It’s Funny Because It’s True

Asia Society presents Christopher Kelley, who will explore how comedy and Buddhism can intertwine to help us understand and mitigate the causes of suffering from our lives.

The first noble truth in Buddhism claims that stress, anxiety, and dissatisfaction are fundamental to the human condition. Any good comedian knows this, and making jokes about these feelings usually gets big laughs. Humor helps us confront the awkward fact that suffering—referred to as dukkha by Buddhists—is unavoidable in life.

Based on his similar presentation at the Rubin Museum of Art (NY), Christopher Kelley explores how comedy and Buddhism can intertwine to help us understand and mitigate the causes of suffering from our lives. Texas-based comedian Yolu Lu joins Mr. Kelley in this fun and unique presentation.

About Christopher Kelley
Christopher Kelley holds a doctorate in Buddhist Studies from Columbia University, where he studied under the guidance of Professor Robert Thurman. His dissertation, Towards a Buddhist Philosophy of Human Rights, explores the convergence and synthesis of Tibetan Buddhism and the Western human rights tradition personified in the figure of the 14th Dalai Lama-Tenzin Gyatso. He currently teaches at Brooklyn College (CUNY) and the New School University in the City of New York.