At the beginning when the child is coming, people worry the child may be deformed. When a healthy boy or child comes, people are very happy for a short moment.
— Dalai Lama
I am sometimes sad when I hear the personal stories of Tibetan refugees who have been tortured or beaten. Some irritation, some anger comes. But it never lasts long. I always try to think at a deeper level, to find ways to console.
If some people have the belief or view that the Dalai Lama has some miracle power, that's totally nonsense. I am just one human being.
If I had remained in Lhasa, even without the Chinese occupation, I would probably have carried the ceremonial role in some orthodox way.
Death means change our clothes. Clothes become old, then time to come change. So this body become old, and then time come, take young body.
If you have religious faith, very good, you can add on secular ethics, then religious belief, add on it, very good. But even those people who have no interest about religion, okay, it's not religion, but you can train through education.
When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways - either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find our inner strength. Thanks to the teachings of Buddha, I have been able to take this second way.
Open-minded people tend to be interested in Buddhism because Buddha urged people to investigate things - he didn't just command them to believe.
More compassionate mind, more sense of concern for other's well-being, is source of happiness.
Logically, harmony must come from the heart... Harmony very much based on trust. As soon as use force, creates fear. Fear and trust cannot go together.
Because of lack of moral principle, human life becomes worthless. Moral principle, truthfulness, is a key factor. If we lose that, then there is no future.
Physical comforts cannot subdue mental suffering, and if we look closely, we can see that those who have many possessions are not necessarily happy. In fact, being wealthy often brings even more anxiety.
I have always had this view about the modern education system: we pay attention to brain development, but the development of warmheartedness we take for granted.
Generally speaking, if a human being never shows anger, then I think something's wrong. He's not right in the brain.
One thing I want to make clear, as far as my own rebirth is concerned, the final authority is myself and no one else, and obviously not China's Communists.
I have no trouble sleeping.
We all have to live together, so we might as well live together happily.
My aim is to create a happy society with genuine friendship. Friendship between Tibetan and Chinese peoples is very essential.
I am a simple Buddhist monk - no more, no less.
Appearance is something absolute, but reality is not that way - everything is interdependent, not absolute. So that view is very helpful to maintain a peace of mind because the main destroyer of a peaceful mind is anger.
I felt we must separate political responsibility. The Dalai Lama should not carry that burden. So that is my selfish reason - to protect the old Dalai Lama tradition. It is safer without political involvement.
My main concern is meeting with public because my main commitment, main interest is promotion of human value, human affection, compassion and religious harmony.
My main hope is eventually, in modern education field, introduce education about warm-heartedness, not based on religion, but based on common experience and a common sort of sense, and then scientific finding.
All religions try to benefit people, with the same basic message of the need for love and compassion, for justice and honesty, for contentment.
The Tibetan people will need to determine who the next reincarnation of the Dalai Lama is.
In most cases, my visits to the West are for promotion of human values and religious harmony.
I feel exhausted if I teach too long.
In order to become prosperous, a person must initially work very hard, so he or she has to sacrifice a lot of leisure time.
Chinese people themselves, they really want change.
I became the Dalai Lama not on a volunteer basis.
I am confident I will set foot again in Tibet in my lifetime.
It is difficult to violently suppress people in the long run, as the example of the Soviet Union and the Eastern European countries has shown.
My faith helps me overcome such negative emotions and find my equilibrium.
Look at situations from all angles, and you will become more open.
The basic Buddhist stand on the question of equality between the genders is age-old. At the highest tantric levels, at the highest esoteric level, you must respect women: every woman.
Of course, when I say that human nature is gentleness, it is not 100 percent so. Every human being has that nature, but there are many people acting against their nature, being false.
I have done one thing that I think is a contribution: I helped Buddhist science and modern science combine. No other Buddhist has done that. Other lamas, I don't think they ever pay attention to modern science. Since my childhood, I have a keen interest.
As a human being, anger is a part of our mind. Irritation also part of our mind. But you can do - anger come, go. Never keep in your sort of - your inner world, then create a lot of suspicion, a lot of distrust, a lot of negative things, more worry.
I think technology really increased human ability. But technology cannot produce compassion.
Religion, any religion, no matter what sort of wonderful religion, never be universal. So now education is universal, so we have to sort of find ways and means through education system, from kindergarten up to university level, to make awareness these good things, the values, inner values.
I always say that people should not rush to change religions. There is real value in finding the spiritual resources you need in your home religion.
Too much self-centered attitude, you see, brings, you see, isolation. Result: loneliness, fear, anger. The extreme self-centered attitude is the source of suffering.
Even an animal, if you show genuine affection, gradually trust develops... If you always showing bad face and beating, how can you develop friendship?
Some scientists believe climate change is the cause of unprecedented melting of the North Pole, and that effects these very uncertain weather patterns. I think we should listen to those scientists and experts.
There are techniques of Buddhism, such as meditation, that anyone can adopt. And, of course, there are Christian monks and nuns who already use Buddhist methods in order to develop their devotion, compassion, and ability to forgive.
China has to go along with world trends. That's democracy, liberty, individual freedom. China sooner or later has to go that way. It cannot go backward.
Out of 6 billion humans, the troublemakers are just a handful.
The best way to resolve any problem in the human world is for all sides to sit down and talk.
Home is where you feel at home and are treated well.
Many Tibetans sacrifice their lives.
