Download Go here to watch an 8 minute video of the Dalai Lama

Lesson Nine
The Dalai Lama and Universal Compassion
“For as long as space endures,
And for as long as living beings remain,
Until then may I, too, abide
To dispel the misery of the world.”
-Prayer of the Dalai Lama,
composed by Shantideva
In this lesson, we will meet one of the most loved political and religious
figures in the world today. His Holiness, the Dalai Lama was born on July 6,
1935 in the very isolated country of Tibet. His Holiness began life as the
child of poor farmers. At the age of three, he was recognized as the
reincarnation of the thirteen previous Dalai Lamas, at which time he was
taken from his parents to become a monk and live in a monastery to begin
his rigorous training for the important role he would hold as the spiritual and
temporal leader of the Tibetan people. At a young age, he faced the invasion
of his country by China, bloody resistance to the Chinese among the people,
persecution of the Tibetan religion and way of life, and a flight into exile
from his country. Many of the religious leaders of Tibet were either killed or
escaped into exile, and along with the Dalai Lama, have brought the
teachings of Tibetan Buddhism into the rest of the world for the first time.
The Dalai Lama is world-renowned as an advocate of human rights, nonviolence, peace, and compassion for all beings. He is a fascinating person to
study, not only because he is held with such love and awe by his own people
and many others in the world, but also because he is a study in the practice
of Buddhist ideals during the worst of times (i.e. the loss of his country and
a lifetime of exile).
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To begin with, let’s get to know more about who the Dalai Lama is said to
be:
http://web.archive.org/web/20041013020922/http://www.dalailama.com/ht
ml/avalokiteshvara.html
1. What are some of the different views of who the Dalai Lama is?
Now, let’s get to know a bit more about the Dalai Lama’s life story. As you
read about his discovery, it is important to know that only very special lamas
actually reincarnate. According to the Buddha, we all experience rebirth but
usually without control. Only beings that are very spiritually advanced are
said to be able to choose their rebirth, which is referred to as a
reincarnation. Other very spiritually advanced people then use special
methods to find these “Tulkus” or reincarnations.
Read through this site to learn more about the life of His Holiness:
http://web.archive.org/web/20041125020327/http://www.dalailama.com/ht
ml/young_dl.html
2. How did the search party find the little boy and determine that he was in fact the
new reincarnation of the last Dalai Lama?
3. The way the Dalai Lama has responded to the sufferings and challenges in his life is
really a dharma teaching in itself. What are some of the challenges that the Dalai
Lama has faced in his life?
Go here to watch an 8 minute video of the Dalai Lama:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUEkDc_LfKQ
4. What is his main point about Happiness?
The Making of A Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, all living beings are said to have a
Buddha nature, which makes us all equal in our
beautiful spiritual nature. Because not all beings
have discovered their inner Buddha nature, most of
us continue to suffer and are spiritually confused.
However, some beings have developed their own
inner wisdom and compassion to such a degree that
they are well on their way to full enlightenment.
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These beings are dedicated to accomplishing the very best for every single
living being, no matter how long it takes, and these special beings are
known as Bodhisattvas. You can recognize a Bodhisattva by their unfailing
kindness and wisdom towards every living being they meet, whether they
know them or not.
5. The Dalai Lama has been recognized as a Bodhisattva. Thich Nhat Hanh is a
Bodhisattva too. Do you know anyone that you think may be Bodhisattva? Who is
this person and how does he or she live in relation to others?
6. The prayer at the beginning of the lesson is one that the Dalai Lama prays every
day. It is the prayer of a Bodhisattva. What do you think of the idea of becoming a
Bodhisattva? Is that something you would like to do? Why or why not?
The Holy Mind of Bodhichitta
In order to become a Bodhisattva, a person must develop universal love and
compassion for all sentient beings, and then develop the wish to release
every single sentient being from suffering forever. With that wish, the
person makes a vow to become a Buddha in order to be perfectly able to
help all suffering beings. The person who develops the steady intention to
become a Buddha in order to release all beings from suffering has developed
a very special mind or consciousness called Bodhichitta. It is said that there
is nothing more powerful than this intention because it is so pure—it is often
referred to as “the holy mind of Bodhichitta”. Literally, Bodhi means
“awakened” and citta means “heart/mind”.
The Use of Meditating on Compassion
Excerpt from The Compassionate Life, by TenzinGyatso, the Fourteenth Dalai Lama
“One point I should make here is that some people, especially those who see
themselves as very realistic and practical, are sometimes too realistic and
obsessed with practicality. They may think, "The idea of wishing for the
happiness of all beings, of wanting what is best for every single one, is unrealistic
and too idealistic. Such an unrealistic idea cannot contribute in any way to
transforming the mind or to attaining some kind of mental discipline, because it
is completely unachievable."
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“...They feel there is simply no point in thinking about all beings since there is an
infinite number of them. They feel that the infinite number of beings throughout
the universe has nothing to do with their own experience as individuals.”
“...What is important here, however, is to grasp the impact of cultivating such
altruistic sentiments. The point is to try to develop the scope of our empathy in
such a way that we can extend it to any form of life with the capacity to feel pain
and experience happiness. It is a matter of recognizing living organisms as
sentient, and therefore subject to pain and capable of happiness.”
“...Such a universal sentiment of compassion is very powerful, and there is no
need to be able to identify, in specific terms, with every single living being in
order for it to be effective.”
“...Given patience and time, it is within our power to develop this kind of
universal compassion.”
7. Have you ever seen—or had the experience yourself—of loving someone so much
that you were able to do more for them than you ever imagined even when it was
really hard to keep going at times? Why do you think the mind of Bodhichitta is so
powerful as a means to purify negative states of mind?
In Tibetan Buddhism, a person who wishes to train as a Bodhisattva takes
Bodhisattva vows in front of a teacher or Lama. After that special ceremony,
the budding Bodhisattva will renew these vows each day during his or her
spiritual practice. The vows can all be summarized by the practice of not
harming and showing kindness to all beings.
If you are curious about what those vows are, you can see the 18 root vows
and the 46 auxiliary vows at this site:
http://web.archive.org/web/20110830214800/http://community.palouse.net
/lotus/vows.htm
Training in the Six Perfections
In order to train and fulfill his or her vows, a
Bodhisattva will work hard to practice what is
known as the Six Paramitas or Perfections.
To learn more about the Six Paramitas, go to
this site and look halfway down the page:
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http://web.archive.org/web/20100921112740/http://dzogchen.org/teaching
s/talks/dtalk-95feb20.html
8. The six paramitas are important as a way of life for the Bodhisattva. Briefly
describe each of the six perfections and explain how each one could be practiced in
everyday life.
Ethics for a New Millennium
Now that you have studied the mind of Bodhichitta and understand what a
Bodhisattva is, you can understand better who the Dalai Lama is and why he
has worked continuously his whole life to promote compassion for all beings,
as well as love and peace among all humans. He is called “His Holiness”
because it is believed he has the holy mind of Bodhichitta and that he
continues to reincarnate in order to assist all living beings. In 1989, His
Holiness was awarded the Nobel Peace prize for his work.
Lets take a look at what he has to say regarding Ethics for A New
Millennium:
http://web.archive.org/web/20041125012806/http://www.dalailama.com/ht
ml/peace_nonviolence.html
9. The Dalai Lama states, “We find that not only do altruistic actions bring about
happiness but they also lessen our experience of suffering”. Explain his reasons for
making this statement.
10. Why are ethics necessary?
11. What makes for genuine happiness according to His Holiness?
A Call for Universal Responsibility
Now, let’s take a look at his Nobel Lecture:
http://web.archive.org/web/20041103093029/http://www.dalailama.com/ht
ml/nobel.html
12. Why is learning to live in harmony with each other and with nature not just a
dream but a necessity?
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13. Why does the Dalai Lama believe we need to develop a sense of universal
responsibility?
14. What is necessary for a lasting peace?
15. Why is it necessary to balance both material
progress and spiritual progress?
16. Where does peace begin and why there?
17. As you read through His Holiness’ speech, how do you hear him speaking about the
Chinese people? Do you hear him practicing non-violence in speech as well as
deed? Give an example to support your opinion.
Meditation and Journal
The Dalai Lama strives to apply the 6 paramitas in every moment of his day,
including when dreaming during sleep. Think about how you could apply the
six perfections in your life over the next week. Pick one or two to keep in
mind and look for opportunities to put them into practice whenever you can.
Examples:
*Generosity—having an open mind about someone, giving someone a hand,
letting others go first, expressing your tender heart.
*Ethics—doing the right thing, refraining from lying, doing the job right even
though it takes longer, doing what you say you will.
*Patience— hearing someone out, 3 deep breaths before reacting, laughing
off your own irritability.
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Meditation: At night when you get into bed, 1) remind yourself to keep an
eye out for moments in the following day when you could apply one of the
transcendent actions (Paramitas). Then 2) place your attention on your
heart and do 10 minutes of mindful breathing, feeling your heart expand
gently as you breath in. You can also visualize a slight glow in your heartcenter in order to keep your attention focused there. Use a light touch for
this, and go back to sensations around your nostrils if you need a break from
the heart focus.
Journal: Were you able to do the evening reminder and heart meditation?
How many nights? Do you think bedtime reminders help you remember the
next day? How did it go meditating before falling asleep? Also, describe
several notable moments in the week when you had a chance to practice one
of the perfections.
Optional: Create an altruistic prayer to say every day. If you liked the Dalai
Lama’s prayer at the beginning of the lesson, you could try sincerely praying
that every day for a week and see what a difference that intention may
make in your everyday life and choices.
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Further talks by the Dalai Lama if you want to know a little more:
Excerpt from a public talk (Ethics of Our Time) given at the University of
California Santa Barbara April 2009.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xnr2SPHLraI
Written Interview with Oprah:
http://www.oprah.com/omagazine/Oprah-Interviews-The-Dalai-Lama
And here’s a great film about the Dalai Lama:
Kundun (1997)
You can either rent it or watch it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EC0jChlBwHE
REMEMBER: If you run into any kind of problem with a website, please go back to
your course download page and get a new copy of the lesson(s). Many times you will
discover that the problem has already been fixed!
If the link still does not work notify Tanya MacGumerait
([email protected]) immediately, so that she can find you an alternative
site before you turn the lesson in. Be sure to include the following in your email:
course name, lesson number and the link that needs attention.
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