Elio Guarisco was born in Varese, Italy on 5 August 1954 and spent his childhood in Como.
After an artistic education, he moved to Switzerland where for 10 years, from 1976 to 1986, he learned the spoken and classical Tibetan language, and deepened his knowledge of philosophy and meditation. At that time he was among the founders of the Tibetan Buddhist Centers Ghepel Ling and Land of the Dakinis (in Milan).
Invited by Kalu Rinpoche, eminent meditation teacher of the Kagyu tradition, Elio moved to Darjeeling in India, where he lived for over 20 years, working on the translation of a great encyclopedia of Indo-Tibetan knowledge known as Sheja Kunkhyab (Shes bya kun khyab) written by Kongtrul Lodrö Taye. In this project he was the principal translator of the following volumes: Myriad Worlds, Buddhist Ethics, Systems of Buddhist Tantra, and The Elements of Tantric Practice published by the American publishing house, Snow Lion.
In 1986 Elio joined the Dzogchen Community of Chögyal Namkhai Norbu. During his 20 years in India Elio continued to actively collaborate with the international Dzogchen Community, especially with the Shang Shung Institute for the preservation of Tibetan culture of which he is a founding member.
Since 2003, Elio has been one of the main translators for the Ka-ter project launched by the Shang Shung Institute for the translation of ancient texts of the Dzogchen teaching, and has conducted training courses for translators from the Tibetan language.
Fluent in colloquial and classical Tibetan, he is one of the foremost translators in this field. Elio Guarisco has worked on various translations from Tibetan for the Shang Shung Institute and Publications, including some books written by Chögyal Namkhai Norbu on Tibetan medicine and other topics. His translations include: La Vita e L’Insegnamento di Un Maestro Tibetano, Le Agiografie degli 84 Maestri Tantrici dell’Antica India, La Biografia di Kunga Lekpa, Myriad Worlds, Buddhist Ethics, Systems of Buddhist Tantras, Elements of Tantric Practice, Nascere, vivere e morire, The Life Story of Shakya Shri, Creative Vision and Inner Reality, The Tibetan Book of the Dead, as well as works on Tibetan medicine such as: The Silver Mirror, Universal Benefit: the Practice of Kunye the Tibetan Massage, The Tibetan System of Moxabustion, and the three volumes Elements for the Study of Tibetan Medicine by Dr. Thubten Phuntsog, a basic text used for the study of Tibetan Medicine at the Shang Shung Institute in Italy.