As a child, I loved climbing trees and rooftops. Perhaps that was natural – being small, I wanted to see the world from another perspective!?! Later on, as a student of theology, I dreamed of going to the Himalayas. I didn’t get to fulfill that dream but I met a missionary priest who really made it to the Himalayas. It was truly a transforming experience, he said.Last night, I re-lived the dream as I watched Kundun, a film about the early life of the actual Dalai Lama. His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is the head of state and spiritual leader of the Tibetan people. He was born on 6 July 1935 at the hamlet of Taktser in north-eastern Tibet. At the age of two the child named Lhamo Dhondup was recognized as the incarnation of the Buddha.
Dalai Lama is a Mongolian title meaning "Ocean of Wisdom" and the Dalai Lamas are manifestations of the Bodhisattva of Compassion, Chenrezig. Bodhisattvas are enlightened beings who have postponed their own nirvana and chosen to take rebirth to serve humanity. For more on the present Dalai Lama, click here.
I was motivated to see this film yesterday due to one word that kept resounding in and around me: Liberation! April 25 in Italy is the Day of Liberation from the Nazis (end of World War II). But more connected to Buddhism, liberation is really the ideal of Buddhists - liberation from suffering which is our natural condition as creatures. On a personal note, I myself am looking for some kind of liberation from a physical suffering, which I have perhaps caused myself out of my ignorance or ingenuousness.
Two important scenes in the film regarding this theme: When the chinese general told the Dalai Lama that China’s intention in entering Tibet is to “liberate” its people, the only response he got was – “China cannot liberate us; only we can liberate ourselves.” Certainly, they were talking on two different planes. The other scene was the dialogue between Mao Zedong and the Dalai Lama, where the former declared “Religion is poison; it has poisoned Tibetan society.” To this the Dalai Lama responded with silence. And I agree with him, it wasn’t worth throwing one’s pearls…
Incidentally, the Buddhists are soon celebrating the feast of Vesakh, with variable dates between May 2-31. This feast commemorates the principal events in Buddha's life. Perhaps one way of participating in their feast and “dialoguing with them” is to recall some of the Dalai Lama’s liberating teachings. See this powerpoint presentation which I received some years ago.
