Urban Dharma Book Launch and Conversation Event
with Kusala Bhikshu, Rebecca Wilson and Kristen Roupenian
“I like to think of compassion as the activity of kindness.
Compassion changes the world, kindness changes you.”
—Kusala Bhikshu
Join co-authors Kusala Bhikshu and Rebecca Wilson in a conversation with writer Kristen Roupenian (author of Cat Person and You Know You Want This). They’ll discuss the insights, teachings, and stories from the new book Urban Dharma: 20 Years of Buddhist Stories from an L.A. City Monk. The event will include a short reading from the book and an audience Q&A.
*Kusala Bhikshu will join via Zoom from L.A. for this hybrid Brooklyn event.
About the Book:
Whether you’re a seasoned practitioner or new to the path, these stories will deepen your understanding of cultivating inner peace and making a positive impact. Set in the urban din of Los Angeles, American monk Kusala Bhikshu takes readers through practical Buddhism in his wry and humorous memoir. He shares twenty years of volunteer work in unlikely places like juvenile halls, prisons, hospice rooms, and alongside police as a ride-along chaplain. Through poignant anecdotes and reflections, Kusala demonstrates how patience, generosity, compassion, and resilience can thrive in chaos, inspiring readers toward self-discovery and spiritual growth.
Recording
Urban Dharma audio podcast
About the Facilitators
Kusala Bhikshu has been the head monk at the International Buddhist Meditation Center in Koreatown, Los Angeles, for over 20 years. Ordained in 1994, he has spoken at many public events to a wide range of Buddhist and secular audiences. Kusala’s popularity comes from his candid, often comedic distillation of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition. When not teaching, Kusala can usually be found caring for 12-plus homeless cats living at the meditation center.
Rebecca Wilson has over two decades of experience in multi-format content production. She has worked as a staff producer for TED Talks, the Dalai Lama’s Cultural Center in NYC, Dr. Robert Thurman, CHIEF, the Siddhartha School Partnership, and more. Currently based in Brooklyn, NY, she shares her home with one and a half plants.
Kristen Roupenian is the author of the viral short story “Cat Person,” which appeared in the New Yorker in 2017. The New York Times Book Review called her debut collection, Cat Person and Other Stories, “exciting, smart, perceptive, weird and dark,” and said that it “comes from one of those brains that feel out-of-this-world-brilliant and also completely askew.” Roupenian also wrote the original story for the A24 smash hit Bodies Bodies Bodies, and has several other film and television projects in development, She is currently at work on a novel.
