MARTINE BATCHELOR was born in France in 1953. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in Korea in 1975. She studied Zen Buddhism under the guidance of the late Master Kusan at Songgwang Sa monastery until 1984. Her Zen training also took her to nunneries in Taiwan and Japan. From 1981 she served as Kusan Sunim's interpreter and accompanied him on lecture tours throughout the United States and Europe. She translated his book 'The Way of Korean Zen'. Following Master Kusan's death she returned her nun's vows and left Korea.
In 1992 she published, as co-editor, 'Buddhism and Ecology'. In 1996 she published, as editor, 'Walking on Lotus Flowers' which in 2001 was reissued under the title 'Women on the Buddhist Path'. She is the author of 'Principles of Zen', 'Meditation for Life' (an illustrated book on meditation), 'The Path of Compassion' (a translation from the Korean, with reference to the original Chinese, of the Brahmajala Sutra, i.e. the Bodhisattva Precepts), 'Women in Korean Zen' and 'Let Go: A Buddhist Guide to Breaking Free of Habits'. Her latest book is 'The Spirit of the Buddha'.
With her husband she co-leads meditation retreats worldwide. They now live in France.