An interview with a Buddhist monk

Last Friday was so cool.

A little background info: My job as a research assistant in the Center for Spirituality & Healing at the University of Minnesota basically consists of editing and writing content for a website called Taking Charge of Your Health. The site has all kinds of information about complementary therapies and how you could potentially incorporate them into your healthcare along with Western medicine so you have a holistic approach to your healthcare.

Well, we have a section with "Expert" interviews that has topics on different mind-body therapies, connections between the brain and the immune system, etc. And last week, the Dalai Lama and his French translator, Buddhist monk Matthieu Ricard, were in town meeting with scientists at the Mayo Clinic on some research that's being done to study the effects of meditation on one's health, happiness, etc.

Long story short: I got to interview Matthieu Ricard! He has quite a story, which you can read here in the Minnesota Daily. My co-worker who also sat in on the interview and I kept talking afterward saying that we wished we didn't have an agenda with any specific interview questions. It would have been so cool to just go have some tea and cookies with him and listen to him talk about his life philosophies about not worrying or dwelling on the negative, taking the time to meditate to improve your own happiness and self so that in turn, you are contributing to society in a more positive way and bringing more positive energy rather than negativity, violence, hate, etc.

Anyway, I can't really explain our conversation very well here, but I am working on transcribing the interview and then posting it online. I'll post a link to it once it's all done.

I think this job has been a blessing in my life. I wouldn't claim one religion as my own at this point in my life. I feel like I've always (or at least since some time during late high school or early college) been interested in learning about different religions and spiritual practices. I took a class called Hands-on Spirituality during my senior year of college, and it was so interesting. We learned about Native American sage rituals, meditation, yoga, Thai massage, labyrinths, etc. And recently, I've been reading about the history of the Bible (what was taking place while it was written), as well as the basic principles of Buddhism, Islam, and some other religions (haven't gotten too far just yet! Maybe I'll have more time this summer...). So having these kinds of opportunities at my job has been really great. It opens my eyes to such different lifestyles and practices. One common thread that I feel like I have found thus far: a lot of religions tend to be based on some very similar principles -- compassion, empathy, love. If anyone has read Life of Pi, you might understand me when I say that I understand where the character Pi is coming from when he wonders why he can't believe in more than one religion. (Side note: Life of Pi is a great book -- highly recommend it!)