4 Influential Buddhists

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Buddhism has its roots in ancient India. The religion was begun by Siddhartha Gautama who lived in the 5th century B.C. Siddhartha Gautama was born a prince, but eventually became disillusioned with the world and became an ascetic monk. This, however, did not give him the peace or clarity he was searching. Siddhartha Gautama began to search for a new way to reach enlightenment. As he was sitting under a Bodhi tree meditating, Siddhartha Gautama achieved enlightenment and became a buddha, an “awakened one.” He began teaching others what he had learned. These teachings would become Buddhism, and Siddhartha Gautama would come to be known as Gautama Buddha or Shakyamuni Buddha to Buddhists and simply the Buddha to outsiders.

As the founder of the entire religion, Gautama Siddhartha is obviously the most important figure in Buddhism, much as Jesus is in Christianity. A religion, however, is not static, nor does it exist in a vacuum. Its followers continue to interpret the religion’s teachings, and they continue to influence their own cultures. Here are four Buddhists who were especially influential.

Caroline Augusta Foley Rhys Davids

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Caroline Augusta Foley Rhys Davids was a British writer and translator. Born Caroline Augusta Foley in 1857 in England, she studied psychology, economics and philosophy at University College. She had a particular interest, however, in Indian philosophy. This led to her study of Buddhism and the place of women in Buddhism. Among her first works were a translation of the Dhamma Sangani and a translation of the Therigatha.

Rhys Davids would continue to translate Pali texts for years and became the President of the Pali Text Society which was devoted to transcribing and translating Pali Buddhist texts. She was one of the first scholars to successfully translate Abhidharma Buddhist texts which are known for their difficult, technical language and complexity. She also translated large portions of the Sutta Pitaka, thus greatly increasing the amount of Buddhist literature available to Western readers.

Gendun Chopel

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Gendun Chopel was born in 1903 as Rigdzin Namgyel. He was believed to be a reincarnation of a Dorje Drak Monastery lama, Rigdzin Jigme Sonam Namgyel. As a result, Gendun Chopel spent the first ten years of his life in hermitage with a yogin-poet named Zhabkar Tsokdruk Rangdrol.

After years of study in various monasteries, Gendun Chopel took to exploring the world outside Tibet. He traveled throughout the Indian subcontinent and took an interest in multiple languages, including Sansktri and English. Gendun Chopel began to publish writings that questioned Tibetan views on history and translated parts of the Tang Annals into Tibetan from Chinese. One of his most ambitious products was a plan to introduce Tibet to the United Sates and the rest of the West. The outbreak of World War II, however, prevented him from making it to New York where he was set to meet with Theos Bernard of Columbia University. He was able, nevertheless, to assist with the translation of one of Tibet’s major historical works, the “Blue Annals,” into English. Gendun Chopel also helped assemble the materials for an encyclopedia of Indian classical civilization and drew a map showing the historic boundaries of Tibet. He began writing the “White Annals,” a popular history of Tibet that caught the attention of the British representative in Lhasa, but Gendun Chopel was never able to finish the work. He died in 1951, not long after his map of Tibet was used by the Chinese to begin their conquest of Tibet.

Thich Nhat Hanh

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Thich Nhat Hanh was born Nguyen Xuan Bao on October 11, 1926. He was born in Vietnam but exiled in 1975. He currently lives in Plum Village in Southwest France.

Thich Nhat Hanh is a spiritual leader, poet, author and peace activist. He played a major role in bringing Buddhism to the West and founded six monasteries, dozens of practice centers and over 1,000 sanghas, local mindfulness practice communities. He has been called “the Father of Mindfulness” and “the Other Dalai Lama.” Martin Luther King, Jr. once described Thich Nhat Hanh as “an Apostle of peace and nonviolence.” Thich Nhat Hanh lobbied against the Vietnam War and led the Buddhist delegation at the Paris Peace Talks in 1969. He suffered a stroke in November 2014, just a month after his 88th birthday, but was able to return to Plum Village in 2016 following a year of intensive rehabilitation.

14th Dalai Lama

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The 14th Dalai Lama, known to most Westerners as simply “The Dalai Lama,” is perhaps the most well-known Buddhist alive. Born in July 1935 as Lhamo Dhondup, he was recognized as the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama at the age of two. His monastic education began when he turned six. The Dalai Lama lived and learned in Tibet until 1959, when he was forced to flee from invading Chinese troops.

The Dalai Lama, now named Tenzin Gyatso, has spoken on numerous occasions about the plight and welfare of Tibet as well as various Buddhist teachings. He has become nearly synonymous with Buddhism for many Westerners and has increased the West’s understanding and interest in Buddhism. He has also spoken out about many different social issues and worked with other faith leaders to create various interfaith dialogues.