THE DALAI LAMA'S INTERPRETER
A Radio Interview with Buddhist Scholar and Former Monk, Geshe Thupten Jinpa

In the Room with Thupten Jinpa, the Dalai Lama's English Translator from onBeing on Vimeo.

While preparing for sitting practice yesterday morning, I heard "Being" host Krista Tippett interview the Dalai Lama's primary English translator, Geshe Thupten Jinpa.

It was a good start to the day (much better than the endless news cycle about Black Friday, body scans and mayoral races).

As a monk who left the monastery to marry, he spoke of how difficult it is to have an intimate relationship with another person- and how having children can help you learn compassion like nothing else. He also said that the practices from the monastery have helped him cultivate compassion and non-attachment in the householder world. The last gets right to the heart of the age-old question of renunciation vs. being in the world but not of the world. The Bhagavad-Gita says the latter - non-attachment - is just as good (if not better) than the former.

Here're a few quotes from the interview:

“One thing that surprised me a bit was how challenging relationships can be.”

“The fact that he [the Dalai Lama] embodies what he says is what makes his talks so powerful.”

"The fact that murder, etc makes headlines means we don’t expect humans to behave this way. Humans are naturally good."

You can hear the interview here.