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14th Dalai Lama

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Tenzin Gyatso
14th Dalai Lama of Tibet
File:Tenzin Gyatzo foto 1.jpg
Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama
Reign17 November 1950–Present
Coronation17 November 1950
PredecessorThubten Gyatso
Names
Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso
Tibetanབསྟན་འཛིན་རྒྱ་མཚོ་
Wylie translit.bstan ’dzin rgya mtsho
Pronunciationtɛ̃tsĩ catsʰo (IPA)
Transcription (PRC)Dainzin Gyaco
THDLTenzin Gyatso
HouseDalai Lama
FatherChoekyong Tsering
MotherDiki Tsering

Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso (born Llhamo Döndrub (Tibetan: ལྷ་མོ་དོན་འགྲུབ་, Wylie: Lha-mo Don-'grub) 6 July 1935 in Qinghai[1]), is the 14th and current Dalai Lama.[2] The Dalai Lama is a revered spiritual leader among Tibetans and exerts a powerful influence over the Gelug School of Tibetan Buddhism. He is head of the Tibetan Government in Exile in Dharamsala, India.[3][4][5] A Nobel Peace Prize laureate, he is also the world's best-known Buddhist monk. However, the government of the People's Republic of China regards him as the symbol of an outmoded theocratic system.[6]

Tenzin Gyatso was the fifth of 16 children born to a farming family in the village of Taktser, Qinghai province[1] where he learned the Amdo dialect of Tibetan as his first language.[7][8] He was proclaimed the tulku (rebirth) of the thirteenth Dalai Lama two years after he was born. On 17 November 1950, at the age of fifteen, he was enthroned as Tibet's Dalai Lama, thus becoming Tibet's most important political ruler. This occurred only one month after the People's Liberation Army's invasion of Tibet.

After initially ratifying, under military pressure, the 1951 Seventeen Point Agreement, he left Tibet for India following the failed uprising and the collapse of the Tibetan resistance movement in 1959. In India, he was active in establishing the Tibetan Government in Exile and in seeking to preserve Tibetan culture and education among the thousands of refugees who accompanied him.[9]

Tenzin Gyatso is described as a "charismatic" figure[7][10] and noted public speaker. He is the first Dalai Lama to travel to the West. There, he has helped to spread Tibetan Buddhism and to promote the concepts of universal responsibility, secular ethics, and religious harmony. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989,[7][11] honorary Canadian citizenship in 2006, and the United States Congressional Gold Medal on 17 October 2007.[12]

Early life and background

Birthplace in Taktser, Tibet

Tenzin Gyatso was born to a farming family as Lhamo Döndrub or Lhamo Thondup in Taktser[13] a small and poor settlement that stands on a hill overlooking a broad valley. His parents, Choekyong and Diki Tsering, were relatively wealthy farmers among about twenty other families, all making a precarious living growing barley, buckwheat and potatoes.[citation needed]

His parents had sixteen children, and Tenzin Gyatso is the fifth eldest of the nine who survived childhood. The eldest child was his sister Tsering Dolma, who was eighteen years older than he. His eldest brother, Thupten Jigme Norbu, has been recognised as the rebirth of the high Lama, Taktser Rinpoche. His sister Jetsun Pema went on to depict their mother in the 1997 film Seven Years in Tibet. His other elder brothers are Gyalo Thondup and Lobsang Samden.

Tenzin Gyatso as a boy

When Tenzin Gyatso was about two years old a search party was sent out to find the new incarnation of the Dalai Lama.[7] Among other omens, the head on the embalmed body of the thirteenth Dalai Lama (originally facing south) had mysteriously turned to face the northeast, indicating the direction in which the next Dalai Lama would be found. Shortly afterwards, the Regent Reting Rinpoche had a vision at the sacred lake of Lhamo La-tso indicating Amdo (as the place to search) and a one-story house with distinctive guttering and tiling. After extensive searching, they found that Thondup's house resembled that in Reting's vision. They presented Thondup with various relics and toys—some had belonged to the previous Dalai Lama while others had not. It was reported that Thondup correctly identified all items owned by the previous Dalai Lama, exclaiming "That's mine! That's mine!"[14][15]

Thondup was recognised as the reincarnated 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 Yishin Norbu ("Wish-Fulfilling Gem"), Kyabgon ("Savior"), or just Kundun ("Presence"). In the West, his followers often call him "His Holiness the Dalai Lama," which is the style that he uses himself on his website.

The Dalai Lama began his monastic education at the age of six, his main Teachers being Yongdzin Ling Rinpoche (Senior Tutor) and Yongdzin Trijang Rinpoche (Junior Tutor). At age eleven he met Austrian mountaineer Heinrich Harrer, after spying him in Lhasa through his telescope. Harrer effectively became one of the young Dalai Lama's tutors, teaching him about the outside world. The two remained friends until Harrer's death in 2006. In 1959, at age 25 he sat for his final examination in Lhasa's Jokhang Temple during the annual Monlam (prayer) Festival. He passed with honors and was awarded the Lharampa degree, the highest-level geshe degree (roughly equivalent to a doctorate in Buddhist philosophy).[7][16]

Life as the Dalai Lama

The Dalai Lama's former quarters at the Potala, Lhasa

As well as being one of the most influential spiritual leaders of Tibetan Buddhism, the Dalai Lama by tradition is also Tibet's absolute political ruler. In 1939 at the age of four he was taken by lamas in a procession to Lhasa, where an official ceremony recognized him as the reborn spiritual leader of Tibet. His childhood was spent between the Potala and Norbulingka, his summer residence.

On 17 November 1950, at the age of fifteen, with the country facing possible conflict with the People's Republic of China, Tenzin Gyatso was enthroned as the temporal leader of Tibet. His governorship, however, was short. In October of that year the army of the People's Republic of China entered the territory controlled by the Tibetan administration, easily breaking through the Tibetan defenders.

The Dalai Lama sent a delegation to Beijing and, although under PLA military pressure, ratified[17][18] the subsequent Seventeen Point Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet and tried to work with Beijing. In September 1954, the Dalai Lama and the 10th Panchen Lama went to Beijing to attend the first session of the first National People's Congress, meeting Mao Zedong.[19] However, during 1959, there was a major uprising among the Tibetan population. In the tense political environment that ensued, the Dalai Lama and his entourage began to suspect that China was planning to kill him. Consequently, he fled to Tawang, India, on 17 March of that year, entering India on 31 March during the Tibetan uprising.

Exile to India

File:Nehru and Gyatso 1959.jpg
Jawaharlal Nehru and the Dalai Lama in Mussoorie, at their first meeting after he fled Tibet in 1959.

The Dalai Lama met with the Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, to urge India to pressure China into giving Tibet an autonomous government, as relations with China were not proving successful. 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, after the failed uprising in 1959, the Dalai Lama fled Tibet and set up the Government of Tibet in Exile in Dharamsala, India, which is often referred to as "Little Lhasa".

After the founding of the exiled government he reestablished the ~80,000 Tibetan refugees who followed him into exile in agricultural settlements.[7] He created a Tibetan educational system in order to teach the Tibetan children what he believed to be traditional language, history, religion, and culture. The Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts was established[7] in 1959 and the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies[7] became the primary university for Tibetans in India. He supported the refounding of 200 monasteries and nunneries in an attempt to preserve Tibetan Buddhist teachings and the Tibetan way of life.

File:Tibetanparliament asaf.jpg
Tibetan Parliament in Exile in Dharamsala

The Dalai Lama appealed to the United Nations on the question of Tibet. This appeal resulted in three resolutions adopted by the General Assembly in 1959, 1961, and 1965.[7] These resolutions required China to respect the human rights of Tibetans and their desire for self-determination. In 1963, he promulgated a democratic constitution which is based upon the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. A Tibetan parliament-in-exile is elected by the Tibetan refugees scattered all over the world, and the Tibetan Government-in-Exile is likewise elected by the Tibetan parliament.

At 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 Tibet to become a "zone of peace" and for the end of movement by ethnic Han Chinese into Tibet. It also called for "respect for fundamental human rights and democratic freedoms" and "the end of China's use of Tibet for nuclear weapons production, testing, and disposal." Finally, it urged "earnest negotiations" on the future of Tibet.

The main teaching room of the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala, India

He proposed a similar plan at Strasbourg on 15 June 1988. He expanded on 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. In October 1991, he expressed his wish to return to Tibet to try to make a mutual assessment on the situation with the Chinese local government. At this time he feared that a violent uprising would take place and wished to avoid it. The Dalai Lama has indicated that he wishes to return to Tibet only if the People's Republic of China sets no preconditions for his return, which they have so far refused to do.[20][21]

Tenzin Gyatso celebrated his seventieth birthday on 6 July 2005. About 10,000 Tibetan refugees, monks and foreign tourists gathered outside his home. Patriarch Alexius II of the Russian Orthodox Church said, "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." Taiwan's President, Chen Shui-bian, attended an evening 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. His previous trips were in 2001, and 1997.[22] In Tibet there is a popular song calling for his return to Tibet called Aku Pema

Teaching activity

The Dalai Lama is a Dzogchen practitioner and he gives teachings on this issue, and has expounded many teachings in his numerous publications. He has also given many public initiations in the Kalachakra.

In February 2007, the Dalai Lama was named Presidential Distinguished Professor at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, United States,[23] the first time that the leader of the Tibetan exile community has accepted a university appointment. The appointment is in part an expansion of a program begun in 1998 called the Emory–Tibet Partnership. As Presidential Distinguished Professor, he will:[23]

  • provide opportunities for university community members to attend his annual teachings,
  • make periodic visits to Emory to participate in programs, and
  • continue the Emory–Tibet Partnership practice of providing private teaching sessions with students and faculty during Emory's study-abroad program in Dharamsala.

The Dalai Lama has strong ties with University of Wisconsin-Madison in Madison, Wisconsin, United States, and is a frequent visitor there. He visited the university in 1981 and again in 1989, the year in which he won the Nobel Peace Prize. In May 1998, he addressed a large audience at the Kohl Center and received an honorary degree from the university. In May 2001, he met with a group of neuroscientists who conduct research on the effects of meditation on brain function, emotions and physical health. His most recent visit to the U.S. was in April 2008, when he gave lectures on engaging wisdom and compassion, and sustainability, at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and at Colgate University in Hamilton, N.Y.[24]

Foreign relations

The Dalai Lama & Archbishop Desmond Tutu, 2004. Photo by Carey Linde.
File:Dalai Lama, Berlin 2003.jpg
The Dalai Lama at an interfaith gathering in Berlin, 2003
Tenzin Gyatso in Dharamsala, 1993

Since 1967, the Dalai Lama has initiated a series of tours in 46 nations. He has frequently engaged on religious dialogue. He met with Pope Paul VI at the Vatican in 1973. He met with Pope John Paul II in 1980 and also later in 1982, 1986, 1988, 1990, and 2003.

In 1990, he met in Dharamsala with a delegation of Jewish teachers for an extensive interfaith dialogue.[25] He has since visited Israel three times and met in 2006 with the Chief Rabbi of Israel. In 2006, he met privately with Pope Benedict XVI. He has also met the late Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. Robert Runcie, and other leaders of the Anglican Church in London, Gordon B. Hinckley, late President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons), as well as senior Eastern Orthodox Church, Muslim, Hindu, Jewish, and Sikh officials.

During the runup to the Beijing Olympics of 2008, the Dalai Lama visited, on April 10, 2008, Japan on his way to the United States, amid protests around the world over China's handling of the 2008 Tibetan unrest. The Dalai Lama, whom Beijing claimed fomented the unrest, called for calm, but the protests showed little sign of abating. The Dalai Lama said he does not support a boycott of the 2008 Summer Games outright.[26] Japan's government had been relatively quiet about the violence in Tibet and, out of deference to Beijing, does not deal officially with the Dalai Lama. Tokyo does, however, grant visas to the spiritual leader, who has visited Japan fairly frequently.[27]

Philanthropic efforts

The 14th Dalai Lama has been a longstanding supporter of SOS Children's Villages.[28] He often visits the villages, and has maintained a friendship with the founder, Hermann Gmeiner, that has continued to Gmeiner's successor, Helmut Kutin. The Dalai Lama has said of SOS:

"The splendid work done by SOS Children's Villages is charity where deeds speak louder than words. The revolutionary idea and the general concept developed by Hermann Gmeiner for providing orphaned and abandoned children with a new family and a permanent home has had a great influence on child welfare world-wide, and SOS Children's Villages have become a model on every continent. Above all, SOS Children's Villages shows that it is possible to create a community of brothers and sisters comprising children of all races, creeds and nationalities. The ties that develop and hold these communities together and form the basis of their upbringing is love."

Social and political stances

Tibetan independence movement

The Dalai Lama accepted the 1951 Seventeen Point Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet with the People's Republic of China. However, his brothers moved to Kalimpong in India and, with the help of the Indian and American governments, organized pro-independence literature and the smuggling of weapons into Tibet. Armed struggles broke out in Amdo and Kham in 1956 and later spread to Central Tibet. The movement was a failure and was forced to retreat to Nepal or go underground. Following normalisation of relations between the United States and the People's Republic of China, American support was cut off in the early 1970s. The Dalai Lama then began to formulate his policy towards a peaceful solution in which a democratic autonomous Tibet would be established[citation needed].

In October 1998, the Dalai Lama's administration acknowledged that it received US$1.7 million a year in the 1960s from the U.S. Government through the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and had also trained a guerrilla army in Colorado (USA).[29]

The Dalai Lama 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 in favour of Tibetan independence[30] and would not object to a status in which Tibet has internal autonomy while the PRC manages some aspects of Tibet's defense and foreign affairs.[31] In his 'Middle Way Approach', he laid down that the Chinese government can take care of foreign affairs and defense, and that Tibet should be managed by an elected body.[32]

The Dalai Lama on March 16, 2008 called for an international probe of China's treatment of Tibet, which he said is causing "cultural genocide" of his people.[33] He has stated that he will step down as leader of Tibet's government-in-exile if violence by protesters in the region worsens, the exiled spiritual leader said March 18, 2008 after China's premier Wen Jiabao blamed his supporters for the growing unrest.[34] On March 20, 2008, he claimed he was powerless to stop anti-Chinese violence.[35] The Dalai Lama March 28, 2008 rejected a series of allegations from the Chinese government, saying he does not seek the separation of Tibet and has no desire to "sabotage" the 2008 Summer Olympics.[36]

There has been criticism that old Tibet was not as benevolent as popularly portrayed. The penal code before 1913 included forms of corporal punishment and capital punishment.[37] In response, the Dalai Lama agreed many of old Tibet's practices needed reform. His predecessor had banned extreme punishments and the death penalty.[38] And he had instituted key reforms like removal of debt inheritance before the Chinese invaded in 1951.[31]

On June 4, 2008, Dalai Lama said that Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh, a territory that is called Southern Tibet in mainland China and still claimed by the People's Republic of China, is part of India, acknowledging the validity of the McMahon Line as per the 1914 Simla Agreement signed by Tibetan and British representatives.[39]

Social stances

The Dalai Lama endorsed the founding of the Dalai Lama Foundation in order to promote peace and ethics worldwide. The Dalai Lama is not operationally involved with this foundation, though he suggests some overall direction and his office is routinely briefed on its activities.[40] He has also stated his belief that modern scientific findings take precedence over ancient religions.[41][42]

Abortion

The Dalai Lama is generally opposed to abortion,[43] although he has taken a nuanced position, as he explained to the New York Times:

Of course, abortion, from a Buddhist viewpoint, is an act of killing and is negative, generally speaking. But it depends on the circumstances. If the birth will create serious problems for the parent, these are cases where there can be an exception. I think abortion should be approved or disapproved according to each circumstance.[44]

Economics

"Of all the modern economic theories, the economic system of Marxism is founded on moral principles, while capitalism is concerned only with gain and profitability. Marxism is concerned with the distribution of wealth on an equal basis and the equitable utilization of the means of production. It is also concerned with the fate of the working classes—that is, the majority—as well as with the fate of those who are underprivileged and in need, and Marxism cares about the victims of minority-imposed exploitation. For those reasons the system appeals to me, and it seems fair. I just recently read an article in a paper where His Holiness the Pope also pointed out some positive aspects of Marxism.
As for the failure of the Marxist regimes, first of all I do not consider the former USSR, or China, or even Vietnam, to have been true Marxist regimes, for they were far more concerned with their narrow national interests than with the Workers' International; this is why there were conflicts, for example, between China and the USSR, or between China and Vietnam. If those three regimes had truly been based upon Marxist principles, those conflicts would never have occurred.
I think the major flaw of the Marxist regimes is that they have placed too much emphasis on the need to destroy the ruling class, on class struggle, and this causes them to encourage hatred and to neglect compassion. Although their initial aim might have been to serve the cause of the majority, when they try to implement it all their energy is deflected into destructive activities. Once the revolution is over and the ruling class is destroyed, there is not much left to offer the people; at this point the entire country is impoverished and unfortunately it is almost as if the initial aim were to become poor. I think that this is due to the lack of human solidarity and compassion. The principal disadvantage of such a regime is the insistence placed on hatred to the detriment of compassion.
The failure of the regime in the former Soviet Union was, for me, not the failure of Marxism but the failure of totalitarianism. For this reason I still think of myself as half-Marxist, half-Buddhist."[45]

Environment

He has also expressed his concern for environmental problems:

On the global level, I think the ecology problem is very serious. I hear about some states taking it very seriously. That's wonderful! So this blue planet is our only home, if something goes wrong at the present generation, then the future generations really face a lot of problems, and those problems will be beyond human control; so that's very serious. Ecology should be part of our daily life.

— The Dalai Lama, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, September 19, 2006[46]

In recent years, he has been campaigning for wildlife conservation, including a religious ruling against wearing tiger and leopard skins as garments.[47][48]

Firearms

In 2001, he discussed firearms and self-defense:

One girl wanted to know how to react to a shooter who takes aim at a classmate.

The Dalai Lama said acts of violence should be remembered, and then forgiveness should be extended to the perpetrators. But if someone has a gun and is trying to kill you, he said, it would be reasonable to shoot back with your own gun. Not at the head, where a fatal wound might result. But at some other body part, such as a leg.

— Seattle Times, Portland, Oregon May 15, 2001[49]

Sexuality

In his view, oral, manual and anal sex (both homosexual and heterosexual) is not acceptable in Buddhism or for Buddhists, but society otherwise should tolerate gays and lesbians.[50] He explains in his book Beyond Dogma: "homosexuality, whether it is between men or between women, is not improper in itself. What is improper is the use of organs already defined as inappropriate for sexual contact." In 1997 he explained that the basis of that teaching was unknown to him and that he at least had some "willingness to consider the possibility that some of the teachings may be specific to a particular cultural and historic context."[51] In a 1994 interview with OUT Magazine, the Dalai Lama explained, "If someone comes to me and asks whether homosexuality is okay or not, I will ask...'What is your companion's opinion?' If you both agree, then I think I would say, if two males or two females voluntarily agree to have mutual satisfaction without further implication of harming others, then it is okay."[52]

Controversy

The Dalai Lama has a number of critics. For example, during his recent teaching tour of the UK, there were demonstrations by the Western Shugden Society,[53][54] and by Chinese students. The Western Shugden Society say they are protesting the ban of a prayer to Dorje Shugden,[53] which they argue constitutes religious persecution.[54] Similar protests occurred in Sydney when the Dalai Lama arrived in Australia in June 2008.[55] The Dalai Lama says he had not banned the practice,[53] but strongly discourages it as he feels it promotes the spirit as being more important than Buddha, and that it may encourage cult-like practices and sectarianism within Tibetan Buddhism.[56]

The Dalai Lama's talks in the UK have also been attended by Chinese protestors who oppose Tibetan independence.[57]

Despite protest from China, German Chancellor Angela Merkel met with the Dalai Lama in the Berlin Chancellery on 25 September 2007. The meeting was characterized as "private and informal talks" in order to avert potential retaliation by China such as the severance of trade ties. In response to the meeting, China cancelled meetings with German officials including Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries.[58]

In October 1998, The Dalai Lama's administration acknowledged that it received $1.7 million a year in the 1960s from the U.S. Government through the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and also trained a resistance movement in Colorado (USA).[29] When asked by CIA officer John Kenneth Knaus in 1995 whether the organization did a good or bad thing in providing its support, the Dalai Lama replied that though it helped the morale of those resisting the Chinese, "thousands of lives were lost in the resistance" and further, that "the U.S. Government had involved itself in his country's affairs not to help Tibet but only as a Cold War tactic to challenge the Chinese."[59]

Several Tulkus or "reincarnate Lamas" have criticized Tenzin Gyatso. Most recently, the twelfth Samding Dorje Phagmo (considered to be Tibet's "only female living Buddha,") who is also the vice-chairwoman of the standing committee of the Tibetan Autonomous Regional People's Congress, was quoted saying that "The sins of the Dalai Lama and his followers seriously violate the basic teachings and precepts of Buddhism and seriously damage traditional Tibetan Buddhism's normal order and good reputation." She told Xinhua that "Old Tibet was dark and cruel, the serfs lived worse than horses and cattle."[60]

Another controversy associated with the Dalai Lama is the recognition of the 17th Karmapa (see Karmapa controversy). To briefly sum up this controversy, two sides of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism have chosen two different 17th Karmapas, leading to a deep and painful division within the Kagyu school. The Dalai Lama has given his support to one of these two Karmapas (Urgyen Trinley Dorje), while supporters of the second Karmapa (Thaye Trinley Dorje) claim that the Dalai Lama has no authority in the matter, nor is there a historical precedent for a Dalai Lama involving himself in an internal Kagyu dispute[61]. In his 2001 address at the International Karma Kagyu Conference, Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche, who is a high-ranking Kagyu Lama, accuses the Dalai Lama of adopting a "divide and conquer" policy to eliminate any potential political rivalry arising from within the Kagyu school.[62] For his side, the Dalai Lama accepted the prediction letter presented by Tai Situ Rinpoche (another high-ranking Kagyu Lama) as authentic, and therefore Tai Situ Rinpoche's recognition of Urgyen Trinley Dorje, also as correct[63]. Tibet observer Julian Gearing suggests that there might be political motives to the Dalai Lama's decision: "The Dalai Lama gave his blessing to the recognition of [Urgyen] Trinley, eager to win over the formerly troublesome sect [the Kagyu school], and with the hope that the new Karmapa could play a role in a political solution of the 'Tibet Question.' ...If the allegations are to be believed, a simple nomad boy was turned into a political and religious pawn." [64]

British journalist Christopher Hitchens criticised the Dalai Lama in 1998, questioned his alleged support for India's nuclear weapons testing, his statements about sexual misconduct, his suppression of Shugden worship, as well as his meeting Shoko Asahara, whose cult Aum Shinrikyo released sarin nerve gas in the Tokyo subway system.[65][66] Hitchens proclaims that he "makes absurd pronouncements about sex and diet and, when on his trips to Hollywood fund-raisers, anoints major donors like Steven Segal and Richard Gere as holy."[67]

Western supporters

Wikinews has related news:
The Dalai Lama receiving a Congressional Gold Medal in 2007. George W. Bush, Robert Byrd, and Nancy Pelosi are on his left.

The Dalai Lama has been successful in gaining Western sympathy for Tibetan self-determination, including vocal support from numerous Hollywood celebrities, most notably the actors Richard Gere and Steven Seagal, as well as lawmakers from several major countries.[68]

In 2005[69] and 2008[70] Time Magazine placed the Dalai Lama on its list of the world's 100 most influential people.

On 22 June 2006, the Parliament of Canada voted unanimously to make The Dalai Lama an honorary citizen of Canada.[71][72] This marks the third of four times in history that the Government of Canada has bestowed this honour, the others being Raoul Wallenberg posthumously in 1985, Nelson Mandela in 2001 and Aung San Suu Kyi in 2007.

In September 2006, the United States Congress voted to award the Dalai Lama the Congressional Gold Medal,[73] the highest award which may be bestowed by the Legislative Branch of the United States government. The actual ceremony and awarding of the medal took place on 17 October 2007. The Chinese Government has reacted angrily to the award, which it merely refers to as "the extremely wrong arrangements." Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said: "It seriously violates the norm of international relations and seriously wounded the feelings of the Chinese people and interfered with China's internal affairs."[74]

In June 2007, the Dalai Lama made an Australian tour, delivering public talks in Perth, Bendigo, Melbourne, Geelong, Sydney, Canberra and Brisbane.

Retirement

Tenzin Gyatso during his visit to Italy in 2007.

In May 2007, Chhime Rigzing, a senior spokesman for the Tibetan spiritual leader's office, stated that the Dalai Lama wants to reduce his political burden as he moves into "retirement".[75]

Rigzing stated, "The political leadership will be transferred over a period of time but he will inevitably continue to be the spiritual leader because as the Dalai Lama, the issue of relinquishing the post does not arise."

The Dalai Lama announced he would like the elected Tibetan Parliament in Exile to have more responsibility over administration.

On 1 September 2007, China issued new rules controlling the selection of the next Dalai Lama, declaring that any reincarnation must bear the seal of approval by China's cabinet. These regulations could potentially result in one Dalai Lama approved by the Chinese government, and another chosen outside of Tibet.[76] This would be similar to the present situation with the Panchen Lamas and Karmapas. In November 2007, Tashi Wangdi said the new rules mean nothing. "It will have no effect" said Wangdi. "You can't impose a Pope. You can't impose an imam, an archbishop, saints, any religion... you can't politically impose these things on people. It has to be a decision of the followers of that tradition. The Chinese can use their political power: force. Again, it's meaningless."[77]

During the 2008 unrest in Tibet, the Dalai Lama called for calm[78] and concurrently condemned Chinese violence.[79] His call was met with Tibetan frustration at his methodology[80] and goals[81] and Chinese allegations that he himself incited the violence[82] in order to ruin the 2008 Summer Olympics.[83] In response to the continued violence perpetrated by Chinese as well as Tibetans,[84] on March 18, 2008, the Dalai Lama threatened to step down,[85] a move unprecedented[86] in the history of the office of the Dalai Lama.[87] Aides later clarified that this threat was predicated on a further escalation of violence, and that he did not presently have the intention of leaving his political or spiritual offices.[88] Many Tibetan exiles expressed their support for the Dalai Lama, and the People's Republic of China intensified their campaign of attacks against him.[89][90]

In the ensuing months, he held meetings aimed at discussing the future institution of the Dalai Lama, including:

[A] conclave, like in the Catholic Church, a woman as my successor, no Dalai Lama anymore, or perhaps even two, since the Communist Party has, astonishingly enough, given itself the right to be responsible for reincarnations.[91]

He has clarified that his goal is to relinquish all temporal power and to no longer play a "pronounced spiritual role" and have a simpler monastic life.

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  • Kalachakra Tantra: Rite of Initiation, Edited by [Jeffrey Hopkins, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-151-3
  • A Good Heart: A Buddhist Perspective on the Teachings of Jesus, Translated by Geshe Thupten Jinpa, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-138-6
  • Opening the Eye of New Awareness, Translated by Donald S. Lopez, Jr., Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-155-6
  • Freedom in Exile: The Autobiography of the Dalai Lama, London: Little, Brown and Co, 1990 ISBN 0-349-10462-X
  • Imagine All the People: A Conversation with the Dalai Lama on Money, Politics, and Life as it Could Be, Coauthored with Fabien Ouaki, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-150-5
  • An Open Heart, edited by Nicholas Vreeland. ISBN 0-316-98979-7
  • The Gelug/Kagyü Tradition of Mahamud]], coauthored with Alexander Berzin. Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications, 1997, ISBN 1-55939-072-7
  • Practicing Wisdom: The Perfection of Shantideva's Bodhisattva Way, translated by Geshe Thupten Jinpa, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-182-3
  • The Wisdom of Forgiveness: Intimate Conversations and Journeys, coauthored with Victor Chan, Riverbed Books, 2004, ISBN 1-57322-277-1
  • Tibetan Portrait: The Power of Compassion, photographs by Phil Borges with sayings by Tenzin Gyatso. ISBN 0-8478-1957-4
  • The Heart of Compassion: A Practical Approach to a Meaningful Life, Twin Lakes, Wisconsin: Lotus Press, ISBN 0-940985-36-5
  • Ancient Wisdom, Modern World: Ethics for the new millennium, Abacus Press, 2000, ISBN 0-349-11443-9
  • My Tibet, coauthoured with Galen Rowell, ISBN 0-520-08948-0
  • Sleeping, Dreaming, and Dying, edited by Francisco Varela, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-123-8
  • The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality, Morgan Road Books, 2005, ISBN 0-7679-2066-X
  • How to Expand Love: Widening the Circle of Loving Relationships, translated and edited by Jeffrey Hopkins, Ph.D., Atria Books, 2005, ISBN 0-7432-6968-3
  • Der Weg des Herzens. Gewaltlosigkeit und Dialog zwischen den Religionen (The Path of the Heart: Non-violence and the Dialogue among Religions), coauthored with Eugen Drewermann, Ph.D., Patmos Verlag, 2003, ISBN 3-4916-9078-1
  • How to See Yourself As You Really Are, Translated and edited by Jeffrey Hopkins, Ph.D. ISBN 0-7432-9045-3
  • MindScience: An East-West Dialogue, with contributions by Herbert Benson, Daniel Goleman, Robert Thurman, and Howard Gardner, Wisdom Publications, ISBN 0-86171-066-5
  • The New Physics and Cosmology: Dialogues with the Dalai Lama, edited by Arthur Zajonc, with contributions by David Finkelstein, George Greenstein, Piet Hut, Tu Wei-ming, Anton Zeilinger, B. Alan Wallace and Thupten Jinpa, Oxford University Press, 2004, ISBN 0-195-15994-2
  • The Power of Buddhism, co-authored with Jean-Claude Carriere ISBN 0717128032
  • Dzogchen: Heart Essence of the Great Perfection, translated by Geshe Thupten Jinpa and Richard Barron, Snow Lion Publications, 2000, ISBN 1559392193
  • Orphans of the Cold War, America and the Tibetan Struggle for Survival, John Kenneth Knaus, Public Affairs, New York. ISBN 1-891620-18-5 1999
  • Violence and Compassion: Dialogues on Life Today (With Jean-Claude Carriere), Doubleday, 2001. ISBN 978-0385-50144-6

Awards and honors

Wikinews has related news:
The Congressional Gold Medal awarded to Tenzin Gyatso in 2006

The Dalai Lama has received numerous awards over his spiritual and political career.[92] On 22 June 2006, he became one of only four people ever to be recognized with Honorary Citizenship by the Governor General of Canada. On 28 May 2005, he received the Christmas Humphreys Award from the Buddhist Society in the United Kingdom. Perhaps his most notable award was the Nobel Peace Prize, presented to him in Oslo on 10 December 1989 (see below). Some other notable awards and honors he has received:

Nobel Peace Prize

On 10 December 1989 the Dalai Lama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize,[100] the chairman of the Nobel committee said that the award was "in part a tribute to the memory of Mahatma Gandhi." The committee recognized his efforts in "the struggle of the liberation of Tibet and the efforts for a peaceful resolution instead of using violence."[101] In his acceptance speech he criticized China for using force against student protesters during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. He stated however that their effort was not in vain. His speech focused on the importance of the continued use of non-violence and his desire to maintain a dialogue with China to try to resolve the situation.[102]

Filmography

Examples of films recently made about Tenzin Gyatso:

Health and Appearance

The four marks on his right arm, which is left exposed per Buddhist tradition, do not have any sacred meaning. They are from a smallpox vaccination when he was a boy.[103]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c At the time of Tenzin Gyatso's birth, Qinghai was under the control of Ma Lin, a warlord allied with Chiang Kai-shek and appointed governor of Qinghai Province by the Kuomintang. See Li, T.T. "Historical Status of Tibet", Columbia University Press, p179 ; Bell, Charles, "Portrait of the Dalai Lama", p399; Goldstein, Melvyn C. Goldstein, A history of modern Tibet, pp315-317
  2. ^ "The Institution of the Dalai Lama" by R. N. Rahul Sheel in The Tibet Journal, Vol. XIV No. 3. Autumn 1989, pp. 19-32 says on pp. 31-32, n. 1: "The word Dalai is Mongolian for "ocean", used mainly by the Chinese, the Mongols, and foreigners. Rgya mtsho, the corresponding Tibetan word, always has formed the last part of the religious name of the Dalai Lama since Dalai Lama II [sic – should read Dalai Lama III]. The expression Lama (Bla ma) means the "superior one". Western usage has taken it to mean the "priest" of the Buddhism of Tibet. The term Dalai Lama, therefore, means the Lama whose wisdom is as deep, as vast and as embracing as the ocean."
  3. ^ His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. A Brief Biography. Retrieved on: May 8, 2008
  4. ^ The Nobel Foundation {1989} Biography The 14th Dalai Lama The Nobel Peace Prize 1989. Retrieved on: May 8, 2008
  5. ^ Mark Sappenfield and Peter Ford (March 24, 2008). Dalai Lama must balance politics, spiritual role. The Christian Science Monitor Retrieved on: May 9, 2008
  6. ^ China View (2008-04-11). "Theocracy has lost its root in Tibet." Retrieved on: May 29, 2008.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Profile: The Dalai Lama from a BBC News website
  8. ^ Tibet Is My Country: Autobiography of Thubten Jigme Norbu, Brother of the Dalai Lama as told to Heinrich Harrer, pp. 103, 171. First published in German in 1960. English translation by Edward Fitzgerald, published 1960. Reprint, with updated new chapter (1986): Wisdom Publications, London. ISBN 0-86171-045-2.
  9. ^ Tenzin Gyatso, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama (1990). Freedom in Exile: The Autobiography of the Dalai Lama. HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-039116-2.
  10. ^ Humanity, Not Nationalism from The Tech website
  11. ^ Craig, Mary (1997). Kundun: A Biography of the Family of the Dalai Lama. Counterpoint. ISBN 1-887178-91-0.
  12. ^ Dalai Lama Receives Congressional Gold Medal
  13. ^ "China keeps tight lid on riot-hit areas". Agence France-Presse. Philippine Daily Inquirer. 2008-03-24. Retrieved 2008-03-24.
  14. ^ "Dalai Lama - Speech to the U.N. and Images of Tibet". Retrieved 2006-08-06.
  15. ^ "Cosmic Harmony". Dalai Lama Address to the United Nations.
  16. ^ Marcello, Patricia Cronin (2003). The Dalai Lama: A Biography. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313322074.
  17. ^ Gyatso, Tenzin, Dalai Lama XIV, interview, 25 July 1981.
  18. ^ Goldstein, Melvyn C., A History of Modern Tibet, 1913-1951, University of California Press, 1989, pp812-813
  19. ^ Ngapoi recalls the founding of the TAR, Ngapoi Ngawang Jigmei, China View, 30 August 2005.
  20. ^ "Global Village News". Dalai Lama Considers Ending Exile & Return To Tibet.
  21. ^ Interview with The Guardian, September 5, 2003
  22. ^ "CNN.com". China keeps up attacks on Dalai Lama.
  23. ^ a b Dalai Lama named Emory distinguished professor
  24. ^ "Dalai Lama Visits Colgate". The Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
  25. ^ Kamenetz,Rodger (1994)The Jew in the Lotus Harper Collins: 1994.
  26. ^ Reuters Dalai Lama does not support Olympics Boycott
  27. ^ CNN Dalai Lama arrives in Japan
  28. ^ "SOS Children's Villages: Dalai Lama". Retrieved 2008-05-09.
  29. ^ a b "World News Briefs; Dalai Lama Group Says It Got Money From C.I.A." The New York Times. October 2, 1998.
  30. ^ Dalai Lama speaks "middle way" approach for Tibet's future
  31. ^ a b Johann Hari (7 June, 2004). "Dalai Lama interview". The Independent. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  32. ^ Introduction to the Middle-Way Policy and its History
  33. ^ CNN.com, Dalai Lama: China causing 'cultural genocide'
  34. ^ "Dalai Lama 'to resign' if violence worsens". CNN. 2008-03-18. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help); Text "http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/18/tibet.unrest/index.html" ignored (help)
  35. ^ "China admits Tibet riots spread". CNN. 2008-03-20. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help); Text "http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.unrest/index.html" ignored (help)
  36. ^ "Dalai Lama pleads for peaceful dialogue on Tibet". CNN. 2008-03-28. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help); Text "http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/28/china.tibet/index.html" ignored (help)
  37. ^ Barnett, Robert, in: Blondeau, Anne-Marie and Buffetrille, Katia (eds). Authenticating Tibet: Answers to China’s 100 Questions (2008) University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-24464-1 (cloth); ISBN 978-0-520-24928-8 (paper)., pp. 81-83
  38. ^ Norbu, Thubten Jigme and Turnbull, Colin M. Tibet: An account of the history, the religion and the people of Tibet (1968) Touchstone Books. New York. ISBN 0-671-20559-5 pg. 317.
  39. ^ "Tawang is part of India: Dalai Lama". TNN. 2008-06-4. Retrieved 2008-6-4. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  40. ^ "The Dalai Lama Foundation". Missions and Programs.
  41. ^ "Boston.com". The Buddha of suburbia.
  42. ^ The Dalai Lama's views on science and religion in an op-ed for The New York Times
  43. ^ Dalai Lama meets Idaho’s religious leaders by Gary Stivers, www.sunvalleyonline.com, 15 September 2005
  44. ^ "The Dalai Lama: Tibet's leader-in-exile talks about the C.I.A., Saddam Hussein, Chinese terrorism, sex and his own violent impulses," by Claudia Dreifus. New York Times, November 28, 1993. p. SM52 [1] by
  45. ^ Tibet and China, Marxism, Nonviolence
  46. ^ His Holiness the Dalai Lama's Address to the University at Buffalo
  47. ^ "Dalai Lama Campaigns to End Wildlife Trade". ENS. 8 April 2005. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  48. ^ Justin Huggler (18 February 2006). "Reports Fur Flies Over Tiger Plight". New Zealand Herald. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  49. ^ Dalai Lama urges students to shape the world
  50. ^ The Buddhist religion and homosexuality at Religioustolerance.org
  51. ^ Dalai Lama Urges 'Respect, Compassion, and Full Human Rights for All,' Including Gays. Conkin, Dennis. Bay Area Reporter, June 19th, 1997
  52. ^ OUT Magazine February/March 1994
  53. ^ a b c Protest at Dalai Lama prayer ban
  54. ^ a b http://www.chinapost.com.tw/international/europe/2008/05/23/157717/Noisy-demonstrations.htm
  55. ^ "Dalai Lama arrives to welcomes and taunts". The Age. AAP. 2008-06-11. Retrieved 2008-06-11.
  56. ^ His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s Advice Concerning Dolgyal (Shugden)
  57. ^ Peace and Placards Greet the Dalai Lama
  58. ^ "Merkel meets with the Dalai Lama". Euronews.net.
  59. ^ Rogue State: A Guide to the World's Only Superpower
  60. ^ Reuters (April 29, 2008). "Female living Buddha condemns Dalai Lama - Xinhua." Retrieved on: May 30, 2008.
  61. ^ International Karma Kagyu Buddhist Organization, "An Open Letter to the Dalai Lama", 17 Mar 2001. (http://www.ikkbo.org/open-letter.php)
  62. ^ Kunzig Shamar Rinpoche, "Message to the International Karma Kagyu Conferance", 2001. (http://www.shamarpa.org/letters/sham-speech.htm)
  63. ^ Vijay Kranti, "The Dalai Lama and Chinese Desperation", Border Affairs, 2001.
  64. ^ Julian Gearing, "The perils of taking on Tibet's holy men", Asiaweek, 20 Feb 2001. (http://www.karmapa.org.nz/articles/2001/list2001.html)
  65. ^ His material highness Salon.com article by Christopher Hitchens
  66. ^ "World Tibet Network News". His Holiness the Dalai Lama's view on India's Nuclear Tests.
  67. ^ God Is Not Great, p. 200
  68. ^ Interview with CBC News, 16 April 2004
  69. ^ Gere, Richard (18 April 2005). "The 2005 TIME 100: The Dalai Lama". TIME Magazine. Retrieved 2007-02-11. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  70. ^ Deepak, Cheepra (2008). "The 2008 TIME 100: The Dalai Lama". TIME Magazine. Retrieved 2008-05-02.
  71. ^ "Dalai Lama becomes honorary citizen". Victoria Times-Colonist. 10 September 2006. Retrieved 2007-02-11. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  72. ^ Grudnikov, Karina. "Dalai Lama joins Wallenberg as Honorary citizen of Canada". International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation. Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  73. ^ "Highest US civilian honour for Dalai Lama". The Times of India. 14 September 2006. Retrieved 2007-02-11. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  74. ^ Associated Press, China warns that Dalai Lama's congressional award, Bush meeting could damage U.S.-Chinese ties, International Herald Tribune, 16 October 2007
  75. ^ "Dalai Lama: political retirement". Google (yahoo). Retrieved 2007-05-13.
  76. ^ BBC NEWS, New Chinese rules on Dalai Lama
  77. ^ Dalai Lama's representative talks about China, Tibet, Shugden and the next Dalai Lama, David Shankbone, Wikinews, November 14, 2007.
  78. ^ Dalai Lama calls for calm amid Tibet violence
  79. ^ Monks march as Dalai Lama condemns Beijing
  80. ^ Tibet's young exiles sick of passive approach
  81. ^ Tibetans criticise Dalai Lama's 'middle way'
  82. ^ China accuses Dalai Lama of 'inciting' Tibet riots to 'sabotage' Olympics
  83. ^ China says Dalai Lama trying to ruin Olympics
  84. ^ Uprising Spurns Dalai Lama's Way
  85. ^ Dalai Lama Threatens to Resign
  86. ^ Dalai Lama's threat shakes Buddhism
  87. ^ Can the Dalai Lama Resign?
  88. ^ Dalai Lama Threatens to Resign - TIME
  89. ^ China steps up verbal attacks on Dalai Lama over Tibet
  90. ^ Drew, Jill (April 27, 2008). "A Day After Offer to Meet, China Assails Dalai Lama". Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-04-27. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  91. ^ "'I Pray for China's Leadership' SPIEGEL Interviews the Dalai Lama". Der Spiegel. 2008-05-12. Retrieved 2008-05-12.
  92. ^ List of awards
  93. ^ hellomagazine.com, Dalai Lama receives honorary doctorate of philosophy in London
  94. ^ news.bbc.co.uk, Dalai gets honorory doctorate
  95. ^ Paris makes Dalai Lama honorary citizen
  96. ^ Paris makes Dalai Lama, Chinese dissident honorary citizens
  97. ^ Press Release - University Relations - Hofstra University
  98. ^ Public Law 109-287
  99. ^ USFnews Online
  100. ^ Presentation Speech by Egil Aarvik, Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee
  101. ^ "The Nobel Prize". Dalai Lama (Tenzin Gyatso).
  102. ^ "The Government of Tibet in Exile". His Holiness the Dalai Lama's Nobel Prize acceptance speech University Aula, Oslo, 10 December 1989.
  103. ^ Freedom in exile: the autobiography of the Dalai Lama. New York, NY: HarperCollins. 1990. ISBN 0-06-039116-2. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Text "autho" ignored (help)
14th Dalai Lama
Born: 6 July 1935
Buddhist titles
Preceded by Reincarnation of the Dalai Lama
1950 – present 		Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by Chief of the Tibet Region, PRC
1956 – 1959 		Succeeded by

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