Brian Cutillo

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Brian A. Cutillo (1945-2006) was a scholar and translator in the field of Tibetan Buddhism. He was also an accomplished neuro-cognitive scientist, musician, anthropologist and textile weaver.

Contents 1 Studies at MIT 2 Studies with Geshe Wangyal 3 Milarepa translations 4 The Turquoise Bee 5 Scholarly Tibetan Buddhism translations 6 Research in human cognitive neuroscience 7 With the Hopi community in Arizona 8 Textile endeavors 9 Obituary 10 References

[edit] Studies at MIT

Cutillo was a graduate of MIT majoring in physics (1967).

While at MIT, Brian wrote the music for An Evening of One Act Plays presented October 14-15, 1966:^[1]

At the Hawk’s Well -- By William Butler Yeats; Directed by Ralph Sawyer ’67; Music - Brian Cutillo ’67

Brian provided the cultural background and translations for the recording "The Music of Tibet". The recordings were made by Prof. Huston Smith, then Professor of Philosophy at MIT, in 1964. Dr. Smith provided an interpretation. The recording was reviewed in the journal Ethnomusicology in 1972.^[2]

[edit] Studies with Geshe Wangyal

Brian Cutillo was introduced to Geshe Wangyal while a student at MIT. He became one of the earliest American students of Geshe-La.

Geshe Wangyal wrote the book The Door of Liberation published by Maurice Girodias Associates, Inc., (1973) now out-of-print. (The book has been reissued in paperback Wisdom Publications). Among the Acknowledgments in the original edition are:

"In connection with the Buddhist Studies Institute, I must acknowledge the efforts of two of my students, Dr. Christopher George and Dr. Robert Thurman, who are now coordinating the activities of the Institute.

"Also, I appreciate very much Dr. Jeffrey Hopkins' many years of dedicated service to the Lamaist Buddhist Monastery of America.

"And last but not least, I extend my thanks to my students: to Brian Cutillo, for his devotion and effort in our work of translation ..."^[3]

Geshe Wangyal and Brian Cutillo also translated the Illuminations of Sakya Pandita published by (LOTSAWA 1988). The book is now out-of-print.

From the rear book cover:

"Like a blind man finding a jewel

In a heap of garbage.

Through what good fortune

Was this Illumination born in me."

Cutillo writes in the Preface to Illuminations:

"The work of translation began in 1970 with a reading of the text by the late Geshe Wangyal to close students at his retreat house in Washington, NJ...In the fall of 1985 I once again turned to the translation, but felt that the manner of presentation was too formal for its intended audience in America. Recalling Geshe Wangyal's exhortation to 'Do it PROPERLY'...

"Illuminations attempts to (provide) a practical manual of essential Buddhist practices in a clear and direct style. This was also Sakya Pandita's purpose in the thirteenth century, and the book has been translated with his aim in mind."^[4]

[edit] Milarepa translations

Cutillo's best known work includes two books of Milarepa poems translated with Lama Kunga Rimpoche. Drinking the Mountain Stream (First Edition LOTSAWA 1978) is out-of-print (re-issue WISDOM Publications).^[5] Miraculous Journey (LOTSAWA 1986) is out of print.

From the back cover of the First Edition of Drinking the Mountain Stream:

"I the yogin Milarepa

Begin meditation with fervent faith

I saw without eyes the visible realm

Heard without ears the sound of voidness,

Smelled without nose the natural state's scent

And tasted without tongue reality's sweet taste.

An artist without hands

Drawing pictures in the sky,

Seeing without eyes the myriad things

In perfect vision without movement or strain."^[6]

From the back cover of Miraculous Journey:

"A rare collection of previously untranslated narratives and songs of the famous Tibetan poet-yogi Milarepa. This work is an untampered compilation of Milarepa's songs as preserved and sung by wandering yogis of the Kagyu sect. The pieces differ from those in the two popular volumes on Milarepa, the "Autobiography" and the "Hundred-Thousand Songs", in their range of material and directness of style, while continuing a high level of poetic expression. Thus they give a more candid glimpse of this famous yogi's personality than the more official versions.

"This second volume of songs contains thirty-five new stories about the miraculous, wandering poet-saint of Tibet. From advice for local villagers and nomads to his most profound precepts given to his closest disciples, Milarepa informs and delights the reader with his insight, directness, and compassion..."

From the Acknowledgments to Miraculous Journey: "We would like to thank Dr. Nathan Sivin for providing the rare xylograph edition of the Tibetan text." A similar note is mentioned in the First Edition of Drinking the Mountain Stream.^[7]

[edit] The Turquoise Bee

With the late Rick Fields, Cutillo translated The Turquoise Bee. These were the Lovesongs of the Sixth Dalai Lama (Tsangyang Gyatso). The book was published by HarperSanFrancisco (HarperCollins 1994) and is out-of-print.

From the back cover:

"Deceptively simple and unadorned, the poems and love songs of Tibet's Sixth Dalai Lama (1683-1706) express the inner life of a legendary spiritual leader. Eloquently set in historical context, astutely translated, and beautifully illustrated, these sixty-seven poems articulate the mysteries, struggles, and joys of spiritual and sensual life with enduring reverence."^[8]

From Whole Earth Review by Hacsi Horvath (Summer 1995)

"The Sixth Dalai Lama of eighteenth-century Tibet was a great tantric adept. He used to party all night in Lhasa's brothels and bars, then sneak back to the Potala palace before sunrise to perform his official duties. After a while the Sixth Dalai Lama even renounced his monastic vows and lived like a layman, getting drunk with his friends, singing songs and having fun, but maintaining his holy role as incarnation of Avalokitesvara, the Bodhisattva of Campassion. The Sixth Dalai Lama is still a beloved figure among Tibetans, not only for these anecdotes, but for his poems and spiritual teachings.

"His songs are sparse and fresh. Rick Fields' and Brian Cutillo's translation is manly and true. Mayumi Oda's drawings are sublime."^[9]

Included are the poems:

33

"A flower withers in a month's time.

But the turquoise bee doesn't grieve.

At the ending of an affair

I will not grieve either."

64

65

"I have asked so much

of you

In this short life.

May we meet again

In the childhod of the next."^[8]

The book page shows Ume calligraphy by Brian Cutillo and a drawing by Mayumi Oda.

[edit] Scholarly Tibetan Buddhism translations

Brian translated scholarly Tibetan Buddhism Abhidharma texts that remained unpublished at his death.

Some of these translations are now being completed for publication under the auspices, among others, of the Infinity Foundation. They were started some 35 years ago in collaboration with Dr. Robert Thurman.

"...The following texts in rough draft form needing further work for publication in the mid-future: ... Abhidharma-samuccaya by Asanga (Thurman and Cutillo); Samdhinirmocana-sutra (Thurman and Cutillo) ..."^[10]

[edit] Research in human cognitive neuroscience

Brian Cutillo worked with his MIT classmate, Dr. Alan Gevins,^[11] in the early days of the EEG Systems Lab in San Francisco. Cutillo co-authored with Dr. Gevins, and others, numerous scientific research papers including 3 papers published in Science, the Journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Along with a paper from the EEG Systems Lab in Science in 1979, these 3 papers helped usher in the modern era of cognitive neuroscience by reporting advanced computerized methods of measuring the electrical signals in the human brain reflecting fundamental cognitive processes of attention.

• Gevins, A.S., Morgan, N.H., Bressler, S.L., Cutillo, B.A., White, R.M., Illes, J., Greer, D.S., Doyle, J.C. & Zeitlin, G.M. (1987). Human neuroelectric patterns predict performance accuracy. Science, 235, 580-585.
• Gevins, A.S., Schaffer, R.E., Doyle, J.C., Cutillo, B.A., Tannehill, R.L. & Bressler, S.L. (1983). Shadows of thought: Shifting lateralization of human brain electrical patterns during brief visuomotor task. Science, 220, 97-99.
• Gevins, A.S., Doyle, J.C., Cutillo, B.A., Schaffer, R.E., Tannehill, R.S., Ghannam, J.H., Gilcrease, V.A. & Yeager, C.L. (1981). Electrical potentials in human brain during cognition: New method reveals dynamic patterns of correlation. Science, 213, 918-922.

[edit] With the Hopi community in Arizona

Cutillo was a key figure, initially as a Tibetan language translator, in the interplay between the Hopi Indian community and Tibetan Buddhist monks who were born in Tibetan speaking regions.

Cutillo's association with the Hopi community is documented in a radio recording with James Koots A Hopi Plea. The recording is available from New Dimensions Media as Program #1613. From the New Dimensions Website review:

"(James) Koots, designated messenger of the Hopi Elders, tells of the threat to the centuries-old tradition of the Hopi. Modern technology, unwanted government gifts and misdirected aid programs are taking their toll on the Hopi culture. In a personal and poignant way Koots shares the Hopi love of the Earth. He is joined by (Brian) Cutillo, a Buddhist scholar who has befriended the Hopi in their quest to preserve their ancient ways."^[12]

[edit] Textile endeavors

Brian Cutillo wove textiles on a manual floor loom based on early American heirloom patterns. Many of those weavings, including those in the photographs, are in private collections.

[edit] Obituary

Brian Cutillo died January 4, 2006 in Tulare, CA. His obituary (January 10, 2006) in the Tulare Advance-Register read:

"Brian A. Cutillo, 60, of Tulare died Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2006. He was a scientist and an author. Funeral arrangements..."

[edit] References