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Life as a Western Buddhist nun

Life as a Western Buddhist nun

A talk given at Central Michigan University. CMU Public Radio News also interviewed Venerable Thubten Chodron about the topic of Buddhist monastics in the West.

  • How Buddhist monastics are different from other traditions
  • Precepts as trainings, undertaken voluntarily
  • About the Dalai Lama
  • Tibetan Buddhism and the West
  • The changing situation of Tibetan nuns
  • Becoming a Tibetan Buddhist nun
  • Transforming oneself and becoming of service to others
  • About bhikshuni ordination

Life as a Western Buddhist nun (download)

Venerable Thubten Chodron

Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.