Mcleod Ganj, India -A simple monk. That is how the Dalai Lama describes himself when approached by the Western media, who invariably want to know, “Who are you?” But come to the Tibetan communities of Northern India and you will get a very different idea of who the Dalai Lama actually is. His picture hangs from almost every wall. Almost always he has a silly joyous grin, like he just ate a cookie or thought of something really funny. He has those big goofy glasses and simple saffron and gold robes. Those in the West who meet him say he is completely without pretension. They feel as though they were meeting an old friend. He exudes an aura of warmth and unconditional acceptance, without judgment, moving those in his presence to laughter or tears. But for the Tibetans, the Dalai Lama is like a combination of King and Pope, the head of state of the Tibetan Government in Exile and the most exalted lama of all the four major traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. He is believed to be the incarnation of Avalokitesvara, the bodhisattva of compassion. Many believe him to be fully enlightened, a living Buddha, the highest form of being there is.
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The Chinese invaded Tibet in 1949, when the current (14th) Dalai Lama was only 15 years old. Ten years later, under brutal repression by Chinese forces, he fled into exile, making his home in Dharamsala, India (actually up the hill from Dharamsala, in Mcleod Ganj) and establishing the Tibetan Government in exile. Over 1 million Tibetans have died at the hands of Chinese; tortured, murdered, frozen to death on the long journey over the Himalayas in search of refuge. Over 6000 monasteries in Tibet have been destroyed, and those who remain are forced to denounce the Dalai Lama and undergo strict programs of “re-education”. The oppression continues unabated. In September of this year (2006), climbers on Mount Everest took video footage of Chinese troops firing on innocent men, women, and children at 19,000ft as they tried to make their escape out of Tibet. The suffering of the Tibetan people is almost unimaginable (see www.tibet.org), but under the direction of the Dalai Lama, they have responded to the Chinese with what can only be called compassion. Long-suffering, non-violent, patient. They have refused to adopt the mind of their oppressors, holding faithfully the basic Buddhist principle of causing no harm to any living being. Continue reading
For the third time in as many years I have attended a 10-day silent meditation retreat in which I got up at 4am every day, sat cross legged on the floor with eyes closed for more than 10 hours per day, ate no food after noon, made no physical or communicative contact with another human being, and otherwise cultivated a sense of complete isolation in which to explore the inner depths of the phenomenon of my own mind and body.