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A little more than a year ago, when the 14th Dalai Lama spoke before the European Parliament
in Brussels, he was charming, engaging and relaxed.
He was animated, enthusiastic and pleasant. At
one point, he even mentioned he couldn't help but notice he was in the presence of beautiful women, and then he laughed
heartily at himself for saying it. And when he talked about "the Tibet issue," he very diplomatically
stated, after having lived this tragic situation for no less than 49 years, "We are seeking
genuine autonomy with the Peoples' Republic of China." He was reasonable and resolute. He
explained his concern was for the Tibetans in Tibet to be free to be themselves, and be allowed to engage in the Spirituality
and traditional independence of their ancient culture.
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| March 8, 2009, at Dharamsala, India. |
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| The Dalai Lama speaks to Tibetan religious leaders. |
By Robert L. Candiotti, March 13, 2009 Now, a year later, on the 50th anniversary of
the Tibetan uprising and his defiant, dramatic, dangerous and heartrending escape to India, it seems the Dalai Lama has
changed. No question, the Dalai Lama is a center of compassion and a person of circumspection. He is
someone who measures his words, and who knows the power of his own utterances. Therefore,
it is particularly noteworthy to hear the Dalai Lama say, as he has been doing over the last several days, under
China the Tibetans are living "hell on Earth. Tibet is dying." Tibet's culture is "nearing extinction,"
he has stated. He has accused the Chinese of bringing "untold suffering and destruction" to the land of his
birth and his people. He has said the government of China is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands
of his Buddhist followers. The Dalai Lama appears to be in no mood now to mince words. According
to VOANEWS.com, when a reporter in India asked him a few days ago to clarify his statement that Tibet today is "hell
on Earth," the Dalia Lama said, "So much of suffering, so much fear, so much anger, so much hatred and danger of
their life. Like hell."
| The writer and a picture of the 14th Dalai Lama. |
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| At a bus stop on West Desert Inn Road, Las Vegas, Nevada, taken about one year ago. |
Only two months ago, I read for the first time Freedom In Exile, the Dalai Lama's autobiography. Though I have always liked the Dalai Lama (I have been aware of him most of my life), I
realize now, up until recently, I really did not know that much about him other than he is the Spiritual leader of Tibetans,
but he cannot live in Tibet because it is controlled by the Chinese.
I know now - having read the autobiography from cover to cover - the life and history of the Dalai Lama are inspiring
and fascinating, yet also sobering. From reading the
autobiography, I know it is precisely this week that marks the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising and the Dalai
Lama's forced separation from his homeland. In 1959, when the Dalai Lama was only 23 years old - between the dates
of March 10 and March 17 - the Tibetan authorities declared they no longer recognize Chinese rule. They repudiated the unbalanced
Seventeen-Point 'Agreement.' The Dalai Lama and several hundred loyalists secretly departed Lhasa ahead of an
onslaught by China that resulted in scores of thousands of deaths of Tibetans. Thousands more of his people followed him to
India. In a land of a long-enduring quest for inner calmness, the entire exterior
world of the Tibetans was severely and painfully disrupted as a result of the Tibetan Buddhists' unshakable embrace of
independence in defiance of the Chinese Communist desire to control the minds and movements of these Spiritual people. Now, it is 50 years later. The situation in Tibet for the indigenous people has gotten
worse and worse, and the Chinese continue to make statements that Tibet has been "liberated" which the Dalai Lama
is, understandably, indescribably weary of. The current harshness
of his criticism of the Chinese is, as writes Steve Herman in VOANEWS.com, "some of his strongest criticism of Beijing
in recent memory." However, reflecting his psyche and Buddhist philosophy, the Dalai Lama still endeavors to find positive
in the negative. On March 8, at a gathering in Dharamasala, India, with
Spiritual devotees and reincarnated lamas, the Dalai Lama told these dozens of leaders and representatives of a variety
of Tibetan religious groups, "Being into exile has offered opportunity for us to open up and come closer together than
remaining ourselves aloof and isolated like in the past." He added, "So it is now time that the great religious
traditions of Tibet to realize the need to work closely together in making greater collective contribution. In exile if we
continue to remain isolated like in the past, it is not going to serve our common cause."
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| Tibetan Buddhist prayer flags in Nepal. |
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| Interestingly, this location looks exactly like the desert of Ivanpah Valley, Nevada. |
In Freedom In Exile, the
Dalai Lama writes about the Buddhist doctrine of Impermanence. Whatever the temporal condition may be, he explains, it "could
not last for ever." Things may endure beyond our lifetimes, but absolutely nothing is permanent. And
this includes foreign dominance over the Tibetans' historic independence and their centuries old transcendental system
of Spirituality. What the Tibetans are seeking now is mere autonomy. In the broad and powerful universe
of China, the Tibetans are an utterly small minority of descendants from an ancient and detailed belief that originated
in India and became embraced throughout their unique land. It is their rich and reflective culture that asks little
more than to be left alone to meditate and study and be allowed to maintain the Tibetan Buddhist way of life.
This is what the Dalai Lama has been seeking from the Communist Chinese for half a century. Yes, he is full of compassion,
warmth and calmness. But 50 years is a long time. It is pretty obvious to me that his patience and optimism are running thinner
than the atmosphere above the mystical mountains of Tibet.
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| Nepalese police arrest Tibetan monk in Kathmandu. |
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| March 10, 2009. |
The Tibetans stand for independence
and introspection. They stand for religious freedom and uniqueness. In a world that is dominated and bedeviled today by violence
and political heavy-handedness, the Tibetans seem constantly focused on their desire to humbly study in their monasteries
and hold steadfast to their Spiritual beliefs. The brutality
leveled upon the Tibetan Buddhists by the Chinese government brings to mind repeatedly the Dalai Lama's emphasis on the
Buddhist doctrine of Impermanence.
Nothing lasts forever, and this includes the inhumane and counter-productive treatment by the powerful Chinese of the
Tibetan Buddhists. I do not profess to be anywhere close to
the level of wisdom of the Dalai Lama, neither am I a Tibetan nor a Buddhist. However, when the Dalai Lama says, "If
we fail to build an accord among us to continue collectively, it will create a real danger in the long run," his words
make sense to me. This has probably been the impetus for the creation of this
page today in such an unlikely place as GreenAirport.net It is in front of our faces. The Tibetans are being treated terribly,
inhumanely and demeaningly. These are people of a remarkable culture, a culture that the world absolutely needs
in order to be whole. There must be Spiritual and religious
freedom in this world if it is to hold together. Independent Spirituality
runs through the veins of the Tibetans. They crave to be free and be allowed to explore - and be immersed in
- their religious and cultural beliefs. As the Dalai Lama says
over and over, "We are seeking genuine autonomy with the Peoples' Republic of China." Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary defines autonomy as "the right of self-government." For these people from a land close to the stars, autonomy is not
too much to ask.
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