The leader of a group that separated from the Tibetan Buddhist Gelug school decades ago was at the heart of the “Shugden conflict” and made headlines for swift growth, denouncement of the Dalai Lama.

Unassuming, he was the learned and revered teacher of Richard Gere, Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys, Joseph Campbell, and many others

The mind-body maven was the first Western medical professional granted permission to scientifically study the advanced practices of Tibetan Buddhist monks.