The 14th Dalai Lama: Tibetan leader in exile

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Ranked #383 in Religion, #22,164 overall

Tenzin Gyatso embodies Peace, Love and Kindness


Nobel Peace Prize Winner, popularizer of Buddhism and head of the Tibetan Government in Exile. The Dalai Lama's life is a unique convergence of religion, politics and an admirable stand on peace in the face of aggression.


This lens focuses on his life, his politics and his Buddhism.


Raised to become a leader he took on that role at a younger age than expected, when the Chinese government invaded his country. He fled and has since been the leader of the Tibetan people in exile.

Dalai Lama Pictures 

Tenzin Gyatso photographed

Participants at Hind Swaraj Centenary International Conference by abhikrama

Participants at Hind...

Anthony Parel by abhikrama

Anthony Parel

Session at Hind Swaraj Centenary International Conference by abhikrama

Session at Hind Swar...

His Excellency Shri B.P Singh with Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche by abhikrama

His Excellency Shri...

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The Dalai Lama in the news 

The political life of the Dalai Lama today

Dalai Lama says Obama not soft on China
NEW DELHI ? The Dalai Lama defended President Barack Obama from criticism that he has been too soft on China, saying Sunday that the US leader just has a ...
Beijing exacts revenge for Dalai Lama's visit to India
It didn't take Beijing long to find a suitable way of working revenge on the Indian government for allowing the exiled Tibetan leader, the Dalai Lama, ...
Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela, Mother Teresa 'Funk Off'
This comment may best sum up this recent work from LAVA Communications in Sydney promoting the December appearance of The Dalai Lama in Australia for a ...
Poll: More Americans Attribute Biblical Passage to Obama Than to Bible
Nine percent cited the Dalai Lama, and 8 percent named Martin Luther King Jr. as the source of the verse. Four percent cited Oprah Winfrey , while 3 percent ...

Life in Tibet by the Dalai Lama 

Early responsibility

The current Dalai Lama was born in 1935, in a farmers family in Northern Tibet. As is the Tibetan custum, he was recognized as the reincarnation of the previous (13th) Dalai Lama through a complex ceremony. Born as Lhamo Thondup, he was renamed Tenzin Gyatzo when he was accepted as the reincarnation of the previous Dalai Lama. He was trained to be the future leader of Tibet from the early age of 6.

Because the Chinese became such a powerful threat to Tibet, the Tenzin took responsibility of the government of his country at the early age of 15. When the Chinese actually invaded the country, the Dalai Lama was forced to flee to India in 1959.

Dalai Lama - his health 

In August 2008 the Dalai Lama has had to cancel a trip and a prayer meeting because of his health. The 73 year old has previously astounded the world with his itinerary: traveling all over the world 3 months out of the year. All that traveling seems to have finally caught up with him.

As I write this reports are he is in a hospital in India from where he joins nearly 2,000 Tibetan exiles 'to overcome and ease conflict and suffering in the world and particularly for freedom and justice of the people of Tibet and China'.

Now out of Hospital (writing Sept. 2nd) he reportedly just needs more rest. Whatever it was that ailed him, it obviously means that we can see his age catching up with him.

Okt. 10th update: the Dalai Lama is recovering from gallstone surgery.

Sources:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/08/28/dalai.lama.ap/index.html
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gxwCp6xI-Ip76IjG12M7XTGO5hrAD92SHJF00
http://spiritualglobe.blogspot.com/2008/10/dalai-lama-hospitalized-could-undergo.html
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hXxYh6x-1ugV_g6MjaJDnHfu2y9gD93O8IF80

Books about Tenzin Gyatzo, The Dalai Lama 

Kundun: A Biography of the Family of the Dalai Lama

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A Simple Monk: Writings on His Holiness the Dalai Lama

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Freedom in Exile: The Autobiography of The Dalai Lama

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Dalai Lama: Man, Monk, Mystic

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"Purpose of religion is to control yourself, not to criticize others
Atributed to H.H. the Dalai Lama"

The Dalai Lama in blogs 

Tibetan Buddhist Religious views and current events discussed

Dalai Lama: Obama Not Soft On China
NEW DELHI ? The Dalai Lama defended President Barack Obama from criticism that he has been too soft on China, saying Sunday that the US leader just has a different approach to dealing with the Asian giant. Obama made his first trip to ...
Dalai Lama arrives in Dharamshala after visiting Tawang central ...
Dharamshala, Nov 23 (ANI): Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama arrived in Dharamshala on Monday, after finishing his visit to Tawang in Ar.
Netizen News Brief: Tibet, Dalai Lama thrown under the bus by Obama
Tibet, Dalai Lama thrown under the bus by Obama. Subject: txt intl china - The bully boys of the world are finding that negotiating with Barack Obama is like taking candy from a baby. ...
Dalai Lama praises Obama for urging China-Tibet talks | Raw Story
dalailamabuddhis Dalai Lama praises Obama for urging China Tibet talks Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Saturday praised US President Barack Obama for taking up the issue of Tibet "very seriously" with Chinese leaders on his ...

The Olympic Games and Protests in Tibet 

The Dalai Lama in the middle

There have been protests in Tibet and around the world as this year (2008) is both an anniversary for protests that China repressed violently in 1987, 1988 - as well as the year of the Olympic games in China. The Dalai Lama claims (March 29th 2008) that these riots were started by Chinese dressed as Tibetan Buddhist monks. (source)

These protests have been suppressed and my sources in Tibet say that the atmosphere in Lhasa is violent. CNN reports that several convoys of armed forces are moving in for a further crackdown (3-21-08). Chinese citizens are advised to stay inside, because they might be attacked by Tibetans. The Chinese government has closed Tibet from tourists and journalists.

The Dalai Lama was so upset by all this he threatens to lay down his post (announced that he might do that on march 18th '08). He also started talking to Tibetans who feel his stance about Tibet is too peaceful. The Dalai Lama is stuck between extremist Tibetans who don't want to stay peaceful in their struggle for independence and the Chinese government who blames 'the clique around the Dalai Lama' for the whole trouble.

The Dalai Lama himself has consistently argued not for independence, but for more autonomy. Some of the Tibetans, whether in exile or in Tibet, feel that is just ignorant and weak. Just the same, he talked to such radicals on March 19th 2008.

Whether or not the Chinese started these riots themselves, it is clear that not all Tibetan people (whether in Tibet, India or abroad) support the Dalai Lama in his attempts to keep things pieceful despite continuing human rights violations.

The Dalai Lama does not want people to boycot the Olympic Games, but merely wants the current problems in Tibet to be investigated and implies possible cultural genocide.

Compared to other troubles around the world, the Tibetan one seem mild. A mere hundred casualties by the largest estimates doesn't compare to civil war in say Darfur, Palestine or Iraq.

(Source: the Dutch newspaper NRC)

If you agree with the position of the Dalai Lama, sign this petition which calls for an end to violence in Tibet

Unique Dalai Lama products you just might love 

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Tibetan Politics and the Dalai Lama 

An advocate for democracy!

One of the least known qualities of the present Dalai Lama, one he shares with his predecessor the 13th dalai Lama (Thubten Gyatso), is his democratic stand. Although the Tibetan people in general want the Dalai Lama to be a theocratic ruler, the Dalai Lama has set up a complete government in exile that is democratic. He started this process almost on the day he fled Tibet for India. He even inserted a clause that meant that he himself could be removed from the government if two thirds of the National Assembly agreed on it. His more conservative ministers opposed this clause, but the Dalai Lama insisted.

Life in India & peace efforts 

The Dalai Lama on peace in Tibet

In 1959 the Dalai Lama and his government set up the Tibetan Government in Exile in Dharamsala, in Northern India. Many Tibetan refugees have since joined him there.

The Dalai Lama has since been most famous for his efforts towards peace in Tibet. He has made it clear he would settle for self-government, in place of total independence. Given the amount of Chinese immigrants in Tibet, this is obviously the more realistic viewpoint. On the other hand - China has not been willing to deal honestly with the representatives of the Tibetan people, so peace is going to be hard to achieve.


Dalai Lama - World Peace Poster
The Dalai Lama:
"World peace must
develop from
inner peace. Peace
is not the absence
of violence. Peace
is the manifestation
of human compassion"

Preparing for the future: rethinking relations with China 

Religion and politics - Buddhism and China

The Dalai Lama has announced in Okt. 2008 that he no longer feels dialog with China is a viable strategy. In other words he is letting go of the Middle Way Approach.

In a speech he said that the Chinese government did not respect the Tibetan people, nor their own. That the only viable method of dealing with the occupation is to make the occupation of Tibet as expensive and troublesome as possible, without resorting to violence.

The Dalai Lama is calling a meeting to be held from Nov. 17-to-22 in which all Tibetan refugees will be represented in Dharmsala - and wants the outcome to be democratic.

March 10th 2009 the Dalai Lama made it clear he feels that Chinese occupation in China has made the area a hell on earth.

The regent for the next Dalai Lama 

Tibetan Buddhist politics

Succession is a difficult thing when your successor only gets born after your death. This is why the Tibetan lama's have had regents who raised them and took on the main responsibilities of the Dalai Lama (and the Panchen Lama).

The 14th Dalai Lama is in his 70's now and has had health problems recently. This makes his succession an active concern. He has told his people that he wants to appoint a regent to take over his responsibilities when he can no longer do so (for health reasons or because he has died).

Speculation about who that regent will be has started. The candidate most named is the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa.

Dalai Lama video's 

Tibetan Buddhism, Politics & China

Dalai Lama attacks China over Tibet -16 March 08 1 point

Dalai Lama Part I 1 point

Buddhism in America - His Holiness the Dalai Lama 1 point

Dalai Lama - The Four Noble Truths Part 1/4 0 points

"Dalai Lama Renaissance" Documentary (with Harrison Ford) #1 0 points

You might be interested in these Buddhist Calendars and books 

Finding the next Dalai Lama 

Chinese religious intolerance

As most people know, Tibetan Lama's have a regulated reincarnation. The next Dalai Lama will be found through a complicated ceremony where the prophecies of Tenzin Gyatzo, the current Dalai Lama, will be taken into account. Each candidate will be submitted to tests which show that they have memories of their previous life.

A political complication has come up in 2007 where the Chinese government insists that any Tibetan Lama that is recognized as a reincarnation of a previous one, will have to be approved by the Chinese government. Since the Dalai Lama doesn't recognize the rights of the Chinese government to control his reincarnation, he has announced that he will not be reborn in Tibet while it's under Chinese domination.

The most famous example of the religious control of the Chinese government over reincarnating lama's is in the Panchen Lama - the most powerful lama in Tibetan Buddhism, after the Dalai Lama. The Chinese government has recognized one boy as the Panchen Lama, while the Dalai Lama recognizes another - a boy whose whereabouts aren't known.

Films about Tibet & (Tibetan) Buddhism 

Inspiring Tibetan Buddhist DVDs

Classic films on DVD that will inspire, move and inform.

Amongst White Clouds

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Life of Buddha

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Little Buddha

About a little boy from the USA that gets picked as the incarnation of a Tibetan Lama.

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Tibet - Cry of the Snow Lion

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Tibet: A Buddhist Trilogy

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Tibetan Buddhism 

The Dalai Lama as the face of Buddhism for the West

The Dalai Lama

Tenzin Gyatzo (the Dalai Lama) is first and foremost a Tibetan Buddhist monk. Yet it is his consistently peaceful stand in the confrontation with China which has impressed many people. He was awarded the Nobel Peace price for this work.

Based on his fame as a fighter for peace, he has also become the face of Buddhism abroad. Many people, when thinking of Buddhism, will think of the Dalai Lama first. This has made Buddhism one of the most popular religions in the world. With it's lack of dogmatism and peaceful stand on all kinds of subjects - it's the ideal religious choice for many westerners disappointed in Christianity.

The books written by the Dalai Lama have mostly (though not exclusively) been focused on right living. The basic aspects of the Buddhist path have been stressed, because those aspects are the ones more people can understand and are eager to learn.
This does not mean the Dalai Lama is a Buddhist light weight. With full training in the Gelugpa School he is fully capable of explaining the more abstruse aspects of (Tibetan) Buddhist philosophy and thought.

more Tibetan Buddhism

Dalai Lama films 

Kundun

After the book: a film about the life of the Dalai Lama and his family.

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The Sacred Sites of the Dalai Lamas: A Pilgrimage to The Oracle Lake

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Seven Years in Tibet

Two German mountain climbers find their way to Tibet and stay there for seven years. One of them ends up tutoring the Dalai Lama as a small boy.

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Voting for or against reincarnation! 

Dalai Lama gives his followers a choice: should he reincarnate?

In response to recent actions of the Chinese government, the Dalai Lama is putting it to the vote: should he reincarnate or not?

If his followers say that he should reincarnate, he is considering appointing his successor while he is still alive. This is surprising - as it puts into question the whole process of reincarnation.

The politics of this move are obvious though: The Chinese government has made it clear that they claim the right to approve or disapprove any incarnation of a Tibetan Buddhist lama. The Dalai Lama clearly doesn't want them to control who becomes the next leader of the Tibetan people.

From: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article2955350.ece

The Dalai Lama also made it clear that his next incarnation could be a woman.

From: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/12/07/wlama107.xml

Books by the Dalai Lama 

Tibetan Buddhist views and beliefs

The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living

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How to Practice : The Way to a Meaningful Life

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The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality

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An Open Heart: Practicing Compassion in Everyday Life

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Healing Anger: The Power of Patience from a Buddhist Perspective

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Dalai Lama Quotes, or are they? 

Quotes that circulate online with the name of the Dalai Lama attached, that somehow don't ring true... But boy are they inspiring. These collections of quotes show that the Dalai Lama has become such an icon that people attribute quotes to him, even when the quotes are obviously not Buddhist.
Wisdom from the heart
These are great quotes, but I don't think the Dalai Lama would have said: Sleep is the best meditation.
The Dalai Lama's Recommendations for You
I especially love the last one: Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon. The Dalai Lama is not only supposed to be a virgin, being raised a monk - does any of you think he can cook?

The Dalai Lama on homosexuality 

Religious Debate in Buddhism

With all the focus in Western society on sex, it's not surprising that the Dalai Lama has been asked what his opinion is about people being gay. He was a bit stumped at first, but decided that if both partners consented, there wasn't a problem.

That said, it's clear that within the Buddhist monasteries, sex isn't allowed - that includes gay sex. As a monk, the Dalai Lama himself is supposed to be celibate - and there hasn't been a hint that he isn't.

That's not because there is anything wrong with sexuality or homosexuality. It's because the goal of Buddhism is to transcend desire and sorrow in order to become truly awake or enlightened and reach Nirvana.

More on Buddhism and relationships

The Dalai Lama and Science 

Meditation and neurology

Love and Compassion

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Tenzin Gyatzo has always been interested in science and technology. His interest in Neurology has been influential. He has worked with scientists of the brain on meditation and it's effects on the brain. As it's put on his own website:

The Dalai Lama, who had watched a brain operation during a visit to an American medical school over a decade earlier, asked the surgeons a startling question: Can the mind shape brain matter?

Over the years, he said, neuroscientists had explained to him that mental experiences reflect chemical and electrical changes in the brain. When electrical impulses zip through our visual cortex, for instance, we see; when neurochemicals course through the limbic system we feel.

But something had always bothered him about this explanation, the Dalai Lama said. Could it work the other way around? That is, in addition to the brain giving rise to thoughts and hopes and beliefs and emotions that add up to this thing we call the mind, maybe the mind also acts back on the brain to cause physical changes in the very matter that created it. If so, then pure thought would change the brain's activity, its circuits or even its structure. Source

By now it's pretty well established that everything we do, especially learning efforts, changes the brain itself. The brain is capable of learning and changing far into adult life. The effects of meditation on the brain are also startling, though not yet proved beyond a shadow of the scientists doubts.

This type of evidence also makes it harder to believe that consciousness is a mere byproduct of the brain, as some neurologists claim. If consciousness impacts the brain-wiring, the logical conclusion is that it is in fact in some ways independent of the brain.

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