HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA

The Dalai Lama

“With a wish to free all beings
I shall always go for refuge
To the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha,
Until I reach full enlightenment. 

Enthused by wisdom and compassion,
Today in the Buddha’s presence
I generate the Mind for Full Awakening
For the benefit of all sentient beings. 

As long as space remains,
As long as sentient beings remain,
Until then, may I too remain,
And dispel the miseries of the world.” 

The Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is the spiritual and temporal Leader of the Tibetan people. He was born on July 6, 1935, in a small village called Taktser, in north eastern Tibet. Born to a peasant family, His Holiness was recognised at the age of two, in accordance with Tibetan tradition, as the reincarnation of his predecessor the 13th Dalai Lama.

The Dalai Lamas are the manifestations of the Buddha of Compassion who chose to take rebirth for the purpose of serving other human beings. Dalai Lama means Ocean of Wisdom. Tibetans normally refer to His Holiness as Yeshe Norbu, the Wish-fulfilling Gem or simply Kundun, meaning The Presence.

When the 13th Dalai Lama had passed away in 1933, the task which confronted the Tibetan Government was not to simply appoint a successor but to seek for and discover a child in whom the Buddha of Compassion would incarnate. It was not necessary that the child should have been born just at the time of the death of His predecessor, or even soon after.

As on former occasions, there would be indications of the directions in which the search should be made, and that the child would be found to possess physical and mental attributes similar to those of his predecessor.

In 1935, the Regent of Tibet went to the sacred lake of Lhamoe Lhatso about 90 miles southeast of Lhasa, Tibet's capital. The Tibetans have observed that visions of the future can be seen in this lake. The regent saw the vision of three Tibetan letters : "Ah" "Ka" and "Ma" followed by a picture of a monastery with roofs of jade green and gold and a house with turquoise tiles. A detailed description of these visions were written down and kept a strict secret.

In 1937, high lamas and dignitaries, carrying the secrets of the visions, were sent to all parts of Tibet to search for the place which the regent had seen in the waters. The search party which headed east was under the leadership of Lama Kewtsang Rinpoche of Sera Monastery. When they arrived in Amdo, they found a place matching the description of the secret vision. The party went to the house with Kewtsang Rinpoche disguised as a servant and a junior official Lobsang Tsewang disguised as the leader. The Rinpoche was wearing a rosary which belonged to the 13th Dalai Lama, and the little boy recognizing it, demanded that it should be given to him. Kewtsang Rinpoche asked who the leader was and the boy replied that he was Sera Aga, which meant in the local dialect, "a Lama of Sera". The Rinpoche asked who the leader was and the boy gave his name correctly. He also knew the name of the real servant. This was followed by a series of tests which included choosing of correct articles which belonged to the 13th Dalai Lama. By these tests, they were further convinced that the reincarnation had been found and their conviction was enhanced by the vision of three letters: "Ah" stood for Amdo, name of the province, "Ka" stood for Kumbum, one of the largest monasteries in the neighbourhood or the two letters

"Ka" and "Ma" stood for the monastery of Karma Rolpai Dorjee on the mountain above the village. It was also significant that once the 13th Dalai Lama had stayed at the monastery on His way back from China. In 1940, the new Dalai Lama was enthroned.

He began His education at the age of six and completed the Geshe Lharampa Degree (Doctrate of Buddhist Philosophy) when He was 25. At 24, His Holiness took the preliminary examinations at each of the three monastic universities: Drepung, Sera and Ganden. The final examination was held in the Jokhang, Lhasa, during the annual Monlam Festival of prayer which is held in the first month of each year. In the morning He was examined on logic by 30 scholars turn by turn in congregational discussion. In the afternoon, 15 scholars took part as his opponents in the debate on the Middle Path, and in the evening 35 scholars tested his knowledge of the canon of monastic discipline and the study of metaphysics. His Holiness passed the examination with honors.

In 1950, when He was only 16, He was called upon to assume full political power when Tibet was threatened by the might of China. In 1954, His Holiness went to Peking to talk peace with Mao Tsetung and other Chinese leaders including Chou En-lai and Deng Xiaoping. In 1956, His Holiness visited India to attend the 2500th Buddha Jayanti Anniversary. While in India, His Holiness had a series of meetings with Prime Minister Nehru and Premier Chou En-lai about deteriorating conditions in Tibet.

In 1959, His Holiness was forced into exile in India after the Chinese military occupation of Tibet. Since that time, His Holiness has been residing in Dharamsala, North India. The seat of the Tibetan Government in exile.

While in exile, His Holiness appealed to the United Nations on the guestion of Tibet, resulting in three resolutions being adopted by the General Assembly in 1959, 1961 and 1965. His Holiness has set up educational, cultural and religious institutions which have contributed significantly towards the preservation of the Tibetan identity and its rich heritage. In 1963, His Holiness promulgated a draft constitution of Tibet which assures a democratic form of government.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama has been working tirelessly for the Tibetan Nation ever since his been in exile since 1959 and try to find a peaceful solution with China over the status of Tibet.

In a landmark address to the United States Congressional Human Rights Caucus, delivered in Washington DC, on September 21st 1987. His Holiness offered Five Point Peace Plan for Tibet, in order to open a dialogue with Beijing.

On June 15th 1988 His Holiness the Dalai Lama elaborated on his earlier Five Point Peace

Plan for Tibet in an address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg. This is to be known as The Strasbourg Proposal. There was no response to the proposals herein from Beijing and commitment to them was withdrawn on September 2nd. 1991.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his tireless work for Tibet. In awarding its 1989 Nobel Peace Prize to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the Norwegian Nobel Committee cited his consistent opposition to violence and "forward looking proposal for the solution of international conflicts, human rights issue and global environment problems". His Holiness accepted the Prize in Oslo on 10th December 1989

Unlike his predecessors, His Holiness has traveled to North and South America, Czechoslovakia, Europe, the United Kingdom, Japan, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Russia, Mongolia, Taiwan and met with Political and religious leaders of these countries. In fact there are not many places that His Holiness the Dalai Lama has not been.

During his travels abroad, His Holiness has spoken strongly for better understanding and respect among the different faiths of the world. Towards this end, His Holiness has made numerous appearances in interfaith services, imparting the message of universal responsibility, love, compassion and kindness. "The need for simple human to human relationship is becoming increasingly urgent.... Today the world is smaller and more interdependent. One nation's problems can no longer be solved by itself completely. Thus, without a sense of universal responsibility, our very survival becomes threatened. Basically, universal responsibility is feeling for other people's suffering just as we feel our own. It is the realization that even our enemy is entirely motivated by the guest for happiness. We must recognize that all beings want the same thing that we want. This is the way to achieve a true understanding, unfettered by artificial consideration".

Although the Chinese Government still refuses to Dialogue with His Holiness and His Representatives. His Holiness has always stated that the door to Dailogue with China is still open and to that end His Holiness hopes that the UN or some friendly Government will be able to persuade the Chinese Government in to a Dailogue with His Holiness and His Representative to find a Peaceful Solution for Tibet without any preconditions.