London–Britain said on Tuesday that Prime Minister David Cameron is free to meet with anyone he chooses, afterChinasaid the premier’s meeting with the Dalai Lama was an “affront to the Chinese people”.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama with Prime Minister David Cameron and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg at St. Paul's Cathedral in London, UK, on May 14, 2012. Photo/Clifford Shirley

China said it had launched “solemn representations” with London after Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader held a private meeting with Cameron and his deputy on Monday during a visit to London to collect a lucrative prize.

Beijing has in the past strongly objected when the Dalai Lama, who seeks greater autonomy for Tibet from its Chinese rulers, has met Western leaders.

A British government spokesperson said: “We don’t want to see our relationship withChinadisrupted by the Dalai Lama’s visit.”

But she added: “The Dalai Lama travels all over the world. He has visited the UK on several occasions and met with previous prime ministers.

“It is for the prime minister and deputy prime minister to choose who they see. The Dalai Lama is an important religious figure and advocate for peace and the prime minister regularly meets with such figures.”

The meeting was held atSt Paul’s Cathedral, where the Dalai Lama was collecting the £1.1m ($1.8m) Templeton Prize, rather than at Cameron’sDowning Streetresidence.

But the spokesperson denied that the meeting was deliberately held away from Cameron’s residence to avoid angeringChina.

“Previous governments have generally met the Dalai Lama in a religious location,” she said.

The Dalai Lama, who fled his homeland forIndiain 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule, said on Monday that he would donate the prize to charity, with $1.5m going to Save the Children’s operations inIndia, where he is exiled.

May 15th 2012

London, UK,14 May 2012- His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s first engagement of the day was an interview with Sarah Montague of the BBC which will be broadcast later today and tomorrow. Among the topics they discussed were what His Holiness felt when he heard he’d won the Templeton Prize and what he was going to do with it. When asked whether he still thought Tibet might be free in his lifetime he replied “Yes”, explaining that China has already seen great changes and that the spread of human values like democracy, freedom of thought and freedom of the individual were changes that cannot be stopped. He remarked that when people, including Chinese, understand the reality in Tibet, they are very sympathetic. To a question about whether he feels angry towards the Chinese authorities, he replied, “No, no use!” He clarified, “If I get angry it doesn’t hurt them, but it upsets me.” Instead he says he applies the Buddhist practice of giving and taking in which he visualises taking their anger and ruthlessness to himself and giving them his compassion and goodwill. In an aside His Holiness expressed his affection for the BBC, explaining that it is his prime source of information and that if he sometimes misses listening to it, there’s something missing from his whole day.

His Holiness the Dalai with Canon Postor of St Paul's Cathedral

His Holiness drove to St Paul’s Cathedral where he was received by the Rt. Rev. Michael Colcough, Canon Pastor of St Paul’s. As they walked up the old steps together and through the pillared crypt to the Vestry, His Holiness said it reminded him of the steps and corridors in the Potala Palace; indeed both buildings date from the late 17th century. During a short meeting in the Vestry with Dr & Mrs Jack Templeton and their daughter, Dr Templeton told His Holiness that his father, John Templeton, who founded the Templeton Prize and who would have been 100 this year, would have been very pleased by this year’s award. His Holiness recalled his own father, who he said was quite short tempered, and his mother from whom he had his first lessons in kindness and generosity. He also talked about how the source of a calm mind is within ourselves, our warm-heartedness, while education equips us to take a broader, more realistic view of our situation. Dr Templeton places great store by gratitude and asked how we can train to develop gratitude and compassion. His Holiness suggested that when people come to appreciate that cultivating such inner values has a positive effect on our physical health and well-being, while anger is bad for our health, people are much more ready to try to develop them

After being joined by Jonathan Dimbleby, who was to moderate a Meeting with the Press, the conversation turned to Tibetan medicine in which Dr & Mrs Templeton, as physicians, were interested. His Holiness explained that as a result of the Tibetan Emperor convening an international medical conference in the 8th century CE, Tibetan medicine had incorporated many influences. He added that its medications, made mostly from herbs and minerals are effective.

Jonathan Dimbleby opened the Meeting with the Press by introducing Dr Jack Templeton, President and Chairman of the Templeton Foundation, who spoke of his father’s wish to reward “entrepreneurs of the spirit” and his theme, “how little we know and are eager to learn.” He explained that the judges had chosen to reward His Holiness because of his steadfast adherence to spiritual values and his conviction that compassion and kindness have the power to improve the world.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama addresses the audience in St Paul's Cathedral after receiving the 2012 Templeton Prize

His Holiness in turn spoke of his commitment to sharing with others his experience that genuine inner peace comes from within, as well as his commitment to fostering harmony and respect among other faiths. He mentioned again his sense that the judges had awarded him the prize in acknowledgement of his small service to humanity. Dan Goleman, author of the best-selling book, Emotional Intelligence, and a founder member of the Mind & Life Institute, praised His Holiness’s conviction that science and spirituality can both contribute to the relief of suffering and the furthering of compassion. Richie Davison, another Mind & Life veteran, commended His Holiness’s persistently pointing out that compassion and kindness are part of everyone’s emotional repertoire, an insight that has had a profound impact on modern science. In 2003, at a Mind & Life conference His Holiness pointed out that Buddhism has many methods for dealing with destructive emotions. He suggested that scientists explore their applications under laboratory conditions and if they proved useful make them available to others.

His Holiness answered several questions from the press. He then gave interviews separately to Arianna Huffington of the popular Huffington Post and Sky News. He attended a lunch with invited guests of the Templeton Foundation.

In the Oculus, a historical viewing room under the Cathedral, His Holiness met Prime Minister David Cameron and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg. Both leaders expressed concern for the situation inTibetand interest in other developments inChina. His Holiness advised them to stick to their principles without being deflected by short-term economic considerations. Shortly afterwards, His Holiness met Archbishop Rowan Williams, who has recently announced that he will retire at the end of this year.

His Holiness was driven to the front steps of St Paul’s Cathedral where the ceremony to award the Templeton Prize was being held. He was welcomed by Tibetan Tashi Sholpa dancers and received by the Rt Rev and Rt Hon Richard Chartres, Bishop of London and the Rt Rev Michael Colclough, Canon Pastor atSt Paul’s Cathedral who led him through the Great West Doors. They walked in procession down the centre aisle as His Holiness greeted new and old friends alike on either side.

Rt Rev Michael Colclough welcomed everyone to St Paul’s Cathedral a place where people have encountered hospitality, sharing prayer, concern and philosophy for more than 1400 years. He commended His Holiness the Dalai Lama as a man of peace and integrity, a man holy for his advocacy of compassion and tolerance.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama receiving the 2012 Tempelton Prize

Lord Brian Griffiths told the congregation about Sir John Templeton, his generous life and his optimism. Dr Jack Templeton’s opening words were about his father who established the Templeton Foundation and the Templeton Prize, which is now in its 40th year. He said his father wanted human beings to be more open minded about the nature of reality. He said the prize seeks to identify entrepreneurs of the spirit, men and women who seek and provide wisdom. He expressed gratitude to everyone at St Paul’s Cathedral for enabling the ceremony to take place there, referring to the Cathedral as embodying the spirit and might of the British people. He declared that the Templeton Prize judges had decided to make their award to His Holiness this year because of his steadfast spiritual values, the power of kindness and compassion.

In accepting the Templeton Prize, His Holiness said how happy he was to be in St Paul’s this magnificent temple filled with smiling faces. He noted that among the several hundred people there, many belonged to different nations and races and yet all were fundamentally the same as human beings. Because of this sameness, he said, we have no reason to quarrel, but when we forget it and focus instead on secondary differences between us we tend to fall out with each other. He spoke of a calm mind as the source of genuine happiness and that a calm mind depends on self-confidence, because it reduces fear and anxiety. He spoke of his work to foster harmony and mutual respect among the world’s religious traditions, his work to encourage cooperation in tackling our environmental problems and his work to promote the use of non-violence as a means to resolve problems and conflict. He referred to the twentieth century as a period of great development and achievement, but also as a period of bloodshed. He expressed his hope that the twenty-first century can become instead a period of peace and dialogue. He said that he considered his award of the Templeton Prize as recognition of the small contribution he has made to humanity in these fields.

Explaining what he intended to do with the prize money, His Holiness announced that he would give $1.5 million to Save the Children Fund specifically to address the problems of malnourishment among children in India. He said he had long had great admiration for the work of Save the Children and had personal experience of the support it had given Tibetans during their early years in exile. His hope is that if we educate and care for the children of the coming generation, the generation who carry the future on their shoulders, we can really change the world. He is also giving $200,000 to the Mind & Life Institute, an organization that has for nearly thirty years helped promote an important exchange of ideas and collaboration between science and spirituality. The remaining $75,000 will be used to support science education in the Tibetan monastic universities.

The congregation were uplifted by the singing of Jessye Norman’s and theSt Paul’s Choir.

In his concluding benediction, the Rt Rev Michael Colclough, prayed that we may kindle in the hearts of all people the love of peace.

Greeting Tibetan children and well-wishers as he left the Cathedral, His Holiness returned to his hotel, where his final engagement of the day was a meeting with Robert Ford, the brave Englishman who had operated a radio station in Eastern Tibet in late 1950s.

Tomorrow, His Holiness departsLondonforVienna,Austria, en route to Maribor, Slovenia.

(AFP)  |May 11, 20123:40 pm

VIENNA—Austria’s Chancellor Werner Faymann and Vice-Chancellor Michael Spindelegger are expected to meet with the Dalai Lama during his visit to Austria from May 17-27, their offices said Thursday.

Faymann was scheduled to meet with the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader alongside Vienna Archbishop Christoph Schoenborn, the chancellor’s office said, specifying however that this would occur “in a religious context.”

Austria’s Chancellor Werner Faymann and Vice-Chancellor Michael Spindelegger

A meeting between Spindelegger, who is also foreign minister, and the Dalai Lama was meanwhile “in the works,” spokesman Alexander Schallenberg said, adding that the Chinese authorities had been informed.

No encounter however was planned with President Heinz Fischer.

In 2007, talks between the Dalai Lama and then-chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer prompted protests from the Chinese authorities and a minor rift in bilateral ties.

Beijing accuses the Dalai Lama of seeking the independence of Tibet, which it claims as its own.

The Tibetan leader’s visit also comes after Austria last year celebrated 40 years of diplomatic ties with China, prompting a raft of business deals and a wave of high-level visits in both directions, culminating in a trip to Vienna by Chinese President Hu Jintao in October.

During his upcoming visit to Austria, the Dalai Lama will give a series of talks and seminars around the country.

Over the years, the Tibetan leader has paid regular visits to the alpine country, including to see his late friend the Austrian alpinist Heinrich Harrer, whose autobiography inspired the 1999 film “Seven Years in Tibet” with Brad Pitt.

Workshop on Buddhism and Tibetan Culture

The three-day Buddhism Retreat for Tibetan University Students will be held at the Garrison Institute,Garrison,NY from July 5 to 7, 2012.

Garrison Institute complex in the upstate New York

The Garrison Institute is housed in a beautifully renovated 77,000 square foot former Capuchin monastery with comfortable accommodations and wonderful meeting facilities. Located one hour north of New York City on the banks of  the Hudson River, surrounded by forest and fields, it offers a unique, authentic setting for ideal retreats.

The retreat is hosted by Office of Tibet, NY and the Institute of Tibetan Classics, Montreal and it is being presented by the Dalai Lama Trust. The retreat is supported by the Camellia Foundation.

The resource persons for the retreat include Geshe Thupten Jinpa, principal English translator to His Holiness the Dalai Lama; Gelek Rinpoche, a Tibetan spiritual master and founder of Jewel Heart Centers headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan; Geshe Damdul Namgyal, a former Religious Assistant to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and currently associated with the Emory-Tibet Science Initiative of the Emory University, Alanta; Lama Pema Wangdak, a founder of the Vikramasila Foundation and the Palden Sakya Centers; and several others.

The retreat is open to college/university going students or recent graduates or those who are joining the college/university this fall.  It is also open to above categories of students from non-Tibetan Himalayan and Mongolian descent.

Surrounding view from the Garrison Institute

The registration for the retreat is free.  The host organizations will meet the expenses of the participants’ board and accommodation at the Garrison Institute. However, the participants are required to meet their own travel expenses.  The participants have to check in at the Garrison Institute on the evening of July 4 and depart from the institute after the retreat on July 8.

A total of 100 participants will be accepted on first come, first serve basis.  Those interested to participate in the retreat should send the following information while signing up for the retreat.

For signing up, please write to Tsewang Phuntso at: phuntso@igc.org

A detail curriculum of the retreat will be circulated shortly.

Registration Information

Name

Address

College/University

Major/Focus of study

Email address (personal and not university address)

Phone:

Please specify in the email if you are recent graduate

By Robert D. Sloane
East Asia Forum | May 9th, 2012

In a recent article, Barry Sautman ascribes recent self-immolations in Tibet to a few disgruntled monks at a single monastery.

Robert D. Sloane

Their complaints, he says, reflect general social and economic issues rather than a genuine concern for the Tibetan people’s political and religious rights. Sautman borrows liberally from China’s tired propaganda book, which characterises all dissent from China’s occupation of Tibet and the massive human rights abuses against its people in the past half century as the work of terrorists or ‘splitists’. In this view, all dissent is instigated by the Dalai Lama and his ‘clique’, including suitably unidentified foreigners, who aim to restore a feudal theocracy in Tibet — never mind that the Dalai Lama has expressly relinquished his political authority to the fully democratic Tibetan government-in-exile.

The immediate impetus for Sautman’s editorial is that in the past three years 35 Tibetans have chosen to set themselves on fire to protest China’s continuing occupation of Tibet, demand freedom and human rights for Tibetans, and call for the return of the Dalai Lama to Tibet. Of the 19 incidents since January 2012, nine have taken place since the beginning of March. Most happened in historic Tibet, but in late March, Jampel Yeshi, a young Tibetan who fled Tibet in 2006 and lived in exile in India, died after self-immolating amid 600 demonstrators protesting President Hu Jintao’s visit to Delhi, bringing to four the known number of recent attempts at self-immolation by Tibetan exiles.

As for the nature of earlier self-immolation protests, it is true that a simple majority (about 60 per cent) of the incidents took place in and around the Kirti monastery, particularly in Aba (Tibetan: Ngaba), which is now part of the Chinese province of Sichuan. But it is false and misleading to suggest, as Sautman does, that the ‘vast majority’ took place there or, even more to the point, that this somehow shows that the acts do not reflect the sentiment of Tibetans throughout the ‘Tibetan Plateau’. In fact, Tibetan self-immolations have taken place not only in Aba, but 600 miles west in Chamdo (in the ‘Tibet Autonomous Region’), and in Tawu, Kardze, Themchen, Darlak, Machu and Rebkong (all eastern Tibetan areas now incorporated into Chinese provinces).

Doubtless many will find it hard to fathom what could lead people to douse themselves in gasoline and die agonising deaths to make a political or moral statement. But Sautman’s cavalier dismissal of these acts as irrational ‘suicide politics’ is deeply misguided. Tibetans who self-immolate appreciate the consequences, and likely also the futility, of their actions in simple political terms. The real question we need to ask is why these Tibetans have resorted to self-immolation — and why they are doing it now, some 60 years after China invaded and illegally purported to annex Tibet.

About one-third of the Tibetans who have self-immolated were under the age of 30, belying China’s frequent claim that these and other protests against China’s occupation of Tibet are organised in support of the old ‘feudal’ regime of the Tibetan theocratic aristocracy, led by the tyrannical Dalai Lama. It is telling that none of the Tibetan self-immolators have pleaded for the restoration of a feudal theocracy in Tibet. At least two of the self-immolators left behind clear messages that describe their motivations, including their belief in the universal value of and human right to freedom. Jamphel Yeshi, for example, issued a written message of unity declaring that ‘freedom is the basis of happiness for all living beings’.

The real reason for this recent spate of self-immolations is precisely that which Sautman denies. He claims that ‘there is no repression of Tibetans simply for being Tibetan’, and indeed that ‘Tibetans receive a range of preferential policies’. Anyone who has actually travelled inTibet(and managed to escape the Orwellian eye ofChina’s police state) knows that this is an utter façade. In practice, China has long treated Tibet and Tibetans in a manner that, for all intents and purposes, cannot be distinguished from how a coloniser treats a colonised people — a tragic irony givenChina’s own (legitimate) grievances about pre-World War II Western and Japanese colonialism.

True, as Sautman says,Chinadoes not oppose religion per se; its interest is only in religious views that threaten the elite’s monopoly on political power. But China’s treatment of the Tibetan people is a special case in this regard. Since China illegally annexed Tibet in 1949–50, the Chinese government has targeted Tibetan Buddhism because, more than any other cultural or historical factor, it — and its personification in the Dalai Lama — binds Tibetans together as a distinct people with a distinct national identity. This threatens China’s efforts to integrate Tibet into the PRC, an objective that China continues to regard as vital to its national pride, historical identity, economy (Tibethas abundant natural resources and territory), political stability, and development.

In one of its more recent attempts to regulate Tibetan Buddhism, China passed a law requiring all tulkus (Tibetans thought to be the reincarnation of famous Buddhist lamas) to apply to the officially atheist Chinese state for a ‘licence’ to reincarnate. The absurdity of such a law might be comical were it not part of a systematic, long-term, and widespread campaign to absorb and Sinicise the nationally, racially, ethnically, linguistically, culturally and religiously distinct people of Tibet. Indeed, some Chinese regard Tibetans as primitive ‘barbarians’ and fail to understand why Tibetans are not grateful for their supposed ‘liberation’ and ‘modernisation’ by China.

In moral terms, it bears emphasising that unlike a suicide attack, self-immolation does not harm others. It respects civilians’ right to life, without distinction. To be clear, this is neither to condone nor to condemn the practice. But self-immolation must be morally distinguished from suicide bombings and attacks on civilians of the occupying state. We would also do well to recall a more recent example of this form of protest: Mohamed Bouazizi literally and figuratively ignited the Arab Spring when he self-immolated in response to repeated harassment by corrupt Tunisian bureaucrats.

Given this precedent, is it any wonder that China has responded to Tibetan self-immolation with escalating brutality, including beatings, torture and ‘patriotic re-education’? The Chinese government has also escalated its propaganda campaign, describing the peaceful protestors as ‘terrorists’, and not only accuses the Dalai Lama of instigating the self-immolations but describes his views as tantamount to ‘Nazi racial policies’.Chinagoes so far as to equate the Dalai Lama’s mere compassion for those who have lost their lives in the self-immolations with ‘the uncontrolled and cruel Nazi during the Second World War’.

In reality, the self-immolations manifest the Tibetan people’s unwavering determination to resistChina’s neo-colonial treatment of Tibet for the past half century. At tremendous personal risk, as many as 3000 Tibetans flee their homeland every year as a direct result ofChina’s oppressive policies. Nothing about ‘Chinese oppression’ deserves the scare quotes in which Sautman places that phrase. If China truly believes that most Tibetans do not feel oppressed by its occupation, why not allow a UN-supervised referendum onTibet’s status or the wishes of its people? Why not allow journalists, diplomats and scholars to visit Tibetan regions without a Chinese ‘guide’? Tibetans have resorted to self-immolation to demand the fundamental human rights to political and religious freedom and self-determination, and in a desperate attempt to draw the world’s attention to their sadly neglected plight. To trivialise this situation is a shameful blend of political cynicism and neo-colonial Sinicism.

Robert D. Sloane is Professor of Law at the Boston University School of Law, and Chairman of the Board of Directors,Tibet Justice Center

May 1, 2012

OTTAWA: Parliamentarians from around the world today adopted the Ottawa Declaration. They had gathered in Ottawa for three days of intensive deliberations on the worsening situation in Tibet at the invitation of the Parliamentary Friends of Tibet, Canada. Legislators from Asia, Europe, the Americas, Africa and Oceania were joined by prominent speakers from China, Tibet, India, the USA, Canada and elsewhere, including the democratically elected Tibetan political leader, the Kalon Tripa, Dr. Lobsang Sangay.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama opened the conference and the Honourable Joson Kenney, Minister for Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism welcomed the participants.

Sixth World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet held in Ottawa from April 27 to 29, 2012

The Ottawa Declaration draws attention to the repressive policies of China in Tibet and the serious pattern of human rights vioaltions there and to China’s destruction of the Tibetan people’s identity, as evidenced by the attacks on Tibetan Buddhism, language, culture and the forced relocation of  Tibetan nomads, which entail elements of cultural genocide. It expresses deep sorrow for the many Tibetans who self-immolated to protest these policies and calls for Tibetan freedom and the return of H. H. the Dalai Lama.

The Declaration emphasizes the importance of resuming the dialogue between H. H. the Dalai Lama and commends the newly elected Tibetan political leader for reaffirming his commitment to the vision of  H.H. the Dalai Lama’s Middle Way Approach as an honourable solution to the Tibet issue.

In the light of the long standing position of H. H. the Dalai Lama and the Central Tibetan Administration (the Tibetan Government in Exile), the Declaration emphatically rejects the persistent allegations of the Chinese Government that H. H. the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan political leaders are seeking to separate from China.

Noting with concern at recent calls by persons of standing and influence within the Chinese Communist Party for the scrapping ofChina’s constitutional and legal provisions on autonomy for Tibetans and other minority peoples in the PRC, the parliamentarians gathered inOttawawarn the Chinese Government and the international Community of the potential serious consequences of such a regressive move.

The Declaration expresses solidarity with the non-violent struggle of the Tibetans and support for the growing movement among the Chinese people to bring about democratic change in China and the release of Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo. At the same time, all the parliamentarians at this conference genuinely extend a hand to the Chinese National People’s Congress to work with China’s legislators to identity ways to honourably settle the Tibetan dispute.

Rochester, MN, April 25–On April 24, 2012, His Holiness the Dalai Lama first gave an interview to Piers Morgan of CNN, who began by asking His Holiness about his health given his medical check up.  His Holiness responded by saying that for the last seven years he has been having his annual check up at Mayo Clinic and that his basic physical condition is good.  His Holiness also answered questions about future of world peace, his views on the United States and President Obama, the self-immolations in Tibet, China’s future, vegetarianism, movies, music, etc.  This will be aired on Piers Morgan Tonight on April 25, 2012 night.

Thereafter, His Holiness met with the newly appointed President of Mind & Life Institute, Mr. Arthur Zajonc, and with its board of directors.

His Holiness then went to participate in panel discussion on Resilience through Mindfulness organized by Mayo Clinic.

Dr. John Noseworthy, left, president and CEO of Mayo Clinic, greeted the Dalai Lama on Tuesday in the chapel at St. Marys Hospital in Rochester.

Dr. John Noseworthy, president and CEO of Mayo Clinic, welcomed His Holiness. Thereafter, Dr. Amit Sood, chair of the Mayo Mind Body Medicine Initiative, spoke about their Resilience education and training program and its positive impact on patients.  The Mayo Mind Body Medicine team has developed innovative practice models including meditation, and stress management and resiliency training programs, and integrated them into clinical practice at Mayo Clinic. He said the patients were trained about compassion, gratitude and morality.  Dr. Sood’s co-moderator was Dr. Daniel Goleman, Board Member of Mind & Life Institute. The panelists were Ms. Carla Paonessa, Mayo Clinic Leadership Board in Arizona, and Ms. Sherry Chesak, a nursing education specialist at Mayo Clinic.

In his initial remarks, His Holiness spoke of the importance of generating compassion by drawing attention to the need to adopt a proper approach in realizing goals of the training.  He said enthusiasm must be accompanied by intelligence and note merely be blind faith. Quoting a Buddhist scripture, His Holiness said one should check whether one’s goals are realistic or not.  He said in order to have a realistic goal, one needs to understand reality for which the mind must be calm. He added that to have a calm mind, compassion was important. Compassion opens your heart, His Holiness said, adding that fear, anger, hatred, etc. narrows the mind.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama participated in panel discussion on "Resilience through Mindfulness" at Saint Marys Hospital's chapel on Tuesday

During the discussion stage, when asked how he was able to keep his resilience despite the very many challenges he had to face, His Holiness said it was by being realistic.  He quoted Buddhist Master Shantideva about there being no reason to feel sad if there is a way to overcome a challenge, and there being no use to feel sad if there is no way to overcome it.  When asked whether during his experience with the Chinese he was in any danger of losing compassion towards them, His Holiness detailed his feelings following reports of the Tibetan demonstrations in Lhasa on March 10, 2008. He said he was filled with anxiety upon learning of the situation in Tibet. In the subsequent days and weeks His Holiness did a specific Buddhist practice known as “the practice of giving and taking” (tong len); visualizing the Chinese as people with the same kind of desire to be happy and avoid suffering and having a sense of concern for their negative action.  His Holiness added that such an approach may not be effective in resolving the problem, but it does help one to maintain a calm mind.  He talked about his having serious intestinal problem resulting in physical pain during his travel to Bodh Gaya. As he was rushed back to the state capitalPatna, His Holiness said as the state was one of the poorer regions, he noticed impoverished children as well as a poor person lying on a cot.  This enabled him to practice his giving and taking and also it did not take away his physical pain his mental anxiety was reduced, he said.

When asked to suggest for ways to grow compassion in others, His Holiness said that modern life has become very materialistic and that people were more concerned about external development.  He said the modern education system was also oriented towards materialism.  Therefore, there was the need to promote inner values through education.

In response to a question about how to generate compassion towards others who may be suffering and not to feel helpless, His Holiness said compassion could be at two levels.  At one level, one might become aware of another’s suffering and becoming concerned.  At another level, one not only feels compassionate and concerned about the suffering of others but also wants to do something help overcome that.  He said having the first level alone might lead to a sense of helplessness, but practicing the second level of compassion and thinking of ways to overcome the suffering of others would give new energy.  His Holiness added that as human beings all of us have the capacity to rise up to this level of compassion.

Another question was about finding a meaning in suffering. His Holiness said that every suffering has a cause.  He recalled some senior Tibetan monks coming to him at one time to seek his blessings to relieve some pain. His Holiness said that he had told them that as Buddhists our practice is to understand that life is full of suffering. However, since the monks are not able to get that understanding from their mental training, he had joked that their physical bodies are stepping in to send this message.

When asked about how to overcome challenges in the meditation process, His Holiness said that there were two types of meditation; analytical and single-pointed concentration. He said he treated the analytical meditation as more important as he is involved in this process in his daily life.  He said he had not been able to involve in serious single-pointed meditation for sheer lack of time.

His Holiness was asked how one could learn to bear the burden of others without feeling overwhelmed.  He responded that if one feels the work has been beneficial and meaningful, then there is no reason to feel discouraged.  He said sometimes one might make years of effort ultimately resulting in nothing, but if the action has been done with the right motivation, there is no need to regret. He added that eventually any positive action would have beneficial consequences, sometimes visible and sometimes not visible.

His Holiness was informed about the feedback received from a patient (who had only three more months to live) about why she had not been aware of the resilience program earlier.  He said that whether in the case of that individual or society in general negligence could be the issue that leads us to think of such programs only in times of adversity.

Summing up the feelings engendered by the discussions, His Holiness felt that there seems to be general agreement that inner values were important.  He urged the people to think over this and said that it is our common responsibility to promote these values, beginning within a family then sharing with other families and expanding it further. He concluded that this was the way to change the society.

President Noseworthy concluded the session by appreciating the contribution of the panelist and thanking His Holiness for sharing his thoughts on the principles of mindfulness.

In the afternoon, six young recipients of Mind & Life Institute’s Francisco J. Varela Research Awards presented their findings from pilot projects to His Holiness in a session entitled “Latest Findings in Contemplative Neuroscience.” The young scientists were Thorsten Barnhofer, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College, London (on effect of mind training on depression); Willoughby Britton, Brown Univeristy Medical School (on the nature and phenomenology of meditation-related difficulties); Norm Farb, Rothman Research Institute(on distinct brain systems supporting conscious experience); Baljinder Sahdra, University of Western Sydney, Australia (on effect of nonattachment); David Vago, Harvard Medical School (on process models for specific meditative practices that cultivate mindfulness); and Helen Weng, University of Wisconsin, Madison(on the effects of compassion meditation ontraining on the brain and altruistic behavior).  Dr. Richard Davidson moderated the session with Dr. Thupten Jinpa.

The Varela Awards were established in 2004 as a companion program to the Mind and Life Summer Research Institute and have been a critical element in supporting the development of the Contemplative Sciences. Since inception, at least 62 articles have been published in peer-reviewed journals by Varela Awardees, with at least 14 additional articles under review and 46 in preparation.

His Holiness then left Rochester for Chicago,IL, for his next leg of the current tour.  On His Holiness’ arrival in Chicago airport, Mr. Tashi Tsering Phuri, President of Chicago TIBETcenter, and officials of Nobel Peace Laureates Summit and Loyola University received  him.  His Holiness will be participating in events connected with the Nobel Peace Laureates Summit on April 25, 2012.

Remarks by Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari to the Council on Foreign Relations Washington DC. April 23, 2012

You know that I have been leading the Tibetan delegation for the dialogue with the Chinese government for the last many years. But I am not here today to give you a report on my progress because there is nothing new to say on that front. My last meeting with my counterparts in Beijing was in January 2010. Ever since, despite sincere and serious efforts on my part, we have been unable to reconvene. With the very critical situation in Tibet, the leadership changes both in Beijing and Dharamsala, and due to some other factors, I do not see any prospect for an early resumption, at least under my watch. However, having spent decades on this effort, I still do passionately believe that ultimately the only way for the  Tibetans and Chinese to find a mutually acceptable solution for Tibet is through dialogue. I hope therefore that farsighted thinking and a resurgence of political will can prevail over intransigence among China’s leaders, and I am pleased that the democratically-elected Tibetan leader Dr. Lobsang Sangay the Kalon Tripa (Chairman of the Cabinet) has repeatedly expressed a strong continuing commitment to pursue the Middle Way approach initiated by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Every struggle is unique. In the case of the Tibetan struggle, its uniqueness is derived from the nature of the Tibetan people, the Tibetan Buddhist culture, and the deep historical and personal bond between the Tibetans and His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Even after he devolved his political authority to an elected leadership in 2011, the Dalai Lama’s world view — shaped by the extraordinary, sometimes tragic experiences of his life; the scores of world leaders, including Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Mao Zedong and other towering figures with whom he met; and his unwavering commitment to peace and non-violence make the person of the Dalai Lama key to bringing to a close a conflict that has endured for more than 60 years.

Today, I would like to draw attention to some emerging elements in this long conflict and to share with you my serious concern that unless these elements are taken care of, the foundation for any eventual negotiated solution may be lost.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama's Special Envoy, Mr Lodi G. Gyari

Since I was a fairly young man, I have been privileged to serve His Holiness the Dalai Lama and, in recent years, I have been His Holiness’ chief interlocutor in talks with the Chinese leadership. As a cabinet member of the Tibetan administration in exile and Special Envoy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, I have also had close interactions with leaders and officials at various levels of governments in different parts of the world. Growing up inIndia’s environment of freedom and democracy has deeply enriched my thinking, and I have been especially fortunate to know and, in many cases, to work closely with a galaxy of Indian intellectuals and political leaders. Here in the United States, where I have been actively engaged in advancing the Tibet cause for nearly 25 years, I have also had the opportunity to know many scholars, government leaders, and officials who have handled Asia, and specifically China policy. Many of them were kind enough to extend to me their personal friendship and mentoring, such as the late Ambassador Richard Holbrooke. I have greatly benefited from the wisdom and guidance of many of these fine people. My 30 years of dealing with Chinese leaders, including with members of the Politburo of the Communist Party, has also provided me with first-hand exposure to their views and priorities, and also their concerns.

These experiences have informed my diplomacy on behalf of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and I would like to believe that I have served him and the Tibetan struggle better because of the information and access I have been given. I hope my remarks today will be received in the spirit in which others have shared their insights with me and as an elder Tibetan diplomat who has lived through these historic times and whose institutional memory is longer than some of those who are less familiar with Tibet yet may be shaping Tibet policy today.

The history of relations between Tibet and China and between Tibetans and Chinese is complex and cannot be understood simply in the context of the relatively young People’s Republic ofChina. This may seem like an obvious assertion were it not for the fact that many of us do not study history sufficiently, and our friends in Beijing seem intent on convincing today’s policy-makers not only that ‘Tibet is an inalienable part of China’ but also that relations with the PRC must be predicated on a notion incorrectly applied to Tibet that support for the Tibetan struggle violates the ‘one China’ principle.

The present Tibet-China relationship has its roots in China’s military invasion of Tibet in 1949/50 and in the ‘Seventeen Point Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet’ imposed on the Tibetans in 1951.

At this juncture, let me turn to a number of issues that potentially affect policy choices facing governments in Asia, Europe and the United States, as well as those of the Tibetan exile leadership. These correspond with three very serious concerns I have with respect to: international behavior relating toTibet, the possible direction of Chinese policy with respect to Tibetan autonomy, and the alarming situation in Tibet itself.

First, as I mentioned already, I wish to address a phantom cause for paralysis affecting the ability of some governments to put in place a credible and flexible policy onTibetand the worsening situation there. This is the well known but apparently ill understood??’one-China’ policy invoked by the Chinese government to prevent legitimate inquiry or engagement by members of the international community with respect to Tibet.

The ‘one-China’ policy, as you must know, was created in the early 1970s as the instrument that enabled theUnited Statesto establish relations with the People’s Republic of China and maintain relations with the Republic of China on Taiwan.

Then U.S. President Richard Nixon and his national security assistant Henry Kissinger were responding to the Communist Chinese leaders’ need for assurances on U.S. policy with respect to Taiwan when they told Chinese Premier Chou Enlai and Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong that the United States was not pursuing a ‘two-Chinas’ policy. In the 1972 Shanghai Communique, the United States artfully acknowledged that “all Chinese on either side of the Taiwan Strait claim that there is but one China and that Taiwan is part of China… and the United States does not challenge that position.”

This ‘one-China’ policy paved the way for the joint communique establishing diplomatic relations between the United States and the People’s Republic of China on January 1st, 1979, and the adoption by the United States Congress of the Taiwan Relations Act that same year. Under the 1979 agreement, the United States recognizes the PRC government as the sole legal government of China, while the Taiwan Relations Act set out the nature of relations the United States would maintain with Taiwan in terms that were not inconsistent with the ‘one-China’ policy but protected the status quo and therefore the status of Taiwan, whatever that might be.

Adherence to the ‘one-China’ policy has been reiterated by successive American Administrations, sometimes making explicit reference to the communiques mentioned above or to Taiwan’s unchanging status. Although the ‘one China’ policy was articulated in the context of  US-China and US-Taiwan relations, Beijing increasingly demands that other governments with whom it establishes or maintains relations also endorse this ‘one-China’ policy.

What is the relevance of this discussion to Tibet? If one has to look for any reference point for China-Tibet relations, it is not the 1972 Shanghai communique, but the ’17 Point Agreement,’ previously mentioned. In fact, the lack of relevance of the ‘one China’ policy is precisely what I would like to address. No Tibetan government has ever claimed to be the government of China, so the application of the ‘one-China’ policy to Tibet or for that matter, the PRC government’s ‘one China’ principle that stresses the inalienability of both Taiwan and mainland China as parts of a single ‘China’ — simply does not arise.

We have our differences with China’s leaders when it comes to the history of Tibet and our historical independence from China but, as you well know, His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s proposals and statements concerning ways to resolve the Tibetan question all envisage solutions that respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the People’s Republic of China as the state is constituted today. These proposed solutions call for the exercise by Tibetans of genuine autonomy within the People’s Republic of China and within the framework of its constitution not for independence.

Yet, the PRC government vigorously pursues efforts to extend the applicability of  ‘one China’ to Tibet and, in recent years, it has misled a number of governments into believing not only that the ‘one-China’ policy applies to Tibet, but that it restricts the extent to which their government officials can interact with Tibetan leaders in exile, including His Holiness the Dalai Lama. We believe that the intended effect ofChina’s initiative is to limit outside governments from playing a constructive role in promoting a mutually acceptable negotiated solution forTibet. Indeed, by accepting the applicability of ‘one China’ to Tibet, governments are subtly aligning themselves with the Chinese position that the Dalai Lama is trying to ‘split’ China.

While the PRC government is trying to intimidate some governments into believing that meeting with Tibetan exile leaders would violate the ‘one-China’ policy, in reality, this assertion is counter-intuitive to the policy. If there were a connection, the adherence by any government to the ‘one-China’ policy would have the opposite effect. Since the policy was developed precisely to make it possible for the United States to continue to conduct relations with Taiwan while recognizing the PRC government as the sole government of China, if the policy were at all relevant to Tibet, it then should enable governments to conduct relations with the Tibetan exile leadership and His Holiness the Dalai Lama without incurring Beijing’s displeasure.

Ironically for the Chinese assertion, the United States Government actually directs its officials, through the implementation of the Tibetan Policy Act (P.L. 10-228, Sec. 611) to “maintain close contact with religious, cultural and political leaders of the Tibetan people…” Those European and other foreign ministry officials, or their advisors, who uncritically accept Beijing’s opposite argument should do proper analysis before they caution their own political leaders not to cross this non-existent line onTibet.

Every government has the right to engage with the Tibetan leadership without affecting its solemn adherence to the ‘one-China’ policy and, I would argue, even has the duty out of self- interest and in the interest of global peace to promote a peaceful solution to the issue by engaging with both sides in the conflict. With the transfer of power in Dharamsala, it is critical that governments are prepared to look ahead and make policy decisions based on direct relations with the new democratically elected leadership whose authority is derived directly from the Tibetan people in exile and is seen by Tibetans insideTibetto be derived directly from His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

I need not tell you that Tibet is situated in a strategically important place in Asia, at its very heart between the two largest populations of the world (the Chinese and the Indian), and it shares its remaining border with the Islamic populations of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Central Asia. One also must not lose sight of the importance of the Tibetan plateau as the ‘third pole’ or the Earth’s third largest store of ice. And, as climate change continues or even accelerates the melting of Tibet’s glaciers, water issues originating in Tibet will have effects that resonate far beyond, impacting both the water supply for billions of people and the atmospheric circulation over much of the planet.

Instability on the Tibetan plateau can therefore have wide ramifications. It should be considered too that the kind of violent extremism we are seeing in other parts of the world is not seen in Tibet where His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the tenets of the Tibetan Buddhist culture — struggling against great odds to survive — have been moderating factors against the destabilizing and potentially dangerous effects of hate propaganda, increasing tensions and economic inequalities between Tibetans and Chinese, and other risk factors in Tibet. Governments and world leaders seen to engage with Tibetans, especially with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, endorse the message that dialogue and non-violence is a laudable path to follow to bring about change. Fear and even refusal to meet with Tibetan leaders sends the opposite signal to those around the world who stand before the choice of whether to pursue their objectives through dialogue and democratic means or through the use of violence. European and other government leaders who wish to stand for non-violent conflict resolution and against the use of deadly force should be mindful of how they demonstrate their convictions and, in the case of Tibet, they should follow the example set by successive U.S. Presidents, Secretaries of State and congressional leaders and stand by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and with the Tibetan people.

Turning to Chinese policies on Tibet, I note with concern the recent article by a person of standing within the Chinese Communist Party advocating the scrapping of the Chinese constitutional provisions and laws on autonomy as they apply to the Tibetans and other nationality minorities within the PRC. This should not be read as an expression of an over-zealous individual’s view. Since some years, a certain academician with strong ties to the Communist Party leadership dealing with the Tibetan issue has also been advocating this view in various forums. It is important to understand the consequences of the implementation of such ideas, for they are considerable.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s proposals and the position of the Tibetan exile administration, supported by many international experts and governments alike, is that the situation inTibetshould be resolved by transforming what is now merely a nominal autonomy for Tibetans under the Chinese constitution and laws into a genuine and effective autonomy. We are convinced that our primary goal of restoring the right of Tibetans to live as Tibetans according to our culture, values and religious traditions can best be achieved if Tibetans can govern themselves under a system of devolution of power from the central government to the Tibet Autonomous Region and its contiguous Tibetan autonomous prefectures and counties in the People’s Republic of China (where half of all Tibetans live). The international community is increasingly aware of the benefits of decentralization of power and the contribution of autonomy arrangements in the resolution and prevention of conflicts, especially in multi-ethnic states. The autonomy Tibetans are asking for, as set out in detail in the Memorandum on Genuine Autonomy for the Tibetan People that my delegation presented to the Chinese government in our 8th round of dialogue in November 2008, respects the Chinese constitutional framework and is in line with the best practice of states in the area of autonomy.

Instead of supporting the implementation of real autonomy in Tibetan areas within the People’s Republic of China, the proposal I am referring to advocates the opposite position. In the name of promoting Chinese nationalism it calls for eliminating ethnicity and minority status for Tibetans coupled with assimilationist policies, such as requiring that Tibetan children study Chinese culture as the aspirational culture. The policy being advocated is one that negates the distinctiveness of Tibetans and other non-Chinese and would hasten the serious cultural destruction already underway inTibet.

The recently-concluded session of the Chinese National People’s Congress did not take up these suggestions, but these ideas are dangerous all the same. If these ideas were to lead to changes in the autonomy laws, such a development would have serious ramifications internationally, in Tibet, and for prospects of achieving a negotiated solution to the Tibet question because it is on the basis on a genuinely autonomous Tibet that His Holiness the Dalai Lama has been able to build a consensus among Tibetans for a future of coexistence with the Chinese.

The international ramifications should be carefully weighed by any Chinese leader contemplating this radical policy move. It is necessary to consider that the recognition by certain governments of China’s claim toTibetwas conditioned through various diplomatic exchanges on the understanding that Tibet’s distinctive identity would be respected as an autonomous area within the People’s Republic of China. Perhaps most important in this regard was India’s demand and China’s explicit assurance, given by Prime Minister Chou Enlai to Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru in 1956.

Given India’s proximity to Tibet and its long relations with that country and with China, the Indian government’s position and the assurances given to it by the People’s Republic of China are particularly important because these factors clearly affected the actions and positions of other states whose governments have continued, as has the Government of India, to emphasize the autonomy of  Tibet while recognizing it to be a part of the People’s Republic of China. Joint communiques between India and China make the important distinction when dealing with Tibet of referring to the autonomous status of the Tibetan region. A revocation of Tibet’s autonomy by China or a further dilution of its meaning cannot be taken lightly by these governments and could have serious consequences for China and the region.

What China’s leaders must also realize is that by reneging on the promises of autonomy in the constitution even if they are unfulfilled would severely impact the Tibetan position on the question. His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s Middle Wayapproach is premised on the supposition that a middle ground between independence and the current centralist dictatorship is possible within the framework of the People’s Republic ofChinaand its constitution. That middle ground is genuine autonomy. If the constitutional basis for autonomy were to be removed from the Chinese constitution and if, therefore, a Middle Way approach could no longer be accommodated within the People’s Republic of China and its constitution, then Tibetans would be compelled to look for a totally different approach.

When we look at the volatile situation in Tibet today, we could well be witnessing a preview of what is yet to come if Tibetans there do not soon experience a considerable, tangible and meaningful change in China’s policies and practices or are at least given a realistic expectation for such change. The terrible and tragic wave of self-immolations in eastern and north eastern Tibet — the Tibetan areas of Kham and Amdo — are unquestionably the direct result of  Tibetans living under daily circumstances of oppression. The Chinese government’s failure to grasp the reality of this situation and to act responsibly is of serious concern to many governments.

Prospects for deepening religious repression in Tibet, continuing vituperative attacks against His Holiness the Dalai Lama, constraints on culture, including in the area of  Tibetan language use, escalating tensions between Tibetans and Chinese as a result of economic disparities, the yet unknown impact of China’s radical social experiment with nomad settlement all of these developments forecast an intensification and broadening of the protest movement inTibet.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama has always called on the people to refrain from using violence and has courageously reached out to China’s leaders over the years. The willful disregard of Chinese leaders to his proposals and to the plight of the Tibetan people has placed at risk the peace and stability of Tibet. I do not expect Tibetans to turn to violence as long as His Holiness is present as the symbol of the Tibetan nation and its spirit. However, a continuation of the current level of repression in Tibet — or a worsening of it, which some observers expect — will increase Tibetan resistance, as people feel they have little left to lose.

In circumstances of intense government repression against its own citizens or of open conflict the international community has coalesced around the Responsibility to Protect or R2P principle. This principle has been invoked in UN debates on Darfur, Burma, Libya and elsewhere, and the UN has established a framework for its implementation, including the role of early warning. The exercise of sovereignty is a privilege and responsibility that is derived from the will of the people, and it prohibits their abuse. In the case of mass atrocities, the international community has a responsibility to intervene to assist the people and protect them from intolerable harm. Intervention need not be military in nature: that is clearly a measure of last resort.

China, with Russia, has used its veto in the Security Council to block a UN Resolution on Syria that would have embraced R2P as a justification of intervention, claiming the Security Council had no role in the internal affairs of a state. But the People’s Republic of China is not immune to the will of the people it governs or to the condemnation of the international community when it violates international norms of behavior. And Tibetans will inevitably continue to appeal to the international community, despite the major obstacles they may encounter in that endeavor. They have no choice but to do so in the face of the Chinese government’s refusal to address their real and legitimate grievances. The risk factors are in place in Tibet. Unless China’s leaders change their course, with a more responsible approach, I believe that the international community must be increasingly vigilant and prepared to act in a qualitatively different manner to help save Tibet.

Thank you.

Rochester,MN April 23–On April 22, 2012 morning  His Holiness left the city of Long Beach for Rochester, Minneapolis. Gaden Shartse Abbot Jamyang Choeden, Geshe Lobsang Tsultrim, Managing Director, and staff of Gaden Shartse Thubten Dhargye Ling saw him off at the airport.

On his arrival in Rochester, several hundred members of the Tibetan community (Tibetan American Foundation of Minnesota) had gathered to welcome him. His Holiness went around greeting them and advised them to remain at ease.  His Holiness was received by officials and doctors of Mayo Clinic and thereafter went to address a gathering of more than a 100 Chinese students and scholars studying in inMinnesota, including from St.Olaf College; University of Minnesota; Macalester College; Carleton College; Normandale College; Mayo High School; Winona State University; and Southwest High School.

His Holiness began by talking about everyone of them being the same human being from the one blue planet.  He said if we have such a mindset then we will not see any need to involve in cheating, etc.  His Holiness said Han and Tibetans have sufficient reason to fight. Historically, he said for the past 1000 years or so Tibetan and Chinese emperors specially have had a close relationship, including marital ties.  He said the ties have sometimes been happy ones and at other times problematic.

He said throughout the world things are changing referring to how the European Union has evolved.  In the Tibetan case, the Tibetans have a distinct identity, including our own language and written script, which is closer to the Indian Devnagri script, he said.  We must, however, think of the reality, he said.

His Holiness said it is in the Tibetan people’s own interest to remain within the People’s Republic of China.  However, there should be meaningful autonomy, he said.

His Holiness said the 17 Point Agreement that Tibet had signed with China was in the spirit of one country, two systems. He talked about his visit to China in 1954-55 and his meetings with Mao Zedong, Liu Shaoqi (who he called as his immediate boss), Zhou Enlai. Etc. His Holiness said he had much interest in Marxism and had expressed his desired to the Chinese Communist Party, but was asked to wait.  He added that although he considers himself a Marxist, he is not a Leninist. He talked about Mao’s interest in Tibet and how he even asked His Holiness to be in direct touch with him.  Subsequently, in 1956, when His Holiness was in India Zhou Enlai and He Long had come on a visit there to meet with Indian officials and also with him. He said that Zhao had a message from Chairman Mao saying that the controversial reforms campaign inTibetwould be postponed for six years, and if needed would be postponed further.  Zhao also told His Holiness as well as the Indian government officials that the Tibetan case is something unique. Gradually, however, Chairman Mao’s own thinking went extreme leftist and the result was the Cultural Revolution.

In Tibet, His Holiness said that some local officials had made a pledge during the Cultural Revolution period that they would exterminate the Tibetan language within 15 years.  He also talked about Chinese Party Secretary of Tibet Autonomous Region, Chen Kuiyuan, banning the study of classical Tibetan texts in Tibet University in Lhasa.

His Holiness said all these were the cause for the 2008 protests in Tibet.  But the Chinese authorities wanted to find a scapegoat and blamed him. He said after the protests inTibetwherever he went inEurope, the United States, Australia, including here in Rochester, there were demonstrations by Chinese students.

His Holiness had subsequently said that on account of the way the Chinese leadership has been approaching the Tibetan issue, his faith in the Chinese Government had grown thinner although his faith in the Chinese people remained strong.

He said he had told a Chinese friend from Beijing that he had tried his best to work for a solution for the Tibetan issue for the past 30 years but that the Chinese United Front has destroyed his spirit.  He said that since 2001 he had become semi retired following the direct election of Tibetan leadership. Following the devolution of authority in 2011, His Holiness said the new political leadership had happily and gladly supported the Middle Way Approach.

His Holiness said China was aspiring to be a super power and if this was done with joy with liberty and freedom, the Tibetan people will feel proud to join. He said so far China is a close and secret society and unpredictable. Thus, neighbors like India, Japan and even Vietnam a Communist country are suspicious. China needs to open up, he said.  His Holiness said the Chinese students are in the United Statea free society and so should be able to see for themselves the reality.

He said in the United States, even President Clinton had to undergo legal process when he was in a problem.  Similarly, in Taiwan former President Chen Shuibian came under judicial investigation.  His Holiness said he had written to President Chen then saying that as a friend, he was sad to learn of his situation but on the other hand the development is a testimony to democracy.

Thereafter, His Holiness answered questions from the people, including about Chinese traditional medicine, role of Karma in human development, etc. He clarified some of the misconceptions, including about him being recognized as a reincarnation by the Kuomintang Chinese Government, and Tibetans demanding “Great Tibet.” One Chinese said he was sorry for the self-immolations inTibetand asked about it.  His Holiness said self-immolations have taken place not just among Tibetans, but also among Chinese, Vietnamese and even in the former Czechoslovakia. He said these are the result of people who are in a desperate situation but who do not want to harm others.

He said the development is terrible and very sad, and said that there needs to be thorough investigations into their causes.  He said these people are not drunk or committing self-immolation on account of a personal tragedy. The Chinese leadership must inquire thoroughly, he said. His Holiness said that the issue is sensitive political point and so since he had already retired he did not want to comment more than this.

His Holiness also responded to a comment about the Chinese attitude towards the 2008 Tibetan protest in the light of the Olympics. He said that he had actually supported the Olympics for China and this was recognized by a member of the Olympics Committee has having impacted his decision.

His Holiness said the People’s Republic ofChinabelongs to its 1.3 billion citizens, who have the right to know the truth and the ability to distinguish right from wrong. Therefore, he called for transparency saying censorship is immoral.

Members of the Tibetan community in Minnesota, including students, have been involved in a dialogue process with Chinese students and scholars in the area. Some of them were present at the discussion with His Holiness. The Chinese participants subsequently had a discussion session with Mr. Tsegyam Ngapa, Secretary to His Holiness, and Mr. Kunga Tashi, Chinese Liaison Officer at the Office of Tibet  in New York.

His Holiness will undergo routine check up during his stay in Rochester. OnApril 24, 2012, he will join a panel discussion on resilience through mindfulness at the Mayo Clinic.  Among the panelists are John Noseworthy, M.D., president and CEO, Mayo Clinic; Amit Sood, M.D., Mayo Clinic; Daniel Goleman, Ph.D., Mind & Life Institute; Carla Paonessa, Mayo Clinic Leadership Board, Mayo ClinicArizona; and Sherry Chesak, Mayo Clinic.

Long Beach, California, April 21–On his last full day in Long Beach during this visit, His Holiness bestowed the Yamantaka Initiations, addressed a group of Chinese & others, and spoke to more than 10,000 people on Peace in Troubled Times.

His Holiness left his hotel early in the morning to the Long Beach Arena to finish the preparatory ritual for the Yamantaka Initiations.

Before bestowing the actual empowerment, His Holiness emphasized on the importance of being serious on matters related to Highest Yoga Tantra class.  He said if you commit to a practice you have to be serious, he said. Referring to the way some Tibetan Buddhists’ attitude towards such initiations, His Holiness said there were signs of degeneration. He gave the case of conventional practice of merely having to do the Guru Yoga regarding another empowerment, Sangwa Dhuepa (Guhyasamaja) and said he insisted that the initiates should also commit to doing the Sadhanas, the daily practices related to it. Here His Holiness cited the experience of the late Trulshik Rinpoche, an eminent master who belongs to the Mindroling tradition of Nyingma, but who pursues a non-denominational practice.  Trulshik Rinpoche had received the Sangwa Dhuepa (Guhyasamaja) empowerment from him and subsequently wanted to do the practice upon his return (toNepal). Since Rinpoche did not have the relevant textual document, he sent his assistant to a Geluk monastery inKathmanduto get one. Apparently, the attendant was informed that they did not know anything about Sangwa Dhuepa and when questioned whether this was not a major meditational practice in the Geluk tradition, the response was that we only know of Guru Puja and Dorjee Neljorma (Vajra Yogini).  His Holiness said this is an indication of the degeneration of the tradition saying that from among the 18 volumes of writings by Tsongkhapa, five volumes were devoted to the subject of Sangwa Dhuepa. He said this clearly showed the interest that Tsongkhapa had in it.  His Holiness added that his insistence on the commitment to do the practice by initiates receiving the Sangwa Dhuepa empowerment from him was a sort of innovation. Similarly, he said people who are serious about Yamantaka should do the daily practices.

His Holiness also stressed on the need to have a proper understanding of the context and the significance of the portrayal of deities related to the empowerments. Given that the deities are portrayed in a form of embrace and erotic people may get confused since this does not compliment with the basic Buddhist teaching about morality of sexual conduct. His Holiness said that he had the occasion to tell some of the monasteries in India that had mural depicting such deities that these should not be on public display like this as they are seen not just by practitioners but also by the many tourists who may not comprehend the background.

As His Holiness took the time to give a very detailed commentary relating to the Yamantaka Initiations, his morning session extended way beyond its scheduled time.

In the afternoon, following a short lunch break, His Holiness went to address group of Chinese, including those who have come from the People’s Republic of China, Uyghurs, Mongols, Tibetans and others, numbering over one hundred. Many of them had come to participate in the Seventh Interethnic/Interfaith Leadership Conference convened by Initiatives forChina.

Dr. Yang Jianli of Initiatives for China welcomed His Holiness and invited him to share his thoughts.

His Holiness began by saying that everyone had gathered here having mentally at ease, without an atmosphere of fear. However, if we think of our homeland, it is undergoing great problem. Following the Tiananmen incident, His Holiness said many Chinese came out ofChina.  Since we Tibetans were senior in terms of being refugees, His Holiness said he had advised these Chinese that their struggle would not be an easy one and that they should be able to confront the challenges.

His Holiness applauded the fact that these people were struggling for justice and said that truth cannot be erased.  He stressed the importance of continuing the just struggle.  He then suggested that they have a discussion.

One individual wanted to know what made the Tibetans continue with their Middle Way Approach.  His Holiness said that in 1974, when China was in the midst of the Cultural Revolution and the Tibetan refugees had more or less settled in the settlements, there was the discussion to find a mutually beneficial solution to the Tibetan issue. Then in 1979 direct contact was established with the Chinese leadership. Deng Xiaoping had sent a message saying that other than the independence of Tibet all other issues can be discussed and resolved. That message complemented the thinking of the Tibetan leadership then, he said.

Subsequently, when challenges arose in the dialogue process, a campaign was launched to ascertain the desire of the Tibetans in exile. Although the Tibetans in Tibet could not openly participate in the process, efforts were made to seek their views, too. Most of the people felt that the Middle Way Approach was mutually beneficial.

His Holiness giving a public talk in Long Beach, California

Since Ms. Rebiya Kadeer was present in the room, His Holiness said that the Uyghurs of Xinjiang are known for their struggle for independence. However, he said following their meetings, Ms. Kadeer also understood the significance of the Middle Way approach and supported it.  He said that the Chinese United Front authorities accuse His Holiness with conspiring with people like Ms. Kadeer, but in reality he said that their contact had the Uyghur adopt such a position.

He said for the past 11 years, since 2011 his position was that of semi-retirement following the election of Prof. Samdhong Rinpoche. After Rinpoche finished his two terms and a new leadership was elected in 2011, the new leader had also committed himself to supporting the Middle Way Approach as he saw it as a sound policy.

He said that since this approach was seen as a rational one it has received majority support and has been continuing.

Another person asked about the issue of  “great Tibet” and how this fit into the Tibetan struggle. His Holiness responded that what the Tibetans were striving for was the same rights under the Chinese Constitution for all Tibetans. He said the decline of Tibetan language, tradition and environment affected all Tibetans wherever they were living. Since Tibet was economically backward, it was in the Tibetans’ own interest to remain within the People’s Republic of China.  What the Tibetans needed was protection for the distinct Tibetan language, environment, etc., and genuine autonomy.

He said that although the Tibetans have been adopting the same approach in line with the message of Deng Xiaoping, the Chinese United Front only called names such as separatists, counter-revolutionaries and recently even a Nazi.

His Holiness said that he was a little perturbed that the Chinese people were not getting to hear the truth. If there was freedom and democracy the people would be able to understand the truth, he said.  He added that with freedom and democracy inChina, the Tibetan issue could be resolved easily, even within a week. Not only the Tibetan problem, but also the problems of the Uyghur people can be resolved with justice. To date, even though the Chinese claim to want stability and unity, the approach being used was one of force.  This can only exacerbate the problem.  He said in 2008 there were protests inTibet, in 2009 the Uyghur people protested and in 2010, the Mongols protested. Even inChinaprotests are being undertaken by the Chinese people themselves, he said, referring to the development inGuangdong.

His Holiness said when news came about the Charter ’08, he was inWarsawinPolandand immediately announced his support to it.  He said change would definitely take place inChina.  He referred to Premier Wen Jiabao’s repeated call for political reform, including following the session of the National People’s Congress this year, and the subsequent development concerning Bo Xilai. He felt there would be a big change in China. However, the important thing, he said, was that the change should be a gradual one. He said eventually the Chinese Communist Party, too, should retire similar to his own retirement.

Another person asked whether he would be able to visit Tibet as a spiritual and temporal leader. His Holiness responded that under the present situation where he was being considered a demon it was obvious that if he were to go eventually he would be in prison. He said he was concerned that the Chinese people do not have access to information.  He said first there was the need to be transparent about the truth. He repeated his assertion that the 1.3 billion Chinese people have every right to know the reality and that they also have the ability to judge what is right what is wrong. He also said it was important that the legal standard inChinareach that of international standard.

Personally, he said, that he had devolved his political authority to the directly elected leader and his responsibility was on spiritual matters. He talked about his commitment to promote inter-religious harmony and human values and felt that he could make a contribution on these even to the People’s Republic of China.

However, if the Chinese authorities continue to hold on to falsehood, he said the issue will become worse and added that between 1951 and 1959 he learnt the art of hypocrisy when co-existing with the Chinese. It was only in April 1959 after he came over toIndiathat he was liberated from having to be hypocritical, he said.  He said he had no desire to be hypocritical again.

When asked about a message to political prisoners, His Holiness said that political prisoners have not committed any crime but merely supported the truth. He said there could be temporary problems and setbacks but that a struggle for justice would have a positive outcome.

His Holiness advised that people should have determination, similar to the spirit that above adopted when he was in the caves in Yan’an. He said these days the flower of freedom and democracy was blooming throughout the world.

Talking about Liu Xiaobo, His Holiness said that he was now a Nobel laureate and if we look at another Nobel laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi ofBurma, she did have to spend much time under house arrest. Eventually change took place in her case. There was much international attention to Liu Xiaobo’s case and that there would be a change, he said.

Thereafter, he went back to Long Beach Arena to give a public talk entitled Peace of Mind in Troubled Times.

Prof. Tenzin Dorjee, on behalf of the Gaden Shartse Thubten Dhargye Ling, welcomed everyone and introduced Mr. Richard Gere who introduced His Holiness. Mr. Gere said His Holiness was recognized all over for his humanitarian effort and that he was one of the greatest on this planet.

His Holiness began by laying out who he was who he was not.  He said some of the more than ten thousand people gathered here might have come out of curiosity, which was okay. Some others might have come feeling that the Dalai Lama had some sort of healing power.  He said that was nonsense. He said he was skeptical of those who called themselves as healers and recalled a speech he made at the Royal Albert Hall many years back during which he had joked that if anyone had healing power, he would like to consult that person for a itching problem he had on his neck.

His Holiness said there are some who called him God King and some others who call him a demon. These were nonsense, too, he added.

His Holiness said he was simply another human being, same as the rest of humanity. He said like any human being he too experienced anger, jealousy and attachment.

He said everyone had the potential for compassion.  He talked about the significant impact of affection received by a child from the mother. Giving the example of his experience with his own mother (who gave birth to 15 or 16 children), he said the impact remain throughout the life. He talked of the kindness of his mother who would give anything in the kitchen to a poor person and how she never showed an angry face.

He said thus the seed for caring and kindness came from our mother.  He added that he was quite sure those who received maximum care at childhood had a positive attitude while growing up. On the other hand, those people who may be educated successful or wealth, but experienced a lack of compassion during their childhood have some kind of sense of insecurity. He said on account of this, they find it difficult to be open hearted, and always remain distant, which often creates distrust. He said such people may have beautiful house, best facility, plenty of money, etc., but deep inside something is lacking.

He said that his mother’s care when he was young has helped. His Holiness said that people are at a young age the human values are quite fresh in them. As one grew older and in an atmosphere where there was too much contradiction distrust could begin. Then these basic human values remain dormant with negative emotions, sense of competition, desire to cheat, etc. become dominant in our heart.

His Holiness said a majority of problems that we are facing is our own creation. He talked about violence that took place not only in 20th century, but in this century, too. He said there were issues of corruption, the gap between rich and poor, environmental problem like global warming, etc. that needed attention.

His Holiness talked about the potential of human intelligence saying technology itself was not the cause of problems. If used properly there is immense benefit, he said. Machines do not create problems, but if they are used the wrong way then they become source of the problem.

His Holiness said that we have potentials, but without using it properly we suffer. He added that the marvelous human intelligence must be used in the positive way. He said research and investigation were very important in this. In order to investigate effectively and properly we have to look from various angles, he said. We cannot see reality from one dimension, but have to look at four dimensions or even six dimension, etc. to get a better picture. To do that your mind must be calm.

He said human intelligence and will power have to be grown properly for happy life. He added that neither machine could produce happy life nor money could buy happy life. Ultimately a happy life is connected to mental attitude, he said.

His Holiness stressed on the importance of making a distinction between sensorial and mental levels of experience. He said sometimes physically one might feel very tired and exhausted, but might be mentally still fresh. On the other hand, even though at the physical level there is no illness, if mentally there is too much stress then there would not be any calmness.  Thus the mental level experience is more superior and stronger than physical level experience, he said.

He said that we are now in the 21st century and the world is generally comparatively peaceful. But there still are problems, he said, adding that the issue was how to deal with them.  He said if one developed proper mental attitude, one could keep peace of mind. He added that when doctor tells us to take rest, it means complete mental relaxation. Lying down on a comfortable bed, but mentally not being calm is not rest.

His Holiness said a calm mind is very much related to self-confidence.  He said it is very difficult to achieve mental peace with fear. He said it may be quite strange, but more concern for others brings self-confidence and inner strength.

He said modern education system was very much oriented towards the material world, neglecting inner values. Previously the religious institutions took care of this.

If our approach of promoting inner values is based on religion there are difficulties, he said. Firstly no one religion, no matter how wonderful it may be, is universally accepted, he said. Then also there are the non-believers.

He said therefore there was the need to find a way to convey the message of love and compassion to everyone, even to non-believers. He then said we could follow the example ofIndia’s secularism, which meant respect for all religions, as also non-believers.  We need to find a secular way to promote thee inner values, he said.

His Holiness said this effort to promote a secular approach towards moral ethics is his first commitment. He said regarding his second commitment in 1956 when he came toIndiahe had wide contact with people from different religious faiths. Through his interaction, it was very clear that in the philosophical field there were big differences not only between religions, but also even within Buddhists.  However, he said that because of so many mental dispositions among people, we need different philosophical views. He said all religious traditions provide inner strength. In spite of different philosophical views, all have the same message, the wellbeing of humanity.

His Holiness said he was committed to promoting genuine religious harmony for the rest of his life, whether it is for the next 10 years, 20 years or 30 years.  He urged everyone to make concerted effort to bring a happier, peaceful humanity, which is related to warm-heartedness.  He said we could start first at the individual level, and then expand it to family and neighbors. That is the way to change, he said.

At the same time, he said those involved in education could experiment on moral ethics in a secular way. He said there are some universities that are successfully experimenting on this inIndiaand theUSA.

He said through this process, if we can change the whole world, it is good. Even if we cannot achieve that we can have peace of mind, he said. We can be completely restful and relaxed, he added. He said that when he was young, around 20 or 30 years of age, he would become nervous when he had to speak in public because he wanted to be perfect.  He said he was nervous in 1954-55 while inChinaand inIndiain 1956 inIndiameeting leaders and addressing the public. He said he remember being nervous during his first official meeting with Mao Zedong. He added that his tutor, too, was very much nervous with perspiration on his head that was bald.

His Holiness said in 1954 when the Indian Ambassador in Beijing came to see him, there were some stern-looking Chinese officials in the room, too. He said that there were some fruits on the table and somehow the fruit plate toppled. It was then that His Holiness recalled seeing the stern-looking Chinese were kneeling on the ground picking up the fruits. He said there was a big contrast between these Chinese being stern and acting like human being when something happened.

He urged the people to think on these so that they can get ideas of promoting peace of mind.

During the Question & Answer session, His Holiness was asked as to the single most important thing to practice when developing compassion. He responded that if one was religious and believed in the concept of creator then trusting fully, and showing dedication to God is helpful to reduce one’s self-centered attitude. Through that way one can easily develop compassion, he said.

He said if one is a Buddhist then one should believe in oneself; that one’s future depends on one’s own action.  Accordingly, one should develop some kind of motivation to respect and concern for other’s well being.  One should bear in mind that one’s motivation should be to help wherever possible, and if not, then not to cause harm. He said that also is a source of development of compassion.

For those who are non-believers, His Holiness said one should think over doctors’ assertion that a calm mind is good for one’s health. He said too much disturbed mind spoils our body.

His Holiness said he usually did a combination of common sense, common experience according to secular way, and, on top of that, some Buddhist technique to increase compassion.

When asked how he saw the ancient Tibetan culture helping the modern world, His Holiness said if you study Tibetan Buddhist culture sufficiently, it would be very clear that Tibetan Buddhist tradition is pure tradition of Nalanda institution. That includes not only Buddhism as a religion, but also science of mind and logic, he said. He added that science of mind and logic are universal and academic and could be adapted to the education system.

But Buddhist religion should be of concern to Buddhists only, he said.

His Holiness answered a question about positive and negative aspect of living in the west.  He said he did not want to make a distinction between the east and the west.

America, he said, is a multi-culture and multi-religion country. He said he loved the American people’s open informal attitude, compared to Germans, English or Japanese.

He said Chin being the most populous country is very important. He added that a close society is in no one’s interest. Therefore,Chinamust open and become true citizen of the world.

He said the world is changing.Americahas changed between the beginning of 20th century and latter part, he said, adding that even his hometown Dharamsala has changed much from the time of 1960s and 70s.  Nevertheless, he said unless we pay more attention to inner values material change could also contribute to negative attitude like corruption.

Another questioner asked about the most suitable way to handle intolerance by others. His Holiness said one should be clear that tolerance and forgiveness does not mean you accepting other’s wrong doing. As far as wrong action is concerned he said it is necessary to take counter measures to stop that for their own well-being and not because of ill feeling.  His Holiness talked about attitude of parents towards their children or some responsible teachers toward students. They may be harsh at times but that is not out of ill-will.  Here His Holiness recalled his tutor keeping two whips, one ordinary that was for his elder brother who studied with him, and the other one wrapped in yellow cloth, meant for him. He said he studied then on account of his fear of the whip and knew that his teacher was using it not out of negative feeling.

His Holiness said, the Communist totalitarian system was originally good, but nobody dared to criticize it subsequently because all criticism was suppressed. He recalled following the 1986-87 serious problems inTibet, journalist Jonathan Mirsky from The Observer had asked him on why the Chinese are irritated by him. His Holiness said he had responded that this was because he did not say “Yes, Minister” to the Chinese. His Holiness said, actually Chairman Mao had said that Communists should receive criticism from others or else they would be like fish without water. He said the slogan was good but in 1957 Mao started Let hundred flowers bloom campaign and then all the flowers turned into weeds, he said. He said the Tibetans inIndiacertainly sincerely follow Mao’s message.

Following his talk, the organizers, as per His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s call for transparency in financial matters, made a public statement.  They announced that the total gross income was $ 650,000 and the total estimated expense was $ 317,000 resulting in a surplus of $ 333,000.  They said His Holiness does not charge any fees nor benefit from this and that the money will be distributed to the following.  $ 133,000 to the Dalai Lama Trust for educational and cultural programs; $ 100,000 to the parent educational institution of the Center inIndia; $ 50,000 to theGadenShartseThubtenDhargyeLingCenterfor six of its projects; and another $50,000 was being kept as seed money for a next visit of His Holiness to the region.

OnApril 22, 2012morning, His Holiness departs forRochesterin the state ofMinneapolisfor the next leg of his current trip.  He will be having a routine medical checkup and also participate in a panel discussion on resilience through mindfulness onApril 24, 2012.