Dr. Frederick Lenz, Rama
Dr. Frederick Lenz III – later known to his meditation students as Rama – was an American-born enlightened Buddhist teacher. He began teaching Buddhist meditation and mindfulness in his early twenties. Throughout his life, his goal was to transmit the essence of Buddhism so that Western practitioners could achieve the highest state of conscious realization – enlightenment. He called his rich, full set of teachings, “American Zen Buddhism.”
Birthplace & hometown
Dr. Lenz was born on February 9, 1950, in San Diego, California. When he was three years old, his family moved to Stamford, Connecticut. He attended schools in the Stamford area and enrolled in the University of Connecticut where he majored in English and minored in Philosophy. He was inducted as a member of Phi Beta Kappa and graduated with honors as Magna Cum Laude.
Fellowship & doctorate
After winning a highly competitive State of New York Graduate Council Fellowship, he received his MA and Ph.D. in English Literature from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. His doctoral dissertation was directed by the Pulitzer Prize-winning poet, Louis Simpson, Ph.D. By the age of 29, Frederick had lectured and taught classes at universities around the world, including the State University of New York, Long Island University, Harvard, U.C.L.A., Stanford, Heidelberg, and the University of Zurich. Early in the 1980’s with established meditation and teaching capabilities, Dr. Lenz structured his own school of American Buddhism. From then onward he taught Buddhist principles and meditation to more than 100,000 people.
Rama the writer, producer & teacher
Rama wrote a number of popular books, including “Lifetimes, True Accounts of Reincarnation” (1979); “Total Relaxation: The Complete Program for Overcoming Worry”, “Stress, Tension and Fatigue” (1980); “Surfing the Himalayas” (1995) and “Snowboarding to Nirvana” (1997).
Working with the band Zazen, he co-wrote and produced over 30 musical albums including Canyons of Light, Enlightenment, Cayman Blue and Mystery School. All of the albums feature music for meditation.
He recorded hundreds of talks on topics ranging from Developing Willpower and Overcoming Fear to Miracles, Personal Happiness, Enlightenment for Women, and The Enlightenment Cycle.
His talks, music, and video recordings are available at the Rama Meditation Society Resource Library.
“American Buddhist Rebel” (2017), an award winning biography about Dr. Frederick Lenz, Rama, is available in print and ebook formats.
Legacy buddhist foundation
Frederick Lenz passed away on April 12, 1998, on Long Island, New York, and willed the majority of his estate to the charitable Frederick P. Foundation for American Buddhism for the purpose of supporting Buddhism in America.
Quotes by Dr. Frederick Lenz, Rama, reprinted or included here with permission from The Frederick P. Lenz Foundation for American Buddhism