Once in a Lifetime Opportunity

We got what will probably be a once in a lifetime opportunity yesterday- to hear the Dalai Lama teach! We had heard he was coming to Dhar to present some teachings. We went and got our id badges earlier in the week and then went down at 7:30 in the morning for the teachings at 9. We ran into a student we’ve worked with at the English conversations class and he invited us to come sit with him on his mat. Tibetans don’t think its good for you to sit on the floor- they think it makes you sick, so they all offer bags, jackets, mats, cushions or anything else they have to make sure you don’t have to sit on the floor. Yet another fine example of their amazing hospitality. Another fine example happened on the temple grounds. IN the middle of the teachings monks get up and pass around Tibetan bread (kind of like big English muffins, or at least the taste) and butter tea. They literally served thousands of people that were there. The Dalai Lama drank tea and the middle and laughed and said, we have to take care of the physical body too, not just the mind. His laugh is adorable and he laughed so often. He’s so quick to laugh and also so down to earth.

The Dalai Lama teaches at his temple here. Everyone gathers all around on the different floors around the temple and they have tvs set up for everyone to watched. He usually teaches in Tibetan of course and they have translators for many different languages- English, Korean, Chinese, etc, which they broadcast on different radio stations. It is also for those that can’t make it to the temple, so they can listen to him also from their shops and what not.

As he started talking he was asking who spoke what languages. When he asked who spoke English he realized much of the group spoke English, as a huge number had come from Singapore, which speaks English. When he realized this he then said he would try to teach in English, that way more of us could understand him directly and so he could work on his English he said as he laughed playfully. Not only did we have the honor of hearing him teach, but we got to hear him teach in our own language!

His teachings were wonderful! He started the first session with some simple ideas of love and compassion. Although I could never rehearse to you his teachings in the way that he did, I do want to share a few of the things that struck me while I was listening. Two of my favorite Buddhist teachings so far have been their thoughts concerning compassion and happiness. He taught that happiness is created from our intelligence- much like the common phrase we have that attitude is everything kind of. He said that material things are important, but that our happiness comes from our emotions as well. He said that although many are wealthy, educated and good people, they are not happy because they worry so much. He said that often we take too short of a perspective, that we short sight things and then see obstacles to be much bigger than they really are, so much that they seem unbearable. He said when we step back, take the wider perspective and different angle, we can see things as they really are. Buddhists are very much about trying to see reality as it really is- and not as it “appears” or sometimes seems to be. There is a gap between “appearances” and reality- and our job is to explore these differences and try to come to reality as best we can.

Like I said, I also love their ideas on compassion. He talked about some of his early memories with his mother and how she provided the best example of love and compassion, as most mothers do for their children. Lol, it was quite funny when he said that he used to bully his mother. It’s hard to picture him as a little child bullying his mother. They are also very science oriented, and he mentioned a study that shows that children who get their mother’s touch their first few weeks of life develop so much better. Those who grow up with full affection and care are often more intelligence and are able to show compassion and care to others more easily. To Buddhists it is also very important to have both a healthy mind and body, for this leads to a freshness and self confidence, which allows us to face all the challenges that come our way, and allows us to love and show compassion to all despite how things may be.

Anyway, I’m still just learning the basics of Buddhism- and His Holiness went much deeper than that. If you have any basic questions, I might be able to try to answer them, or ask someone, so please ask if you have any questions.

To try to describe the setting and feeling of the teachings a little more, I can tell those of you of the LDS faith that it is much like the feeling of general conference- in fact very, very similar. Watching him walk though the crowd reminded me of President Hinckley so much! As he walked by smiling, and waving I saw the faces of those looking up at him, full of complete admiration, love and respect. There is something so unique in the eyes of individuals looking up at their cherished leaders... There is also something to be said about these old, spiritual leaders. There is just something about them. They are so full of love, easy to laugh, and are just so warm and happy.