Rich Brother, Rich Sister: Two Different Paths to God, Money and Happiness

Born and raised in Hawaii, Robert Kiyosaki is a fourth-generation Japanese-American. After graduating from college in New York, Robert joined the Marine Corps and served in Vietnam as an officer and helicopter gunship pilot. Following the war, Robert went to work in sales for Xerox Corporation and, in 1977, started a company that brought the first nylon and Velcro ?surfer” wallets to market. He founded an international education company in 1985 that taught business and investing to tens of thousands of students throughout the world. In 1994 Robert sold his business and, through his investments, was able to retire at the age of forty-seven. During his short-lived retirement he wrote Rich Dad, Poor Dad, and co-authored Why We Want You to Be Rich with Donald Trump. He also writes a bi-weekly column, ?Why the Rich Are Getting Richer” for Yahoo! Finance, and a monthly column, ?Rich Returns” for Entrepreneur magazine.

Barbara Emi Kiyosaki is Robert’s sister. They grew up together in Hawaii with their parents Ralph and Marjorie and two other siblings, Jon and Beth. While Robert took the path of war during the Vietnam era, Emi took the path of peace, exploring alternative and spiritual journeys. Their paths crossed only intermittently after growing up together: Robert left for the United States Merchant Marine Academy, and a year later Emi left for the University of Hawaii. They took what appear to be entirely different paths. Emi raised one daughter, Erika; wanting to deepen her studies and practice in Tibetan Buddhism, Emi became a Buddhist nun when Erika was sixteen. Emi was ordained by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in 1985 and today is known more by her ordination name, Bhikshuni Tenzin Kacho. For six years, Tenzin was the Buddhist Chaplain at the United States Air Force Academy. She has a master’s of art degree in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism and Tibetan Language from Naropa University. She is the Assistant Spiritual Director and teacher at Thubten Dhargye Ling Buddhist Center in Long Beach, California, and visiting teacher at Thubten Shedrup Ling in Colorado Springs. She occasionally resides at Geden Choling Nunnery in northern India.