M.R.: I am also convinced that every human being has within him a potential for loving-kindness, even if at times he strays from this basic goodness in monstrous ways. When people feel a deep anguish that they cannot define, it
Archive du blog pour Matthieu Ricard
A dialogue with Father Ceyrac — Part 1
Father Ceyrac is now 97 years old and still lives in India close to those to whom he gave so much help and so much love. With limited means, this French Jesuit Father, who has lieve in the Indian Tamil
A conversation in the mountains
Last week I went on a hike in the mountains with an eighty-one year old friend who is a brisk walker. After an hour, we reached a 10,000′ high pass with a view of a breathtaking landscape that stretched for
Meditation on Altruistic Love
We have all, to varying degrees, had the experience of profound altruistic love, of a feeling of all-encompassing benevolence, of intense compassion for those who are suffering. Some people are naturally more altruistic than others, at times to the point
Unlocking our true potential
We do not consider it strange to devote years to learning to walk, read and write, or to training for a profession. We spend hours exercising to stay in good physical shape, pedalling away on exercise bikes that go nowhere.
Saving the lives of a thousand lobsters and two thousand yaks
A few days ago, in Portland in the USA, Dilgo Khyentse Yangsi Rinpoche, a 17 year old Tibetan lama whom I am accompanying in his travels, put back to the sea over one thousand lobsters who were destined to be
Change can come at any age
The Dalai Lama often describes Buddhism as being, above all, a science of the mind. That is not surprising, because the Buddhist texts put particular emphasis on the fact that all spiritual practices—mental, physical and oral—are directly or indirectly intended
Socially Engaged Buddhism
On August 9 in Massachusetts, I had the opportunity to participate in the first ‟symposium on socially engaged Buddhism,” organized by Bernie Glassman, where I spoke on the subject of ‟compassion in action.” Bernie is a remarkably warmhearted man, gifted
Inner Freedom – 2
‟Our inner freedom knows no limits other than those we impose on it or allow to be imposed on it. And that freedom also holds great power. It can transform an individual, allow him to nurture all his capacities and
Inner Freedom – 1
To be free is to be master of oneself. For many people, such mastery involves freedom of action, movement and opinion, the opportunity to achieve the goals they have set themselves. This conviction locates freedom primarily outside oneself and overlooks