet, while his scholarly output has enriched our understanding of Tibetan Buddhism and its philosophical underpinnings.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
Thurman's reputation as a leading expert on Tibetan Buddhism, combined with his commitment to social justice and peace advocacy, makes him a widely respected figure. His ability to bridge Eastern philosophy and Western audiences has made his teachings accessible and influential worldwide.
Quotes by Robert A.F. Thurman
Robert A.F. Thurman's insights on:
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Great dangers stalk the globe—the four horsemen of the apocalypse: war, famine, pestilence, and death. There is no mystery about them. They are self-fulfilling prophecies. Joyous, transcendent creativity expresses itself in the positive vision that is the key to defeat the general that commands the four horsemen—despair itself. Trust, hope, and creativity can defeat the horsemen. We must not just call for them. We must develop them step-by-step.
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When you become aware of your selflessness, you realize that any way you feel yourself to be at any time is just a relational, changing construction. When that happens, you have a huge inner release of compassion. Your inner creativity about your living self is energized, and your infinite life becomes your ongoing work of art. (p. 54)
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How are you going to experience bliss and voidness, wisdom and compassion, if you are a rigid, independent self? You can't enter into the ideal universe, the „buddhaverse“ as I like to call it, of enjoyment, wisdom, and compassion, until you first detach from this world of suffering, this prison that is the fixed and absolute self-image. (p. 67)
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There is no need for you to formally promote certain doctrines: your very presence becomes a teaching example to others, a liberating art that opens their imagination to the potential freedom they also can experience. (p. 79)
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Through the great bliss state, I myself become the mentor deity. From my luminous body, Light rays shine all around, Massively blessing beings and things, Making the universe pure and fabulous, Perfection in its every quality.(p. 10)
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Silence is the Buddha‘s greatest expression. It‘s the Buddha‘s great teaching, what the Hindus call „You are That“ in the Upanishads. „You are the ultimate reality. You are God!“ the Hindus boldly declare. But the Buddha‘s way of affirming that fact is by being silent, because if you are that, after all, if you are what the theists think is God, you already know it yourself. (p. 15)
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You yourself can be god. You really are that, in fact. You, yourself, are reality. You, yourself, are buddha. (p. 18)
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The first two steps of the path: the recognition of the preciousness of human life, which is endowed with liberty and opportunity, and the awareness of the immediacy of death. (p. 79)
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The world is what the individual makes it. A world of individuals is the intersubjective, collective mind field of all those individuals. Standing on the ground of freedom, we can see things afresh, enter relationships renewed and with a new purpose of sharing freedom and happiness. We can become poets and seers of reality. We can become great adepts, true individuals, agents of compassion. To live in a world is to be constantly creating that world. (p. 215)
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The power of the enlightened being to affect his or her environment is immense. The enlightened mind can landscape worlds, preserve planets, save whole environments, create buddhaverses. The enlightened being is almost like a god. (p. 150)
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