VERSHIRE, VT — Linda Talbot, also known by her Buddhist name of Ani Lodro Palmo, passed from this world on October 1, 2019, in Hanover, New Hampshire. She was born on May 14, 1941 in Boston, MA, to Dorothy Nelson and George N. Talbot. She was raised in Hingham, MA and in South Pomfret, Vermont. She attended the Woodstock Country School and the Rhode Island School of Design, where she majored in oil painting.
In the 1960’s she joined the Peace Corps and went to India, where she met a lama of the Kagyu tradition, Kyabje Khamtrul Rinpoche, and took her monastic vows with him. After this she lived mostly in India, with time also spent in New Zealand, Australia, China and Nepal. She studied and practiced all the major traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, and came to be considered one of the earliest and most senior Tibetan Buddhist nuns from the west.
One of her fellow Buddhists Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche included this passage in a letter about Linda’s life:
“She studied and practiced the Vajrayana dharma for almost sixty years and much of this time she spent in retreat. She possessed immense humility as a practitioner and was incredibility devoted, clear, and dedicated to the path of enlightenment. She also was a fierce advocate for social justice, the environment, and political democracy and equality for all.”
Linda returned to the U.S. about ten years ago and split her time between Framingham, MA and Vershire, Vermont where she participated in teaching programs and was an honored guest at the Pema Osel Do Ngak Choling center.
She is survived by her sisters Sara Talbot Miller of Framingham, Elsa Talbot of South Pomfret, VT, and her brother Stanley Talbot of South Pomfret, as well as six nieces and nephews and their eight children.
She was predeceased by her brothers Michael and David.