14th Dalai Lama

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File:DalaiLama.jpg
His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama

Tenzin Gyatso (Tibetan: བསྟན་འཛིན་རྒྱ་མཚོ་ Wylie: Bstan 'dzin Rgya mtsho or Bstan-Dzin-Rgya-Mtsho) (b. July 6, 1935) is the fourteenth and current Dalai Lama.

Early life

File:AsAChild.jpg
The Dalai Lama as a child

The Dalai Lama was born to a farming family as Lhamo Thondup (also spelled Lhamo Dhondrub among other spellings) on July 6, 1935, in the far northeastern province of Amdo in the village of Taktser, a small and poor settlement which stood on a hill overlooking a broad valley. His parents,Choekyong and Dekyi Tsering, were small farmers among about 20 other families making a precarious living off the land raising barley, buckwheat, and potatoes. He was the 5th child out of nine, the eldest child being his sister Tsering Dolma, who was eighteen years older than the Dalai Lama. His oldest brother, Thupten Jigme Norbu has been recognized as the reincarnation of the high lama, Takser Rinpoche. His older brothers are Gyalo Thondup and Lobsang Samten. When the Dalai Lama was about three years old, a search party had been sent out to find the new incarnation of the Dalai Lama. The 13th Dalai Lama turned to face the Northeast while he was dying indicateing that area is where the next Dalai Lama should be found. Shortly after a senior lama had a vision of a house with stragely shaped guttering. They found a house similar to the one in the vision after extensive searching. They presened the boy, Lhama Thondup, various relics and toys of the previous Dalai Lama. It is claimed that he recognized them by saying, "It's mine, It's mine". [1]

File:His H 22 yrs head.jpg
Tenzin Gyatso at the age of 22

Lhamo Thondup was elevated to the status of Dalai Lama and renamed Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso "Holy Lord, Gentle Glory, Compassionate, Defender of the Faith, Ocean of Wisdom"). Tibetan Buddhists normally refer to him as Yeshe Norbu, the "Wish-fulfilling Gem", or just Kundun, "the Presence". In the West he is often called "His Holiness the Dalai Lama", which is the style that the Dalai Lama uses on his official website.

Tenzin Gyatso began his monastic education at the age of six. At 25 he sat for his final examination in the Jokhang Temple, Lhasa, during the annual Monlam (prayer) Festival in 1959. He passed with honours and was awarded the Lharampa degree, the highest level geshe degree (roughly equivalent to a doctorate of Buddhist philosophy).

Life as Dalai Lama

Tenzin Gyatso

As well as being the most influential spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, the Dalai Lama is traditionally also Tibet's Head of State and sole political ruler. At the age of fifteen, Tenzin Gyatso was on November 17 1950 enthroned as the temporal leader of Tibet; however, he was only able to govern the country for a brief time. In October of that year a People's Republic of China army entered Tibet, easily breaking through the smaller country's defences. The Dalai Lama fled to Dharamsala, India, on March 17 of that year, entering India on March 31 during the Tibetan uprising.

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TIME Magazine, April 20, 1959

Tenzin Gyatso is the first Dalai Lama, to travel outside of Tibet and the first Dalai Lama to visit the West where he has helped spread Buddhism.

In 1989 Tenzin Gyatso was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, with the chairman of the Nobel committee saying that this was "in part a tribute to the memory of Mahatma Gandhi."

Exile in India

The Dalai Lama had brought up the possibility of fleeing Tibet with the Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru when peace talks with China were not proving succesful. Nehru did not want to increase tensions between China and India so he encouraged the Dalai Lama to work on the Seventeen Point Agreement Tibet had with China. Eventually in 1959 the Dalai Lama fled Tibet and set up the government of Tibet in Exile in Dharamsala, India which is often refered to as "Little Lhasa".

After the founding of the exiled government he rehablitated the Tibetan refugees that followed him in exile in agricultural settlements. He created a Tibetan educational system in order to teach the Tibetan children their language, history, religion, and culture. The Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts was established in 1959 and the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies became the primary university for Tibetans in India. He supported the refounding of 200 monastarties in order to preserve Tibetan Buddhist teachings and the Tibetan way of life.

The Dalai Lama appealed to the United Nations on the question of Tibet which resulted in three resolutions adopted by the General Assembly in 1959, 1961, and 1965. These resolutons required China to respect the human rights of Tibetans and their desire for self-determination.

In 1963 he promulagated a supposed democratic constitution which is based upon the Univeral Declaration of Human Rights. A Tibetan parliment are elected by the refugees in India and the Tibetan is likewise elected by the Tibetan parliment.

At the the Congressional Human Rights Caucus in 1987 in Washington D.C., he proposed a Five-Point Peace Plan regarding the future status of Tibet. The plan called for a designation of Tibet to be a zone of peace and the end of ethnic Chinese transfer into Tibet. It also called for fundamental human rights and democratic fredom's and the abandoment of China's use of Tibet for nuclear weapons producation and dispposal. Finally it urged for "earnest negotionas" on the future of Tibet.

He proposed a similar plan at Strasbourg, France, on 15 June 1988. He expanded on the the Five-Point Peace Plan and proposed the creation of a self-governing democratic Tibet, "in association with the People's Republic of China." This plan was rejected by the Tibetan Government-in-exile in 1991 because of what they perceived as Chinese hostility towards the ideas expressed in the proposal.

In October, 1991 he expressed his wish to return to Tibet to try to form a mutual assesment on the situation with the Chinese local government. He fears that a deadly uprsing will take place and wishes to avoid this.

On July 5, 2005 the Dalai Lama called on G-8 leaders meeting the next day to ease the plight of the millions starving in a meeting with the rock singer Annie Lennox. He said the meeting had "positive potential". [2]

The Dalai Lama celebrated his birthday on Wednesday, July 6 2005. About 10,000 Tibetan refugees, monks and foreign tourists gathered outside his home. The Orthodox Patriach is quoted in saying , "I confess that the Russian Orthodox Church highly appreciates the good relations it has with the followers of Buddhism and hopes for their further development."[3]. The Presidnet Chen Shui-bian of Taiwan attended an even celebrating the Dalai Lama's birthday that was entitled "Traveling with Love and Wisdom for 70 Years" at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei. The President invited him to return to Taiwan for a third trip in 2005. The previous trips were in 2001, and 1997. [4]

The Dalai Lama has attempted to return to Tibet as long as the Peoples Republic of China sets no preconditions on his return. [5]. On July 5, 2005 China refused his request to return to Tibet on his birthday until he dies despite worries that if he dies in exile it may spark a uprising against the local government in Tibet and neigboring areas. [6]

Foreign Relations

File:Ac.dalailamamao.jpg
Mao Zedong (center) with the Dalai Lama (right), and the 10th Panchen Lama (left), early 1950s

Since 1967, he has initiated a series of tours in 46 nations. He met with Pope Paul VI at the Vatican in 1973. He expressed his desire to meet with the Vatican head of state Pope John Paul II. The Pope agreed and met him in 1980 and also later in 1982, 1986,1988, and 1990. He has also met with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Robert Runcie, and with other leaders of the Anglican church in London. Finally he has met with Jewish and other Catholic officials. He currently has ongoing relations with the Russian Orthodox Church. Lithuanian President Vytautas Landsbergis invited him to address the Lithuanian Parliment. He was the first foreign leader to do so. He currently has ongoing relations with India, and has had relations in the past with the United Nations and the United States. In an unusual event the Dalai Lama was refused a visit to South Korea in 2001. [7] Chinese envoys and the Dalai Lama's have had four talks since September 2002 over the Tibet Question which has been met by interational and U.S. support. [8]

Social and Political Stances

Tibetan Independence movement

The Dalai Lama supported the creation of the Tibetan resistance movement. However the movement was a failure and forced to retreat to Nepal and/or go underground. He then began to change his policy towards a peaceful solution in which he would be reinstated in a Democratic Tibet that would be autonomous of China to the extent the Tibetans wished. This is as of July 2005 currently under negotiation.

Global Political stances

The Dalai Lama is opposed to usage and stockpiling of weapons of mass destruction and supports demilitirazation. In 1998 he pledged his support to the People's Republic of China's proposal to ban all weapons of mass destruction. [9] The Dalai Lama opposes wars including the War in Iraq. He blames the worlds powers for wars and believes that they are simply an old habbit. [10]

Global Social stances

The Dalai endorsed the founding of the Dalai Lama Foudnation in order to promote peace and ethics worldwide. [11] He also is reported to have said regarding homosexuality, "If the two people have taken no vows [of chastity], and neither is harmed why should it not be acceptable?" He holds that according to tradition homosexuality and other topics like birth control are wrong but not everyone adheres to Budhism or any other philosophy or religion. He aslo believes modern science takes precendence over ancient religions. [12]

Criticism

The Dalai Lama has received considerable criticism from the People's Republic of China, which views his activities as subversive and dangerous. The PRC also attempts to keep the Dalai Lama from gaining entry into nations that it has foreign relations with. An example of this was in November 1999, when the Dalai Lama was granted access to visit Israel by the Israeli government, which the PRC immediately criticized.[13] The PRC also claimed in 2001 that the Dalai Lama was supporting Taiwanese independence during his visit to Taiwan in 2001. The Dalai Lama characterized the visit as a spiritual mission. [14] The Dalai Lama has also received crticism for his interest as a child in war toys and as an adult with his interests in World War II monuments. They generally claim that he is obsessed with war yet professes to oppose it. [15].

International influence

Conversations with President George W. Bush in the White House on May 23, 2001

The Dalai Lama speaks English as a second language and has been successful in gaining Western sympathy for Tibetan self-determination, including vocal support from numerous Hollywood celebrities, most notably the actor Richard Gere, as well as lawmakers from several major countries.

Tenzin Gyatso has on occasion been denounced by the Chinese government as a supporter of Tibetan independence. Over time he has developed a public position stating that he is not necessarily in favour of Tibetan independence and would not object to a status in which Tibet has internal autonomy while the PRC manages defense and foreign affairs.

There have been intermittent and quiet negotiations between the Tibetan government in exile and the government of the People's Republic of China. The Dalai Lama has generally wished to discuss the issue of the status of Tibet within China, while the Chinese government has insisted that negotiations be limited to the conditions of the Dalai Lama's return to Tibet.

On April 18, 2005, Time Magazine placed Tenzin Gyatso on its list of the world's 100 most influential people.

Writings of the Dalai Lama

Famous Quotes

Wikiquote has quotations related to 14th Dalai Lama.
  • "If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
  • "In the practice of tolerance, one's enemy is the best teacher."
  • “I am a simple Buddhist monk — no more, no less.”
  • "My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness."

Awards given to the Dalai Lama

The Dalai Lama has received numberous awards over his political career. The most recent was on May 28, 2005 when he received the Christmas Humphrey's Award from the Buddhist Society in the United Kingdom. Perhaps his most notable award was the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo on December 10, 1989. Some other notable awards he has received:

A complete list

Nobel Peace Prize

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The Dalai Lama receiving the Nobel Peace Prize

In 1989 Tenzin Gyatso was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, with the chairman of the Nobel committee saying that this was "in part a tribute to the memory of Mahatma Gandhi." He was officially awarded it because the commitee wished to recognize his efforts in the struggle of the liberation of Tibet and the efforts for a peaceful resolution instead of using violence. [16]. He criticized China in his acceptance speech for the use of force against the student protesters during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. He stated however that their effort was not in vain. The main focus of his speech was the improsement of Tibetans in China and the stressing of use of non-violence. [17]

Films about the Dalai Lama

Among the films that have been recently made about the 14th Dalai Lama are Kundun and Seven Years in Tibet.

Other recent films include:

Trivia

The email titled, "Instructions for Life in the New Millennium from the Dalai Lama" was actually written by H. Jackson Brown Jr in his book, "Life's Little Instruction Book." instead of the Dalai Lama which popularly believed. Follow the link for the text of the e-mail. [18]

See also

References

Literary

Freedom in Exile, the Autobiography of the Dalai Lama. (Text from [19])

Internet

  1. "Cosmic Harmony". Dalai Lama Address to the United Nations. July 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  2. "lattimes.com". Dalai Lama Calls Urges G-8 to Action. July 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  3. "Interfax". Patriarch congratulates Dalai Lama on 70th birthday. July 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  4. "CNA news". President invites Dalai Lama to visit Taiwan again. July 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  5. "Global Village News". Dalai Lama Considers Ending Exile & Return To Tibet. July 9. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  6. "Hinustan Times". China rules out birthday present for Dalai Lama. July 9. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  7. "World Tibet Network News". South Korea Government Faces Criticism After Refusal to Allow Dalai Lama's Visit. July 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  8. "World Peace Herald". U.S. welcomes China-Dalai Lama envoy talks. July 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  9. "World Tibet Network News". His Holiness the Dalai Lama's view on India's Nuclear Tests. July 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  10. "The Government of Tibet in Exile". His Holiness the Dalai Lama's views on war and Iraq conflict. July 9. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  11. "The Dalai Lama Foundation". Missions and Programs. July 8. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  12. "Boston.com". The Buddha of suburbia. July 9. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  13. "CNN.com". China keeps up attacks on Dalai Lama. July 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  14. "World Tibet Network News". Dalai Lama arrives in Israel despite Chinese criticism (AFP). July 7. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  15. "trimondi.de". The War of Gods behind the mask of peace. July 9. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  16. "The Nobel Prize". Dalai Lama (Tenzin Gyatso). July 9. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)
  17. "The Government of Tibet in Exile". His Holiness the Dalai Lama's Nobel Prize acceptance speech University Aula, Oslo, 10 December 1989. July 9. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)

External links

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