His Holiness the Dalai Lama speaking to the crowd at the Shewatsel Teaching Ground in Leh, Ladakh, UT, India on July 28, 2022. Photo: OHHD/Tenzin Choejor

Exile
Tools
Typography
  • Smaller Small Medium Big Bigger
  • Default Helvetica Segoe Georgia Times

Leh, Ladakh, UT, India — “The courage and spirit of the people of Tibet is undaunted and they have unwavering faith and trust in me. Keeping our Buddhist cultural heritage alive in the Himalayan regions will naturally benefit the Tibetan people. Our struggle for freedom and dignity is based on truth and justice and will be best achieved by relying on ‘ahimsa’, which means observing non-violence and doing no harm. Since a growing number of brothers and sisters in China are Buddhist, I am confident that things will change for the better before long,” said His Holiness the Dalai Lama on July 28, 2022.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama is giving three days of teachings on 28, 29 and 30 July, 2022, at the Shewatsel Teaching Ground near Choglamsar, at the request of the Ladakh Buddhist Association and the Ladakh Gonpa Association. On the morning of 28 and 29 July, His Holiness will give teachings on Shantideva's Guide to the Bodhisattva Way of Life (chodjug). On the morning of 30 July, His Holiness will confer the Avalokiteshvara initiation (chenresig wang), followed by a short prayer for a long life to His Holiness, offered by the Ladakh Buddhist Association and the Ladakh Gonpa Association.

“Loving-kindness is the key to happiness, we experience it from the moment we are born and even when we reach the end of our lives, we will feel more comfortable and relaxed if we are surrounded by warm-hearted relatives and friends. In short, we are social animals and if we are warm-hearted towards others, we will lead happy lives. There is a Tibetan saying that goes, ‘Warm-heartedness leads to happiness and success’, ” His Holiness the Dalai Lama told the 45,000 people who had gathered to hear his teaching.

“It is also said that your so-called enemy can be your best teacher. Although Tibetans have faced great hardship and misery at the hands of Chinese Communists, I advise them not to harbour feelings of hatred or vindictiveness,” His Holiness said.

“If we store up negative feelings towards our adversaries, with the intention of retaliating against them, it will not help us lead happy lives. What is much better instead is to feel compassion for those who engage in negative actions—keeping in mind that warm-heartedness and forgiveness are the root cause of happiness. Whatever the goal, as a Buddhist monk, I never advocate the use of force to achieve it,” he declared.

“The people of Ladakh and Tibet have had very close relations from ancient times. If people in the Himalayan region, from Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh, are able to preserve their Buddhist cultural heritage, they will make a great contribution to the flourishing of Buddhism in the world,” His Holiness said.

“The courage and spirit of the people of Tibet is undaunted and they have unwavering faith and trust in me. Keeping our Buddhist cultural heritage alive in the Himalayan regions will naturally benefit the Tibetan people. Our struggle for freedom and dignity is based on truth and justice and will be best achieved by relying on ‘ahimsa’, which means observing non-violence and doing no harm. Since a growing number of brothers and sisters in China are Buddhist, I am confident that things will change for the better before long,” the spiritual leader of Tibet said.

“In the 1960s I visited Tibetan refugees in the Chamba District of Himachal Pradesh, among whom were a large number of monk-scholars, who were working as labourers building roads. Although these monks lacked even monks’ robes, because of the special circumstances we held the "bi-monthly monastic confession ceremony" on the spot and followed it with a debate about Buddhist philosophy. I was very moved by the hardship they were undergoing,” he explained.

“Eventually, with the support of the Government of India, as well as NGOs and charitable organisations, we were able to re-establish the traditional monastic Centres of Learning in South India," His Holiness described.