(no subject)

[swatkat]

The Dalai Lama had come to speak in the inaugural address of a seminar on Gandhi and Satyagraha, so I went to listen. And this may sound rather frivolous, but I can't put it in any other way: he was charming. Cute, even. He cracked jokes about his English ("My English very poor."), about imagining Martin Luther King in a dhoti (apparently his wife had told him that King sometimes tried to imitate Gandhi, even his costumes) and had us all in splits, all the while speaking about serious things like non-violence and religious tolerance. He was very gracious speaking about India's non-violent tradition, and was nice enough not to mention the defence budget or the arms race, and equally gracious talking about religious tolerance in India and among Hindus (not mentioning that Hindus only kill Muslims. and lower castes. and women. and oh, an occasional Christian missionary and his children).

The best line, however is this, in the Q&A session:

Woman: What is the best way to bring about world peace?
Dalai Lama: *thinks very hard* I don't know.

Outside, there were bookstalls selling Educational Books, so I went to take a look at that. And they were Expensive, so naturally I had to come back empty-handed, remembering the Bapu's words (on how the Englishmen want the entire world to be their marketplace) and cursing (in a very non-violent way) this cruel world where one has to buy books.

*

I have submitted one assignment. Four more to go. And... two weeks. Or is it three? I've lost all track of time these days. And there's this matter of studying for the end semesters. What is this fandom you speak of?

Comments

[ms-artisan.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you're managing to stick your head up now and then, good luck with the assignments.

The Dalia Lama is an amazing man, isn't he? I heard him speak once and I can honestly say I've never seen anyone else who can, at once, be so commanding, humble, intelligent and utterly charming.

It's a sad fact about our world culture that more people would rather hear the warmongers than the peacemakers.

[swatkat24.livejournal.com]

Sticking up my head is my way of coping with pressure, i.e, pretending it doesn't exist.

And oh, he was so awesome! He sat beside the asshole Vice-Chancellor of the University and was utterly charming and nice, which is a feat only a man of his stature could manage to do. He started speaking in Tibetan - after a couple of sentences he asked people who knew Tibetan to put their hands up. There were quiet a few, although the majority of us didn't. And then he dismissed his interpreter and started speaking in English. And did I mention he was awesome?

[dangomango.livejournal.com]

That...is so cool. So cool I had to leave a random comment. *hearts the Dalai Lama*

[swatkat24.livejournal.com]

He is cool! As are random comments. *g*

[evilstorm.livejournal.com]

...Yay Dalai Lama. Really must go hear him speak some time.

[swatkat24.livejournal.com]

Yay!

[roga.livejournal.com]

Oh, wow. That sounds like an amazing experience; something to be able to tell your kids one day.

[swatkat24.livejournal.com]

It was! He was awesome and yes, I will cherish this forever and will tell this to my children, assuming I ever have any. *g*

[jaybee65.livejournal.com]

Woman: What is the best way to bring about world peace?
Dalai Lama: *thinks very hard* I don't know.

That's just awesome.

[swatkat24.livejournal.com]

It is! He was just BRILLIANT. And charming and funny. He started speaking in Tibetan at first, but then he dismissed his interpreter and spoke in English so that everybody would understand (hence the cracks about his English). And occasionally he would consult the interpreter for a word,

DALAI LAMA: What was that word? *says something in Tibetan*
INTERPRETER: Pessimistic?
DALAI LAMA: No, no, not that...
INTERPRETER: Passionate?
DALAI LAMA: Right!

And then he would continue. It was awesome.

[sy-dedalus.livejournal.com]

Hi. Stumbled upon your journal via House-ness. The Dalai Lama gave a public talk on compassion prefaced by three days of teachings at my university about a month ago, so I have to add a comment here. He is so charming, as you mentioned. It's amazing, this charm he radiates. After the four days were up, I felt like I was losing a friend with him leaving town. My favorite bit from the sessions happened when he used cats to make the point that compassion doesn't necessarily stem from religious affiliation. He said that cats demonstrate compassion when they play with us and take care to keep their claws retracted because they know the claws hurt us. He added: "I like cats" and then made a purring noise. Seventy-some-odd-year-old Buddhist monk who speaks broken English purring like a cat on a stage surrounded by fifty local monks? Utterly delightful.

In any case, I too was struck by what a kind, humble human being he is, and had to share here. :)

[swatkat24.livejournal.com]

Hello! *waves*

You are right about the way he radiates charm - the talk was held in a large ground, with an audience of over a 1000, and *everyone* seemed just as bowled over as I was.

My favorite bit from the sessions happened when he used cats to make the point that compassion doesn't necessarily stem from religious affiliation. He said that cats demonstrate compassion when they play with us and take care to keep their claws retracted because they know the claws hurt us. He added: "I like cats" and then made a purring noise. Seventy-some-odd-year-old Buddhist monk who speaks broken English purring like a cat on a stage surrounded by fifty local monks? Utterly delightful.

That's just awesome!