Tibet: An Inner Journey

by Matthieu Ricard

A moving journey into the heart of Buddhist spirituality and into the daily life and festivals of people in the Tibetan interior.

"Matthieu's spiritual life and his camera are one and the same, and it is from this unity that these fleeting yet eternal images spring."—Henri Cartier-Bresson

Matthieu Ricard has lived in Nepal for over thirty years. During this time he has forged close ties with some of Buddhism's greatest spiritual masters, from Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, for whom he is the official French interpreter.

Ricard's status as a monk and his knowledge of the Tibetan people and culture have opened many doors to he has been able to follow pilgrimages made by the great lamas of eastern Tibet; to bear witness to the artistry of wood-engravers at the gigantic, mysterious Dege printing press; and to meet hermit monks in extremely remote regions of Kham. These experiences and many others are recorded here in 191 sublime color photographs.

Genres: Photography, Buddhism

232 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2007

About the author

Matthieu Ricard, a Buddhist monk, trained as a molecular biologist before moving to Nepal to study Buddhism. He is the author of The Monk and the Philosopher (with his father, Jean-François Revel); The Quantum and the Lotus (with Trinh Thuan); Happiness; The Art of Meditation; Altruism: The Power of Compassion; A Plea for the Animals; and Beyond the Self: Conversations between Buddhism and Neuroscience (with Wolf Singer). He has published several books of photography, including Motionless Journey and Tibet: An Inner Journey, and is the French interpreter for the Dalai Lama.

Reviews

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This gets 5 stars because the photography is just amazing. Has some interesting text as well, but not a lot of it compared to the pictures. Really lovely, check it out!

[Squib · Rating 4 out of 5]

Matthieu is a convert to Tibetan Buddhism and has decided to compile the photographs he's taken over the decades. Is it any good? Well, the highly acclaimed Henri Cartier-Bresson blurb on the back indicates that he thinks highly of it and I am inclined to agree with his assessment. The book will take you on several photographic journeys of his life as a monk through Tibet's monastic, rural & nomadic communities and it's barren wilderness. I appreciate the short introductions for context at the start of each of the book's 8 or so chapters and the addition of Shabkar's poems as they convey the Buddhist religious feeling to the places illustrated.

One criticism I have of the collection is that he under-developed the theme of modernization that is slowly immiserating the people of Tibet, as we only see glimpses of the poverty he described in words and the collection lacks depictions of Tibetan urban life. The lack of the depictions of the frequently mentioned darker aspects of Tibet make the work feel a bit romantic, though never saccharine.

[Bennauser · Rating 2 out of 5]

Prossima volta più foto di monasteri e opere d'arte e meno di bambini-poveri-ma-sorridenti-mentre-i-nostri-hanno-la-Playstation-5-ma-non-sorridono-mica-così-ah-gli-occidentali-e-la-tecnologia-gli-asiatici-e-la-spiritualità, grazie.

[Lachlan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful book. Tibet is clearly photographed with love, care and knowledge. Outstanding work.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing photographs. Includes wonderful stories, practices and people from Tibetan history.