Who is Matthieu Ricard, and why are scientists studying his brain?

By Bryan Jacobson
2011.03.24

Mr. Toastmaster. Fellow Toastmasters.

An MRI test on your brain is disturbing. You stick your head in a massive machine and you have to
lie perfectly still. There is constant banging and clanking. After three hours the concerned tech
pulled Matthieu out of the machine and asked: “How are you feeling?”. Matthieu smiled warmly:
“Refreshed. It was like a mini-retreat.”

Who is Matthieu Ricard and why are scientists studying his brain?

Matthieu was born in France in 1946. His father was a philosopher and his mother was an artist.
Matthieu grew up among the greatest minds in Paris.

When he was 21, Matthieu traveled to India. For three weeks he sat with Kangyur Rinpoche, a
Tibetan Buddhist Lama. It was an experience that changed Matthieu’s life. He says: “Words are
inadequate to describe the depth, serenity and compassion that emanated from him.”

In college Matthieu studied molecular genetics with three Nobel Prize winners. Every summer
Matthieu returned to India to experience the serenity and kindness of the Buddhist monks.

When Matthieu completed his Ph.D., he set aside a promising scientific career to study Buddhism full
time.

Matthieu learned the Tibetan language and joined the monastery. His daily routine included hours of
meditation. He translated ancient Tibetan scriptures into French and English, and served as the
French translator for the Dalai Lama.

Twenty years later, the Dalai Lama and Matthieu met with scientists who were studying emotions in
the brain. They were curious if their machines could “see” the emotional control that came from
years of meditation. Matthieu volunteered.

Research on emotions had shown that the right pre-frontal cortex is associated with negative
emotions such as anxiety, depression and anger. The left pre-frontal cortex is associated with
positive emotions like joy, compassion, and enthusiasm.

An MRI can precisely measure activity in the brain. The left/right balance of 150 test subjects was
measured. Many people were roughly balanced. The right side was more active in people with an
anxious or withdrawn emotional state. The left side was more active in people with a positive,
cheerful or enthusiastic emotional state, in a few cases up to 30% more active.

The result of Matthieu’s test? His left pre-frontal cortex was an astounding 45% more active, far
beyond anything the scientists had seen.

It was big news that scientific instruments could measure happiness. When the research was reported
in popular media Matthieu picked up an unwanted nickname: “The Happiest Man in the World”.

Matthieu apologizes: “Other expert meditators showed similar results. I was simply the first.”
This news about so-called “Happiness” made some people angry, and produced criticism and
questions.

Isn’t pursuing happiness the ultimate form of selfishness? Not at all, explains Matthieu.
Compassion and loving-kindness are essential aspects of true happiness.

Isn’t pursuing happiness shallow? Should we be eating ice cream all the time? Matthieu explains:
Happiness is different than pleasure. Repetition of pleasure diminishes the enjoyment. Eat too much
of your favorite ice cream, and you get sick of it. True happiness is deeper, a profound sense of well-
being and flourishing.

Doesn’t happiness come from friends, love, and financial security? These things are good and
desirable, but external factors account for only 15% of the variation in happiness. Most important is
how we translate the external world into our inner experience.

For example, one afternoon Mattieu was sitting on the steps in a monastery in Nepal. Monsoon rains
had turned the courtyard into a sea of muddy water. Bricks had been laid out in a path like stepping
stones. One friend came to the edge, looked at the water with disgust and complained about every
brick as she made her way across: “Yuck! What if I had fallen! Everything is so dirty in this
country!”

A few minutes later, Raphaele, another friend, came to the path. “Hup, hup, hup!” she sang as she
hopped from brick to brick. “What fun!” Her eyes sparkled, and she added: “The great thing about
the monsoon is NO DUST!”.

The same muddy courtyard, translated by one person into dismay and disgust, translated by the other
friend into fun and joy.

But, nobody can be happy all the time, can they? Like some kind of happiness zombie? Matthieu
agrees that we all experience loss, sadness and grief. But a deep sense of flourishing and serenity
can co-exist with, and cushion times of great sadness.

Matthieu continues to collaborate with scientists on brain research, but is also asked to do interviews
and talks. He realized that learning to be happy is central to human life.

Matthieu wrote the book “Happiness: A Guide To Developing Life’s Most Important Skill”. It’s not
a book about Buddhism, but instead about looking at life differently, cultivating the thoughts and
emotions associated with a happy inner life, and also weeding out the reactions and emotions that
destroy happiness.

The message of Matthieu’s book is simple: Happiness is a skill that each of us can develop. You can
get better at it, just like tennis! You might want to check out the book. I’m only on page 50, and I’m
already a happier person.

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Note: Bold text is a reminder to myself of some of the words that I intend to vocally emphasize.
Note: On 3/24/2011 I gave this speech in the Walker Talker’s (Beaverton, OR) Toast Masters club
International Speech competition and took first place, squeeking ahead of an excellent speech by
Nathan Isaacs.

Note to self: The talk ran over 7 minutes, even talking fast. I should have trimmed a bit more
material to allow for an unrushed delivery that would fit safely within 7 minutes.

Thanks to C. Schultz and S. Hemminger for extremely helpful advice on early versions.

Sources:
“Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life’s Most Important Skill” by Matthieu Ricard.
“The Monk and the Philosopher” by Jean-Francois Revel and Matthieu Ricard.

Many articles on the internet about Matthieu Ricard.

http://www.matthieuricard.org
http://www.pri.org/theworld/node/26303
http://www.trainingthemind.org/biographiea.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthieu_Ricard
http://www.ted.com/talks/matthieu_ricard_on_the_habits_of_happiness.html
http://www.ted.com/speakers/matthieu_ricard.html
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1424079446171087119# “Change your mind, change
your brain”.
http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=68784&highlight=meditation This one has the
bell curve, and shows Matthieu Ricard’s -0.45
http://www.acampbell.ukfsn.org/bookreviews/r/revel-ricard.html
http://www.matthieuricard.org/en/index.php/about/