We were planning on visiting Dharamsala and Mcleodganj (Where DL and many Tibetan exiles lives) after the conference on the 27-28 since a couple months ago. Unexpectedly luck followed us there, and we discovered DL was giving a rare, twice a year teaching on the same days that we were in India, in Himachal, and in Dharamsala! Coincidence? Doubtful. Its more likely that the Dalai Lama and I share a special, unbreakable connection…
As we were driving through the narrow streets of Mcleodganj we noticed a long line of white people. They were a special kind – the spiritual seekers with dredlocks and flowing Indian tops adorned with a “free Tibet” pin. I immediately realized it was the registration line for the DL teaching on Dependent Origination hosted by Winter Lotus, an organization of Vietnamese monks. After my mother and I did some instrumental “ghoos-ing” (skipping line), we stood next to a fascinating couple from New Zealand who had been traveling through India for 8 months! They were very eager to talk about our experiences in India and our opinions on its rapid economic changes yet fundamental social institutions that remain the same. We asked them about Srinagar, Kashmir and Darjiling, places we had never gotten the chance to see. The couple were inquisitive about India’s messy democracy and the Baba Ramdev/Anna Hazare movements, and we shared perspectives and questions. It was fun! Mcleodganj, though in India, looked like an international town.
After waiting for an hour, we got our IDs. We walked on the streets and then visited the DL temple. While many Hindus offer prepared food, milk, coconuts – all kinds of elaborate dishes to the idol of god, the Buddhists simply put packages of cookies in front of Buddha and a photograph of DL – stacks of Oreos, Parle G, Chips Ahoy – nonperishables! We then ate some Tibetan food, did ordinary touristy stuff, etc.
The next day was the teaching. Crowded with Spanish, Chinese, French, British, American, and Indian people, the entire temple was filled with an eclectic international mix of curious students. We found a spot so that we could see DL in the midst of Vietnamese monks wrapped in their traditional red garb. There is a lot to be said about the Buddhist religion – a culture that allowed the monks to sit happily next to laymen, even laywomen! For many other religions this gender equality would be unheard of. Moreover, the Vietnamese monks, for whom the lecture was meant for, smiled and invited me to take their positions on floor so I could see DL. I talked to one, who was studying Buddhist philosophy at Delhi University. Quick anecdote, a freaky Tibetan nationalist (who probably wishes the DL was more forceful on Tibetan liberation from China) with a blonde afro (Don’t try it Jalen) and yellow sunglasses pushed the DL as he was leaving the podium after his lecture probably to embarrass him. The bad guy was shoved by the security guards and landed at my feet! It was ridiculous. Probably the only minute DL stopped smiling.
Anyways, Buddhism is a phenomenal philosophy, and it is astounding that Gautam Buddha was able to articulate the human condition with accuracy, insight, and empathy thousands of years ago.
Speaking of Buddhist philosophy, let me share some of the basics of Buddhist tenets that DL taught. If you are already familiar with Buddhism, you can skip the next couple of paragraphs, but the lecture ‘s content was so timely –it resonated with the purpose of my trip and really moved me. I saw and heard DL in ATL four years ago, but he lectured on Free Tibet. So I was lucky to listen to him discuss the intellectual core of his religion.
All religions aim to alleviate suffering and enable its practitioners to achieve peace of mind by emphasizing compassion, love, and hope. “Hope is a song in a weary throat”, right? DL upheld that the main purpose of religions is not to debate each other in facts, but to engender happiness to humanity.
In Buddhism, humans must achieve self-lessness, in the sense of detaching from “I” as an individual and letting go of our physical and mental quirks, must haves, etc. Understanding that there is no self and overcoming the ego through developing knowledge means we can let go of our self-existing identity, which is incompatible with reality. As Buddha said, the master of self is yourself. Suffering is not God created but a manifestation of the mind, so taming the mind is the way to conquer it. Therefore we outgrow our existence for us, not for the benefit of a Creator or higher being. Buddhists don’t believe in an atma, a soul that feels pain and pleasure, because pain and pleasure don’t come from permanent or created causes. Buddha says we suffer because of ignorance. That word isn’t the perfect translation of the Sanskrit, because the enemy is not stupidity but an unwillingness to be aware of truth. Dependent Origination, understanding the natural flow of causes and results, is how we eliminate suffering by eliminating our fixation on intrinsic existence.
My dad has always passionately agreed with his namesake (holla to Ms. Fishman?) so Buddhist tenets have been dropped once in a while in my upbringing.
Mahayana Buddhism specifically emphasizes others. Here is the Prayer to Generate Bodhichitta:
With the wish to free all beings I shall always go for refuge to Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, until I reach full enlightenment. Enthused by wisdom and compassion, today in the Buddha’s presence, I generate the mind of full awakening for the benefit of all sentient beings. As long as space remain, as long a sentient beings remain, until then, may I too remain and dispel the miseries of the world… to be a Buddha to benefit all.
