Tales of a Mad Yogi The Life and Wild Wisdom of Drukpa Kunley

A fascinating biography of Drukpa Kunley, a Tibetan Buddhist master and crazy yogi.

The fifteenth-century Himalayan saint Drukpa Kunley is a beloved figure throughout Tibet, Bhutan, and Nepal, known both for his profound mastery of Buddhist practice as well as his highly unconventional and often humorous behavior. Ever the proverbial trickster and “crazy wisdom” yogi, his outward appearance and conduct of carousing, philandering, and breaking social norms is understood to be a means to rouse ordinary people out of habitual ways of thinking and lead them toward spiritual awakening.

Elizabeth L. Monson has spent decades traveling throughout the Himalayas, retracing Drukpa Kunley’s steps and translating his works. In this creative telling, direct translations of his teachings are woven into a life story based on historical accounts, autobiographical sketches, folktales, and first-hand ethnographic research. The result, with flourishes of magical encounters and references to his superhuman capacities, is a poignant narrative of Kunley’s life, revealing to the reader the quintessential example of the capacity of Buddhism to skillfully bring people to liberation.

ELIZABETH MONSON, PhD, is the Spiritual Co-Director of Natural Dharma Fellowship and the Managing Teacher at Wonderwell Mountain Refuge. She is a lineage holder in the Kagyu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism and has been studying, practicing, and teaching in both the Kagyu and Nyingma traditions for nearly 30 years. She has studied with Tulku Orgyen Rinpoche, Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche, Gyalse Tendzin Rabgye, and others.

Monson completed a PhD in the Study of Religion from Harvard University with foci in Buddhist Studies, Tibetan Buddhism, and Ethics in 2015. She has lectured at the Harvard Divinity School and teaches at different venues around New England.