Almost Home chronicles Mirabai Bush’s remarkable life across several tumultuous decades, from NASA to an ashram in India and finally to the foundational role she played in the establishment of Eastern spiritual traditions in North America. Raised Catholic with Joan of Arc as her hero, Mirabai is among the most influential people who brought Buddhism to the West from India in the 1970s. Her life tells a fascinating narrative of our time: the rediscovery of contemplative practices, in many forms and from many traditions, in secular modern culture.
Moderated by Matt Tannenbaum of the Lenox Bookstore, this conversation will explore Mirabai’s remarkable journey as chronicled in Almost Home, and the legacy that extends far beyond its pages.
IMPORTANT EVENT INFORMATION:
- This one-hour talk takes place in The Mount’s Stable Auditorium, a 140-seat, climate-controlled, indoor venue adjacent to the parking lot.
- Seating for all programs at The Mount is first-come, first-served. If you have seating preferences, we recommend arriving fifteen minutes early.
- Accessible seating is available. To discuss arrangements, please contact us by phone: 413-551-5111 x5; or email: programs@edithwharton.org. For more information about accessibility, review The Mount’s accessibility webpage.
- A book signing will follow this talk. Books can be purchased at the event from The Lenox Bookstore.
- Questions? Email: programs@edithwharton.org; or phone: 413-551-5111 x2
Mirabai Bush is the founder of the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society. Under her direction, The Center introduced mindfulness and other contemplative practices into social work, higher education, law, business, environmental leadership, the military, and social justice activism. Her personal story in Almost Home embodies present history. Through intimate moments of a life well-lived, she writes of the moon race in the 1960’s, hippie India in the 1970’s, her teachers Goenka and Neemkaroli Baba, motherhood, Vietnam, psychedelics, the civil war in Guatemala, and of utmost importance, the influence of Eastern spirituality on the West and the growth of feminism.
