LAMAMIMET

Robert Alexander Farrar Thurman was born on August 4, 1941 in New York City and educated at Phillips Exeter Academy and Harvard University, where he earned a B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. in Sanskrit and Indo‑Tibetan Buddhist studies. After a childhood accident that led him to lose an eye, he traveled throughout Asia, studied under the Dalai Lama, and became the first American ordained as a Tibetan Buddhist monk. He returned to the United States, renounced monastic vows, and pursued an academic career, teaching at Amherst College before joining Columbia University as the Je Tsongkhapa Professor of Indo‑Tibetan Buddhist Studies, a position he held for three decades. Thurman authored, edited, and translated numerous works on Tibetan Buddhism and, with his wife Nena von Schlebrügge, Richard Gere, and Philip Glass, founded Tibet House US to preserve Tibetan culture in exile. Recognized as a leading figure in Buddhist studies, he received honors such as Time’s 1997 list of the 25 most influential Americans, the Light of Truth Award, and India’s Padma Shri in 2020. He was the father of actress Uma Thurman and grandfather of Maya Hawke. Robert Thurman died on June 16, 2026 at the age of 84.