Venerable Thubten Chodron is an author, teacher, and the founder and abbess of Sravasti Abbey, a Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Newport, Washington. Ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 and a close student of His Holiness the Dalai Lama for over forty years, Venerable Chodron teaches worldwide. She is the author of numerous books, including Buddhism for Beginners and, with the Dalai Lama, Buddhism: One Teacher, Many Traditions.