Let me reiterate that once the issue of Tibet is resolved, I will not take any political position nor will members of the Tibetan Administration in exile hold any positions in the government in Tibet. I have repeatedly made this clear in the past. To understand the situation of the Tibetans in exile and their aspirations, I invite Tibetan officials serving in various Tibetan autonomous areas to visit Tibetan communities living in the free world, either officially or in a private capacity, to observe the situation for themselves.
Wherever Tibetans in exile have settled, we have been able to preserve and promote our distinct cultural and spiritual traditions, while generating awareness of the Tibetan cause. Unlike other refugees, we have been relatively successful because we have also been able to give our children a sound modern education, while bringing them up according to our traditional values. And because the heads of all four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism and the Bon religion are in exile we have been able to re-establish various institutions for religious training and practice. In these institutions over ten thousand monks and nuns are free to pursue their vocations. We have been readily able to provide educational opportunities for those monks, nuns and students who have continued to come from Tibet. At the same time the unprecedented spread of Tibetan Buddhism in both East and West and the prospect of continuing to flourish in the future gives us hope that it may yet survive. This is some solace to us during this most critical period in Tibet's history.
Whether the Chinese Government acknowledges it or not, there is a serious problem in Tibet. As the world knows, this is evidenced by the fact that there is a huge military presence and restriction on travel in Tibet. It is good for neither party. We have to take every opportunity to solve it. For more than 30 years, I have tried my best to enter into talks with the People's Republic of China to resolve the issue of Tibet through the Middle-Way Approach that is of benefit to us both. Although I have clearly articulated Tibetan aspirations, which are in accordance with the constitution of the People's Republic of China and the laws on national regional autonomy, we have not obtained any concrete result. Judging by the attitude of the present Chinese leadership, there is little hope that a result will be achieved soon. Nevertheless, our stand to continue with the dialogue remains unchanged.
It is a matter of pride and satisfaction that our mutually beneficial Middle-Way Approach and the justice of the Tibetan struggle have gained growing understanding and support year by year from many political and spiritual leaders, including the President of the United States of America, reputed non-governmental organisations, the international community, and in particular from Chinese intellectuals. It is evident that the Tibetan issue is not a dispute between the Chinese and Tibetan peoples, but has come about because of the ultra-leftist policies of the Chinese Communist authorities.
.jpg)
"O presidente Lula precisa tocar no assunto com vigor quando tratar com a China", afirmou o líder tibetano no exílio. O dalai-lama, que na quinta-feira, 6, esteve em Genebra, fez duras críticas contra o governo de Pequim. "Para ser uma superpotência, a China não poderá contar apenas com os lucros. Só o dinheiro não garantirá uma boa imagem da China no mundo. Verdade e transparência serão essenciais. Isso será fundamental para a imagem da China no futuro", disse.Geneva, 6 August – “The issue of Tibet needs to be solved. How to do it is something we need to discuss,” His Holiness told a gathering of Chinese and Tibetan scholars and officials at a conference organized jointly by the International Fellowship of Reconciliation and the Swiss-Tibetan Friendship Association. (Click here for full text of His Holiness the Dalai Lama's speech |
An Aspiration to the Great Perfection
The Library of Tibetan Works and Archives (LTWA) offers daily Buddhist philosophy classes to help people appreciate and understand ‘truth' and help them deal with daily problems. The classes are taught by Geshes who are highly qualified in Buddhist philosophy and have dedicated a major part of their lives to study and practice.
It's very moving to know that somebody in the past became Buddha. Twenty-five hundred years ago a guy called Siddhartha became Buddha. He actually did those things and made an enormous impact and impression on people—so enormous that we still continue to follow his way and share his ideas. It's very powerful that somebody actually achieved enlightenment and went so far as to proclaim it, and to teach, and to share his life of eighty years with his students. He spoke; he taught; and he showed us how to behave, how to handle ourselves with other people. It's an extremely powerful experience. Enlightenment is no longer a myth or concept, but something that actually did take place. It did happen—I think that is the basis of our conviction.
JOHANNESBURG — South Africa's embassy in New Delhi has denied travel documents to Tibet's exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, barring him from attending a peace conference in Johannesburg.
Fifty Years of Exile
Most stores and stalls near Jokhang Temple are closed in Lhasa, Tibet's capital city, Saturday, March 14, 2009. Paramilitary and plainclothes police blanketed the Tibetan capital with patrols and checkpoints Saturday, imposing what witnesses called a tense calm on the first anniversary of a violent anti-Chinese riot. (Photo: AP/Kyodo News)
Phayul - SECRET: CTC releases documents from Canada's Tibet file
'They told me that in Tibet when they were chosen to be Togdens and taken up to the caves the were so excited because they felt that now they were going to become yogis. But for the first three years they were instructed to do nothing but watch their mind and practice Bodhicitta, the altruistic mind. They did that and nothing else for three years! They said it was it those three years that their minds tranformed. After that, all the many practices they did were just building up on that foundation. One time one of them said to me: "You think we yogis are doing some very high, fantastic, esoteric practice and if only you had the teachings you also could really take off! Let me tell you, however, that there is nothing I am doing that you have not been taught. The only difference is that I am doing it and you aren't,"' she recalled.
“But like the changing scenario of the world, changes are also already taking place in China,” exiled Tibetan leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama said Sunday.
