Robert Thurman

Robert Alexander Farrar Thurman (August 3, 1941 – June 16, 2026) was an American Buddhist philosopher and writer, best known for his work in Tibetan Buddhism. He was the Je Tsongkhapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies at Columbia University, before retiring in 2019. He held the first endowed chair in Buddhist Studies in the West. He was the co-founder and president of Tibet House US, New York, and its Menla Retreat & Dewa Spa in Phoenicia, New York. He translated the Vimalakirti Sutra from the Tibetan Kangyur into English. He was the father of actress Uma Thurman, and grandfather of Maya Hawke.