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# Learn from a Tibetan Buddhist
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/learn-from-a-tibetan-buddhist/
- Published: 2003-10-21T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T03:07:00.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Education, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*By Daily Press staff*

A defected, prominent Tibetan Buddhist will come to the area this month to talk about his philosophy on life and his experiences.

When the 17th Karmapa, head of one of the major lineages of Tibetan Buddhism, escaped from Chinese-held Tibet in early January of 2001, the news shook the world. Now world-renowned Tsewang Rinpoche is coming to Santa Monica with Michele Martin, one of his translators and biographers, to lecture about his experiences and escape.

While deciding to flee India, Rinpoche was the main organizer of the fight for freedom. He is internationally well known for his ability to present Buddhist teachings clearly, and for his courage and his delight in recounting tales of his many experiences.

Also presenting will be Martin, who has been a Buddhist practitioner for more than 30 years and has spent the last 15 years in Nepal and India studying with Tibetan lamas, and working as a translator of oral and written Tibetan. She is the author of Rinpoche’s biography, “Music in the Sky: The Life, Art and Teachings of the Seventeenth Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje,” which also will be discussed. She holds graduate degrees from Yale University. Her publications include numerous translations from Tibetan texts on philosophy and meditation, and also articles on Buddhism. For the last two years, she has translated for the Karmapa and currently lives in the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York.

The evening will include a lecture by Rinpoche on his escape from Tibet, as well as a slide show by Martin. The end of the evening will include a book signing and opportunity for conversations. Books must be purchased before the event.

The discussion will be held on Thursday, Oct. 30 at the Senior Recreational Center, at 1450 Ocean Ave. from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. For more information, contact Daniel Kane at (310) 451-43568 or visit www.SantaMonicaKKSG.org.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 21, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/102103.pdf?ref=smdp.com)