The Magical Adventures of the Sixth Dalai Lama:
His Life and Loves
Robert Thurman with Annie Bien
Step into the extraordinary life of “Ocean Song,” Tsangyang Gyatso, the Sixth Dalai Lama (1683–1706) — a reincarnate spiritual leader unlike any other, prophetic for our times. Both a wonderworking saint and perceptive poet, he gave up being an adored monastic to serve as a passionate layman. Shocking his contemporaries, some still down to this day, he joined his people shoulder to shoulder during troubled times—Tibetans’ divine savior became one of their most beloved human heroes. In this luminous work, Annie Bien and Robert Thurman weave together history, myth, and the rebel Dalai Lama’s own verses to offer our present Great Fourteenth Dalai Lama the amazing story of his predecessor as a magical youth who embodied the paradox of earthly passion and spiritual awakening.
From his complex rise to power to his lyrical love poems, from the grandeur of the Potala Palace to the energy of the town and the solitude of hidden retreats, The Magical Adventures of the Sixth Dalai Lama reveals a tale of beauty, struggle, and timeless wisdom. Part historical epic, part spiritual meditation, this book invites readers to discover how love and freedom can flourish even in the face of destiny.
