The Beastie Boys are hailed as one of the most popular hip-hop groups of all time. Their debut album “License to Ill” was the first of its genre to top the Billboard 200 chart. Their follow up album “Paul’s Boutique” is widely regarded as a peak album of golden age hip hop and a seminal work in sample-based music production. The group is highly respected in the hip-hop community and is regularly credited with spreading hip-hop from urban to suburban America and propelling rap into the mainstream.
Their music transcended racial and socioeconomic barriers and blended genres in ways no artists before them dared. At the same time that they were setting new boundaries in the musical sphere one of the trio was forging forward on a unique spiritual journey. Adam Yauch, aka “MCA”, was on a journey to Shambhala. Propelling Buddhism and Buddhist beliefs into suburban homes across America in the form of funky, sample-heavy hip-hop.
No Sleep Till Nirvana: MCA’s Journey into Tibetan Buddhism
Yauch was born and raised in Jackson Heights, Brooklyn in 1964. His father Catholic and Mother Jewish. Both of his parents had all but fully abandoned their faiths by the time he was born, instead allowing him the freedom to carve his own path. Yauch’s first exposure to spirituality came in 1988. He told Rolling Stone Magazine he was reading about “Native Americans, shamanism, a lot of different things“. His foray into spirituality came just two years after the smash success of the Beastie Boys first album, “License to Ill”. Despite the commercial success and outpouring of respect and admiration from the hip-hop community Yauch felt unfulfilled.
In a sense, what Western society teaches us is that if you get enough money, power and beautiful people to have sex with, that’s going to bring you happiness. That’s what every commercial, every magazine, music, movie teaches us. That’s a fallacy. Maybe there was some realization of that during that Licensed to Ill period.
Adam “MCA” Yauch
Yauch’s interest in Buddhism blossomed over time. Buddhist concepts like reincarnation, shambhala, and karma were the first to pique his interest. This lead to him taking trips to India, Nepal and Bali to pursue further spiritual education. On his second trip to Bali Yauch met a group of Tibetian Buddhists. After some time Yauch decided to attend his first in-person teaching conducted by the Dalai Lama. He was floored by the experience. Yauch was even lucky enough to meet the Dalai Lama in person in 1993, one year after deciding to study Tibetan Buddhism exclusively.
“I happened to catch him when he was walking out of a room. It was wild. He grabbed both of my hands and looked at me for a second and I felt all this energy.”
Adam “MCA” Yauch
Three years later, Yaunch was a full-flegged Tibetan Buddhist. These two examples weren’t the the only times MCA met or saw the Dalai Lama. Yaunch met his wife, Tibetan American Dechen Wangdu, while attending a speech by the Dalai Lama at Harvard University in 1995. Yaunch and the Dalai Lama cultivated an intimate relationship. With Yaunch interviewing the Dalai Lama for the Beastie Boys publication “Grand Royal magazine”. It’s important to note this relationship was not one sided but instead was mutually beneficial. Neither man was latching on to the other for their fame, but for the spiritual wholeness they each provided to the movement. Buddhism helped Yaunch feel more spiritually complete. Yet he didn’t stop his practice there. He was largely involved in the Tibetan independence movement and organized the Tibetan Freedom Concert.
Brass Monkey Mind: Adam Yauch’s Impact on Buddhist and American Culture
There’s no denying the impact MCA and the rest of the beastie boys had on American culture. What most people might be unaware of is the impact Yauch had on Buddhist Culture. Not only is he one of the most well known American Buddhists, aside from possibly Lisa Simpson, but to say nothing of his efforts in the Tibetan Freedom Movement would be a travesty. Yaunch’s wife, Dechen, and Daughter, Losel, are both descendents of the Tibetan diaspora community. The issue of Tibetan Freedom was close to MCA’s heart, both for his Tibetan Buddhist beliefs and close family relations.
Yaunch didn’t just bring awareness to Buddhist and the Tibetan Struggle through his presence, but also founded one of the largest fund raisers for the cause. The idea of the Tibetan Freedom Concert was birthed in 1996 while the group was on tour for Lollapalooza. It was a joint effort between the Beastie Boys and the Milarepa Fund, a non-profit organization founded by Yaunch and activist Erin Potts in 1994. The show is described as a “Live Aid style” concert. The first concert in San Fransisco drew 100,000 people and raised over $800,000 for Tibetan and social justice causes. It continued until 2003 and ended after the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan leadership advocated for a more “Middle Way” approach that eliminated the need for large scale concerts and fund raisers.
Launching these fund raisers was no small task for Yaunch. By the time the concert was making headlines he was a proud buddhist and believer in Karma, shambhala and other Buddhist ideas. But he wasn’t always so forthcoming about his faith. He said he was very shy about his interest in Buddhism in his early years of study. When speaking about his faith several years later he told Rolling Stone Magazine:
I don’t really care if somebody makes fun of me. I’m not afraid of what people might think.
Adam Yaunch
In addition to creating the Milarepa Fund and the Tibetan Freedom Concert the Beastie Boys donated $1 for each ticket they sold for their 1994 tour. These donations would later go on to fund both the concert and the Milarepa fund.
S-S-Sabotaging Samsara for Shambhala: The Buddhist Legacy of MCA
While Yaunch may have passed away in 2012 his legacy continues to live on. Members of Students for a Free Tibet credit the Tibetan Freedom Concert as a driving force behind young people joining the movement. The concert also spurred a documentary titled “Free Tibet” featuring Yaunch and many other musical acts that participated in the fund raiser. The Milarepa Fund continues to accept donations and fight for Tibetan freedom to this day.
Much like The Buddha himself, who’s words and wisdom lived on by being passed down orally after his death, seeds of Buddhist wisdom can be found in MCA’s music. The most evident example being the lyrics to the song “Bodhisattva Vow” released in the 1994 album Ill Communication:
As I develop the awakening mind
MCA – Ill Communication
I praise the Buddhas as they shine
I bow before you as I travel my path
To join your ranks, I make my full-time task
For the sake of all beings I seek
The enlightened mind that I know I’ll reap
Respect to Shantideva and all the others
Who brought down the Dharma for the sisters and brothers
Additional examples can be found in the track “Shambala” from the same album. The song “The Update” makes reference to the Dalai Lama. Lyrics from “Three MC’s and One DJ” from the album “Hello Nasty” references meditation and mindfulness. “Alive” from “Beastie Boys Anthology: The Sounds of Science” mentions Butter lamps, a Tibetan Buddhist offering symbolizing the dispelling of ignorance with wisdom. In “We Got The” a 2004 track from “To the 5 Boroughs” Yauch drops the lyrics
“I meditate and do my pranayama. Got control of my breathing with the rhythm of my mantra”
MCA on “We Got The”
Alluding to the yogic breathing practice, often used in Buddhist meditation to control energy and focus the mind. These are but a few examples of Buddhist wisdom sprinkled throughout the Beastie Boys discography. If you practice Right Speech, and by extension Right Listening, countless examples reveal themselves. Compassion, non-attachment, enlightenment, karma, shambhala and activism, particularly in support of Tibet, reveal themselves when you look deeply into the lyrics.
Adam Yauch may no longer be with us and is instead possibly residing in the kingdom of Shambhala, but his contributions to the Buddhist community and teachings are cemented firmly in the manuṣya realm, or human realm, in the form of his art, music and family connections. The Dalai Lama has said that the best way to honor someone’s legacy is to promote it. He has also said that it’s more important to be useful to others while you’re alive than to worry about what others say about you after you’re gone. MCA is an example of doing both. He spent his life actively working towards living in accordance with the five precepts, supporting Buddhist causes and leaving a legacy where he wasn’t afraid of what people would say about him, but instead speaking to his truth.