The Supreme Ruler of Tibet celebrates his 89th birthday in exile
On Saturday, July 06, 2024, the Living Tibetan Spirits greet His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama on his 89th birthday to acknowledge him as the Supreme Ruler of Tibet. For Tibetans, the title Dalai Lama is all about the Institution of the Dalai Lama that rules and governs Tibet. No other institution of government can replace Supreme Ruler of Tibet during his lifetime.
The Living Tibetan Spirits offer their prayers for a safe return of the Supreme Ruler of Tibet to the Potala Palace for a happy reunion with Tibetans living in his Land.
Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada
SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE-ESTABLISHMENT NO. 22-VIKAS REGIMENT
Celebrating His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 88th Birthday
Thekchen Chöling, Dharamsala, India – This morning, His Holiness the Dalai Lama stepped into the temple courtyard adjacent to his residence, a radiant smile on his face. He was presented with the traditional ‘Chema Changphu’ as artistes from the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA) sang their welcome to him on his birthday. He took his seat below the temple at the head of the courtyard with members of his family sitting directly behind him and members of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), past and present, behind him on either side.
At this point the moderator invited His Holiness to address the gathering.
“Today,” he responded, “I’d like to tell all my friends that my daily prayer is as follows:
As long as space endures,
And as long as sentient beings remain,
Until then, may I too remain
To help dispel the misery of the world.
“As long as there are living sentient beings who want happiness, I will come in life after life to help them.
“Due to karma and prayers I have made in the past, I was born in Amdo and since then I’ve done the best I could to help all sentient beings.
“Today, you are celebrating my 88th birthday, but when I look in the mirror, I feel I look as if I’m still in my 50s. My face doesn’t look old, it isn’t wrinkled with age. What’s more I still have all my teeth so there’s nothing I can’t eat or chew.
“I was born in Tibet and I bear this name Dalai Lama, but in addition to working for the cause of Tibet, I’ve been working for the welfare of all sentient beings. I’ve done whatever I could without losing hope or allowing my determination to flag. I’m angry with no one, not even those Chinese leaders who have adopted a harsh attitude towards Tibet. Indeed, China has historically been a Buddhist country as witnessed by the many temples and monasteries I saw when I visited that land.
“I believe there is knowledge within Tibetan culture and religion that can benefit the world at large. However, I also respect all other religious traditions because they encourage their followers to cultivate love and compassion.
“According to indications in my own dreams and other predictions, I expect to live to be more than 100 years old. I’ve served others until now and I’m determined to continue to do so. Please pray for my long life on that basis.
“At our last meeting Mao Zedong praised my scientific outlook but criticized religion as poison. I think the point of religion isn’t just to say prayers but to engage in helping and serving others. I believe there’s a resonance of this even in the communist way of thinking and I sometimes wonder if I met Mao today whether I couldn’t talk him round. Religion is about living a good life in the service of others.
“As I already mentioned, there are indications that I will live for another 15 or 20 years and in that time, there is hope for change in the world—for the elimination of weapons and the use of military force. May people learn to live in peace and friendship.
“The scriptures suggest that eventually the world may be consumed by fire, but until that happens, we must learn to live in a more peaceful, friendly way. If we practise well now while we can, in due course we will take our message to other world systems.
“I’m not very concerned with the name Dalai Lama, what interests me much more is being of service to others. Of course, I need food and drink to survive, but not much else. My prime concern is to serve other beings—thank you.”
Whole Dude - Whole Spirituality 