Tag Archives: Erric Solomon

PHAKCHOK RINPOCHE + ERRIC SOLOMON: ANCIENT WISDOM AND TECH FUTURE

Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche and Erric Solomon will discuss ancient wisdom, the tech future, and radical happiness at the Rubin on November 10 (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche and Erric Solomon will discuss ancient wisdom, the future of tech, and radical happiness at the Rubin on November 10 (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Rubin Museum of Art
150 West 17th St. at Seventh Ave.
Saturday, November 10, $25 (VIP $45), 3:00
212-620-5000
rubinmuseum.org
www.phakchokrinpoche.org

“Getting to know your own mind should be fun,” former Silicon Valley tech executive Erric Solomon said at a recent cocktail party celebrating the release of Radically Happy (Shambhala, $24.95), the new book he cowrote with his longtime friend, Tibetan Buddhist teacher Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche, who explained, “It’s about how you can be happy, not why. We already know why we should be happy.” Solomon and Phakchok Rinpoche will be at the Rubin Museum on November 10 at 3:00 for the talk “Ancient Wisdom and Tech Future”; this past summer, Rinpoche appeared at the Rubin for two presentations, a mindfulness meditation and “Stories of Padmasambhava.” Radically Happy: A User’s Guide to the Mind features a foreword by Daniel Goleman and Tara Bennett-Goleman, colorful artwork by Julian Pang, and such chapters as “Why You Need Radical Happiness, or How to Be Less of a Dog and More of a Lion,” “The Looking-for-Happiness Conundrum,” and “Contemplating the Interdependent Nature of Reality.” As the Golemans note, “Phakchok Rinpoche lives much like the rest of us and so can draw on his own doubts, anger, and other familiar feelings to illustrate ways we can each find steadier footing in the rocky realities of our lives.” Solomon and Rinpoche might use the word “radical” a lot in the book, but their approach applies common sense to everyday existence, believing that problems can “be resolved by being more present-moment focused and by thinking of the welfare of others. Could the path to happiness really be that simple?” Part of the Rubin’s yearlong investigation into the future, the talk will be followed by a book signing; general admission is $25, but for $45 you get a signed copy of the book, preferred seating, and a karma tour.

RADICALLY HAPPY: AN EVENING TALK WITH ERRIC SOLOMON AND KYABGÖN PHAKCHOK RINPOCHE

Erric Solomon and Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche will discuss the keys to being “radically happy” at the Helen Mills Theater on September 7

Who: Erric Solomon and Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche
What: Radically Happy
Where: Helen Mills Theater, 137 West 26th St. between Sixth & Seventh Aves.
When: Wednesday, September 7, $20-$45, 7:00
Why: Last August, I attended the talk “Being Radically Happy”in a SoHo gallery, where Tibetan yogi practitioner and Buddhist teacher Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche and Boston-born former Silicon Valley guru Erric Solomon discussed the radical nature of happiness. Three months later, I found myself in Kathmandu, taking two weeks of classes with Phakchok and one of his uncles, Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche. On September 7, Phakchok and Solomon will be back in New York City, at the Helen Mills Theater, for “Radically Happy.” “Everyone wants to be happy and live a meaningful life, yet the way we usually go about it can only bring a very temporary happiness at best and, at worst, leads to extreme dissatisfaction and suffering,” the Nepal-based Phakchok and Solomon, who lives in France, explain. “By making a slight but radical shift in the way we live our lives, a subtle sense of satisfaction and well-being can be ours even when things really aren’t working out.” The two friends take a common-sense approach to life, concentrating on two main elements: “slightly shifting our way of relating to ourselves and slightly altering how we relate to the world around us.” The talk is a prelude to Phakchok’s week-long teachings at the Rangjung Yeshe Gomde Meditation Center in Cooperstown, during which he will focus on “Mahāmudrā and 9 Yānas Retreat and Empowerments.”

BEING RADICALLY HAPPY: PHAKCHOK RINPOCHE AND ERRIC SOLOMON

Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche will give a special talk with Erric Soloman on the Lower East Side on AUgust 14

Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche will give a special talk with Erric Solomon on the Lower East Side on August 14

Jewel and Lotus Ethical Pop-up Shop & Gallery
Mark Miller Gallery
92 Orchard St. between Allen & Essex Sts.
Friday, August 14, $25, advance RSVP recommended, reception at 6:15, presentation at 7:15
212-253-9479
markmillergallery.com
www.phakchokrinpoche.org

“Normally, we think when we have the right stuff in the right circumstances, happiness happens,” notes Phakchok Rinpoche. “But we really don’t have to depend on the stuff and the circumstances; we need only to make a slight yet radical shift. And then we will be happy no matter what.” Sounds good, but what, or who, is a rinpoche? “Rinpoche” is an honorific, applied to Tibetan Buddhist teachers, much like “Rabbi” is applied to Jewish ones. Tibetan Buddhism is getting more attention lately, and the Dalai Lama receives plenty of publicity. Buddhist references abound in popular culture, too (The Matrix, anyone? Or Jon Stewart’s “moment of Zen”?) but what does its philosophy actually say? On Friday night on the Lower East Side, a popular young Tibetan teacher and a former Silicon Valley executive will try to bring the concepts down to earth for the contemporary mind. Thirtysomething Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche, a member of a historic family of Tibetan teachers, is known for his sharp wit, realism, sense of humor, and accessible speaking. He received traditional Tibetan Buddhist training in the Nyingma tradition, and he’s been teaching throughout the world for the last ten years (as well as occasionally hopping on a Citi Bike to get around when he’s in town). There’s more info at his website and in his online teaching program, but you can hear him in person at this informal Friday evening gathering at the second annual Jewel and Lotus Ethical Pop-up Shop & Gallery, where he and Erric Solomon, a Silicon Valley software success who retired early and then spent three years on retreat in Tibet (and now runs whatmeditationreallyis.com), will be talking about how to be happy. And on a warm summer night on the Lower East Side, that seems like a very good thing to learn. (The pop-up shop and gallery show continue through August 23, featuring Rutongo Embroideries from Rwanda, calligraphy by Marlow Brooks, and items from more than twenty ethically conscious brands. There will also be a fashion party on August 20.)