I AM A REFUGEE. I DO NOT ENJOY AMERICA’S FREEDOM. MY FREEDOM IS STOLEN.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama had to flee from Tibet in 1959 for he sensed a threat to his life from the Chinese authority. I joined the Tibetan Resistance Movement in India on September 22, 1971. I experienced threat to my existence on three separate occasions from the Chinese authority that forces the Dalai Lama to live in Exile. The threat posed by China has stolen my freedom.
I AM A REFUGEE. I DO NOT ENJOY AMERICA’S FREEDOM.
I have chosen the profile imageof my stolen Indian Army picture ID to describe my plight on account of my stolen freedom. My Indian Army picture ID was stolen in 1972 at Cuttack, near CharbatiaAir Base operated by Aviation Research Centre (ARC). My Indian Army picture ID was purposefully stolen because of my association with The Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW or RAW), the Intelligence Agency of India which formulated my association with The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). My stolen Indian Army ID of 1972 resurfaced in Indian Movie TE3Nin 2016. It accounts for the loss of my freedom and the fear it arouses in my heart since 1972.
Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada
SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE-ESTABLISHMENT NO. 22
Am a refugee but I enjoy India’s freedom: Dalai Lama
By: FE Online | Published: October 14, 2019, 4:16:48 PM
I am a Refugee. I do not enjoy America’s Freedom for I have no Refuge.
Dalai Lama has been living in India since 1959. He had to flee Tibet after he sensed a threat to his life from the Chinese authority in the wake of Tibetan uprising. Former Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru offered Dalai Lama to set up the Government of Tibet in Exile in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh.
I am a Refugee. I do not enjoy America’s Freedom.
Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Sunday hailed India for its freedom and said that he has been here for the last 60 years as a refugee but still enjoys the freedom that this country offers. “We already enjoy freedom in India. It’s been 60 years…one way, I am a refugee, but I enjoy India’s freedom,” he said while responding to a question on his freedom struggle for Tibet. When asked about whether he thinks that Tibetans can get freedom by living in India, Dalai Lama said that he had tried to go back to Tibet but that could not happen because there was no freedom to preserve “our own culture”. The spiritual leader said that he had also appealed to the United Nations in this regard.
“At that time Pandit (Jawahar Lal) Nehru advised me that the United Nations can not do much…sooner or later much better to approach Chinese and talk to China. I think that was realistic advice. And in 74, we decide(ed) not to take independence, (we) tried to remain within the Republic of China but we should have got certain rights (from China) for the preservation of our own culture,” he told news agency ANI.
HISTORY OF THE US-INDIA-TIBET RELATIONS. I AM A REFUGEE. I DO NOT ENJOY AMERICA’S FREEDOM.
Lord Gautama Buddha has stated that the experience of sorrow or ‘DUKHA’ is unavoidable. If the experience of pain is inevitable, the experience of Compassion is also inescapable. The experience of Compassion gives us the sensation of Sweetness called ‘MADHURYA’. Photo by Noelli from the Flickr site. http://www.dalekoniedaleko.pl
Lord Gautama Buddha’s simple preachings have generated intense debate and discussion among his followers leading to the creation of different Schoolsof Buddhist Thought, varying traditions, apart from the production of volumes of literature in various human languages.
In my analysis, Lord Gautama Buddha and the various brands of Buddhism with established traditions have failed to formulate a complete ‘Theory of Man’. In my view, Buddhism as such is an incomplete study of the Man for it fails to comprehend the nature of the living matter, the living substance, the corporeal matter described in Biology as ‘protoplasm’ or ‘cytoplasm’ which is found in all living things.
The spiritual inquiry, the spiritual investigation, the spiritual study of the Man demands the learning process called ‘Adhyatma Vidya’, the Knowledge of Self, or the spiritual journey called Self-Discovery to answer the two fundamental questions about the Man. The questions are 1. Who am I? and 2. Why am I like this? Lord Gautama Buddha’s life journey begins with a quest to find answers for the conditioned nature of human existence but his study remains incomplete for he has not studied the human being whose existence is conditioned.
Venerable Samdhong Rinpoche speaks of the salient features of the religion, which originated in India
Beginning his study of Buddhism in the Gadhan Dhechenling Monastery, in Tibet, Venerable Samdhong Rinpoche, came to India in 1959, at the age of 20. He headed the Central Tibetan Administration, Dharamsala, for two terms. A highly regarded scholar of Buddhism, he has held many important positions with academic and administrative responsibilities. A few of them: Member General Body Indian Council of Philosophical Research; member, Governing Council, Asiatic Society, Kolkata; member of the National Advisory Committee for Buddhist Studies; President, Association of Indian Universities; President, Coomaraswamy Centre for Traditional Studies, Lucknow; member, Association of Commonwealth Universities. Member, Governing Body, Krishnamurti Foundation of India, Chennai; member, Expert Advisory Committee, Ministry of Culture, Government of India.
Venerable Samdhong Rinpoche was in Chennai for a short visit. The following are excerpts from an interview with him:
What are the distinctive features of Tibetan Buddhism?
First of all, there is no such thing as Tibetan Buddhism. It is an expression, which Western scholars use, and I do not know why they do. Do you talk of British Christianity or American Christianity? There are different schools of philosophy in Buddhism like Mahayana, Hinayana, etc. But Buddhism is not divided by geography. If at all there is any country to which Buddhism belongs, that is India, because Buddha was born here. It is Indians who can take pride in Buddhism because it originated here.
I stand corrected. Let me rephrase the question. What is special about Buddhism in Tibet?
Buddhism in Tibet is a complete tradition. Educational centers such as Nalanda, Taxila, Bodhgaya, and Sarnath produced Buddhist canonical literature. All of this was translated into the Tibetan language.
How big is this collection of Tibetan works?
We have a compilation of 108 volumes of Buddha’s teachings. It includes 3,000 titles. Woodblock techniques have been used to preserve ancient Tibetan texts. We also have 223 volumes of commentaries of Indian scholars, which include 4,000 titles. The topics range from Mahayana and Hinayana to Ayurveda, dharma, and literature.
Prof. Hahn’s dissertation was on Vrttamalastuti, where each stanza illustrated a different Sanskrit meter. It was a text that was preserved only in a Tibetan translation. And this kindled Hahn’s interest in recovering the Sanskrit literature of Buddhism from Tibetan translations. So, would it be correct to say that Tibetan translations have helped preserve the Buddhist tradition, because of the possibility of re-translations from Tibetan to Sanskrit?
Certainly. Tibetan translations are the most accurate, and the Tibetan collection is also the largest available translation of Buddhist texts. The original texts, which were in Sanskrit were lost when Nalanda University was destroyed. Mahayana texts were in Sanskrit, whereas Hinayana texts were mostly in Prakrit. In Tibet, Mahayana school is followed. So, if we want the original Sanskrit texts about Mahayana, we can now work backward from Tibetan to Sanskrit. So, in that way, the Tibetan translations help us to get back the basic Sanskrit texts.
Hahn was a close friend of mine. But even before Hahn, there were other European scholars who took an interest in Buddhist literature which had been translated to Tibetan. The Italian scholar Tucci, for instance. Tibet enjoys an unbroken lineage of Buddhism, and before the days of Communism, Buddhists from Russia and Mongolia came to Tibet and studied Buddhist teachings preserved in the Tibetan language.
You talk about Mahayana texts in Sanskrit. What about the commentaries? Were they also in Sanskrit?
Yes, but Buddhist Sanskrit is a hybrid Sanskrit. It is a mixture of Sanskrit, Prakrit, Apabrahmsa, etc. Paninian sutras were not strictly followed.
Why was it a hybrid?
Because the Buddha spoke in a simple language. He wanted his teachings to reach the masses. So, he spoke a language that was easy to understand.
And what about efforts at translation now? Are they continuing?
A lot of translation work has been going on in the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies in Sarnath, Varanasi. It is a deemed University. I was associated with the Institute for 30 years, first as Principal and then director. One hundred Tibetan Buddhist texts have been translated to Sanskrit by the scholars in this University.
Where can we find the largest collection of Tibetan texts?
In the Library of Congress in the U.S.
And in India?
The Institute of Tibetology in Sikkim, the library in Dharamsala, in Sarnath and the Central Institute of Buddhist studies in Leh, Ladakh.
What is the Tibetan way of ordination for monks?
In the bhikshu ordination, mulsarvastivadin school is followed in Tibet.
Does Buddhism in Tibet follow Tantric traditions?
Wherever Mahayana is followed, there is a tantric tradition. So, this is not unique to Tibet.
Does Buddhist art vary according to the school of philosophy followed?
If you observe minutely, there might be some differences. But by and large, art is just an expression of imagination. So, there are only a few minor variations. But mandala constructions are found only in art based on Vajrayana, which is a part of Mahayana.
MY COMMENT ON THE ABOVE INTERVIEW BY MS.SUGANTHY KRISHNAMACHARI WAS NOT APPROVED BY THEHINDU.COM
‘Buddhism in Tibet is a complete tradition’ on thehindu.com
My Comment:
Buddhism is an incomplete study of the man: I am affiliated to a military organization called Special Frontier force-Establishment No. 22-Vikas Regiment where I medically examined hundreds of Tibetan men and women. Lord Gautama Buddha’s preachings are essentially simple. However, they generated numerous interpretations and massive human literature in different languages. He examined the conditioned nature of human existence without fully examining the human being whose existence is conditioned. Buddhism remains an incomplete study irrespective of its various traditions. It is incomplete for it does not study the living matter or the living substance of the man while sharing views on the human condition of the living being with a physical form that we identify as the man.
Vitruvian Man, the creation of Leonardo da Vinci – Spirituality Science. The Discovery of Bhavanajagat.org: The Self-Discovery begins with the two fundamental questions. 1. Who am I ? and Why am I like this?
A fresh look at the Tibetan Resistance Movement in India.
Ms. Madhu Gurung in her book, “Tibet With My Eyes Closed” takes a fresh look at the Tibetan Resistance Movement in India.
Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada
SpecialFrontierForce
Review: Tibet With My Eyes Closed by Madhu Gurung
A fresh look at the Tibetan Resistance Movement in India.
A fresh look at the experience of Tibetan refugees in India
A fresh look at the Tibetan Resistance Movement in India.
BOOKS Updated: Oct 04, 2019 19:03 IST
Thubten Samphel Hindustan Times
The Dalai Lama speaks at a Tibetan temple in McLeod Ganj.(Shyam Sharma/Hindustan Times)A fresh look at the Tibetan Resistance Movement in India.
253pp, Rs 350; Speaking Tiger
There is a new interest in Tibet and Tibetan culture amongst the Indian public. This is because of the Dalai Lama’s tireless efforts to reach out to the Indian public to alert them to the relevance of ancient India’s wisdom in our vexing times. There is also whispered foreboding of what would happen to the Tibetan community in India and elsewhere and the fate of Tibet itself when he is no longer what us.
Tibet With My Eyes Closed is a fresh look at the experience of the Tibetan refugees in India and the pain of separation of families and being uprooted from their homeland. It is also of a story of how the community as a whole faced and still faces the challenges of adaption and survival.
In her exploration and discovery of the Tibetan refugee community in India, Madhu Gurung quotes an old Tibetan proverb. “If I tell you my dream, you might forget it. If I act on my dream, perhaps you will remember it, but if I involve you — it becomes your dream too.” Madhu Gurung’s dream of the Tibetan community in exile is a gentle paring of the community’s many layers of strength, weakness, human quirks and the need to survive as an individual and community.
The author kicks off her Tibetan story by narrating in broad contours the birth of the resistance movement in Tibet in the 1950s. This resistance relocated to Mustang in Nepal and then fought in Bangladesh’s war for independence. Some scholars call the Tibetan soldiers who fought in the war “Phantoms of Chittagong.” Sangay, the main protagonist in Gurung’s first story Zinda, was a little boy when members of his family whispered the formation of the resistance in central Tibet. He expressed his wish to join the resistance. He was told to wait till he became thirteen. Then, “You … will be of some use to them.”
Tibetan resistance grew not only because of repression and forced land distribution but also because of the implementation of the Great Leap Forward with its excessive stress on industrialization to the neglect of agriculture and production of food. This created the biggest famine in Chinese history and Tibet was caught up in this man-made disaster.
A fresh look at the Tibetan Resistance Movement in India.
Madhu Gurung ( Courtesy the author )
Sangay and his father, leaving with excruciating pain other family members, including his mother, behind in Tibet, were able to escape this political disaster and the great famine. In India “everything was strange – the language, the food and the people.” At school, he got a greater shock, a huge dent to his Tibetan pride and sense of self and identity. He discovered that the Tibetans were the ‘nowhere’ people. His schoolmates did not know where Tibet was.
However, during the period of ‘liberalization’ which the post-Mao leader Deng Xiaoping initiated in China and Tibet, Sangay was able to return to Tibet and bring his mother to their new home in Dehradun auspiciously named Zinda. Shakti Gurung informs the readers that Sangay’s home village in Tibet called Zinda which the author says in Hindi means “Alive.”
That Sangay survived all these ordeals is a tribute to his character and his generation of Tibetan refugees. Back in the late 1950s while on their way to Lhasa, someone in his group shouted: “Lhasa is burning.” These days rather than burning Lhasa is drowning in concrete, amazing infrastructure development and the sheer weight of the growing demographic strength of the migrant Chinese workers. Tibet With My Eyes Closed is a cautionary tale for the countries and people strung along the Himalayan belt. You might be next, maybe an exaggeration but exaggeration is not enough to describe the true intentions and scale of the People’s Republic of China’s ambitions. The book is also a cautionary tale for the coming generation of Tibetan exiles. They inherit a cohesive and productive community scattered across the globe, a legacy of the first generation of Tibetan refugees. Keeping its cohesion and productivity will be a huge challenge in the coming years of adversity.
Thubten Samphel is an independent researcher and a former director of the Tibet Policy Institute
A fresh look at the Tibetan Resistance Movement in India.
MY REFLECTIONS ON THE HINDU-SIKH CONNECTION. INDIVIDUAL vs GROUP IDENTITY:
My reflections on the Hindu-Sikh Connection: This is a photo image taken in 1972 while I served in the Special Frontier Force at Doom Dooma, Tinsukia District, Assam, India.
I ask my readers to give their attention to the problem of Individual Identity vs Group Identity. I identify the action called ‘Compassion’ with the Individual Identity and I associate the action called ‘Aggression’ with the Group Identity.
The Sikhs like all other human beings have to know the dimensions of Individual and Group Identities.
I concede that the Group Identity named ‘Tat Khalsa’ may give some political advantages to channelize acts of aggression towards other human groupings such as the Hindus. The Tat Khalsa Community gets energized by collectively expressing their hatred and animosity towards individuals that they perceive as their Enemy. I am not surprised to find Christians and Muslims supporting the aggressive stance of the Tat Khalsa for their own political gains. If the political factor is removed, the Sikh Doctrine cannot be energized by the Christain or Muslim Doctrine. The Tat Khalsa may win its battle against the Hindu but will succumb to the collective energy of either Christian or Muslim Group who desire to benefit by encouraging the Group Rivalry between the Sikhs and the Hindus.
SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE-THE KEY TO HUMAN NATURE-INDIVIDUAL vs GROUP IDENTITY: “SARVESHAM SWASTIR BHAVATU”
The Vitruvian Man c. 1492. The painting by Leonardo da Vinci displays the Spirit of Scientific Inquiry about Human Nature.
What is Man? The motivation for asking this question comes from a statement expressed in the Sanskrit language, “Sarvesham Swastir Bhavatu” which seeks the well-being of all humans of all races, of all cultures, of all religions, and of all nations. Our efforts to support the well-being of man would be affected by our understanding the ‘real’, or ‘true’ nature of man. All human traditions including several philosophical and scientific traditions make assumptions about human nature. The basic assumption about human nature is that of finding it displayed in feelings, thoughts, moods, action, and behavior. I try to know human nature from the functional characteristics that are observable in biotic interactions of cells, tissues, and organs that constitute the human organism. If a man is viewed as a multicellular organism, I need to discover the human nature of this subject who lives because of the functions of the cells, tissues, and organs that provide the structural basis of the human organism.
THE KEY TO HUMAN NATURE – EVOLUTION vs CREATION :
Charles Darwin’s great contributions to Biology: “The Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection: Or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle of Life”(1859), The Descent of Man(1871), The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals(1872).
Man’s evolution from ape-like ancestors is thought to be the key to our true human nature. Ethology or the scientific study of animal behavior is based on the Theory of Evolution. In order to explain the human condition, ethological theories of human nature appeal to the evolutionary past of man.
Konrad Zacharias Lorenz( November 1903 to February 1989 ), Austrian zoologist, founder of modern Ethology which involves the scientific study of animal behavior by means of comparative zoological methods. He won the Nobel Prize for Physiology along with two other animal behaviorist.
Lorenz sees man as an animal who has evolved from other animals. He thinks that human behavior is subject to the same causal laws of nature as all animal behavior. Many patterns of animal behavior show “hereditary coordination” or “instinctive movements” that are innate rather than learned. The ‘instinctual’ behavior is fixed and may not be eliminated or altered by the environment. Instinct is inherited and it is essentially unlearned behavior. Some of the most important aspects of animal behavior are innate. Lorenz studied the nature of instinctive behavioral acts. The instinctual behavior is caused by a ‘drive’ which causes the behavior to appear spontaneously. The “four big-drives” are feeding, reproduction, flight, and aggression. Very often, behavior is activated by two or more basic drives. To account for an instinctive behavior pattern in a species, reference is made to its survival value it has for the genes for that behavior. To explain the existence of any particular organ or behavior pattern, Lorenz looks for its survival value for the species. In his book, “On Aggression” ( 1963 ), he explains the natural history of man’s aggressive behavior. He considers that man has an innate drive to aggressive behavior towards his own species like many other animals. Fighting and warlike behavior in man have an inborn basis. He seeks an evolutionary explanation for human innate aggressiveness or ‘Intra-Specific’ aggression which is concerned with fighting and threats between members of the same species. The most destructive aspect of human aggression is its communal nature and the fighting is not between individuals but between groups. Humans fight as groups and human beings are the only animals to indulge in the mass slaughter of their own species. He explains that this innate aggressive behavior has evolved from the communal defense response of our pre-human ancestors. However, Lorenz made no scientific study of behavior displayed by apes. Among the members of Homo genus, man is the only surviving representative of the Homo sapiens species and hence it will not be easy to validate his conclusions about the evolutionary origin of innate human aggressive behavior. If aggression is viewed as a hereditary behavior which is based upon its survival value for the genes for that behavior, it must be noted that all human ancestors had perished and have gone extinct and the behavior of aggression could not be of value in defending their survival as a species.
COMPASSION WITHIN THE INDIVIDUAL AND BETWEEN INDIVIDUALS :
Compassion or sympathy( sym=together + pati=suffer ) describes the emotional feelings of sorrow for the sufferings or troubles of another person or others accompanied by an urge to help. Compassion describes an understanding arising from the sameness of emotional feeling. When man recognizes pain or sorrow in the lives of others, it spontaneously arouses the emotional feelings of compassion.
This understanding and the emotional response to the pain and suffering in the lives of others appears to be instinctive. Apart from the “four big-drives”, compassion is operated by an innate drive or it is a motivated behavior. Compassion and altruism( any behavior that appears to favor another individual’s chances of survival ) is a response generated by human nature.
Compassion acts like a physical force, power, or energy. It has the power to uplift the man from physical pain and mental, or emotional pain or sorrow. The instinct of compassion comes into play and acts as a force, power, or energy when a man experiences sorrow and reacts to the suffering or troubles of another man. I am also suggesting that the emotionally motivated behavior of compassion is found within individuals apart from between individuals.
If my experience of pain or suffering does not elicit the emotional response of compassion from others, fortunately, I can derive the benefit of the uplifting power of compassion by simply knowing the source of compassion that exists within myself.
When a person is enjoying a state of good health, we find that the cells, tissues, and organs of that human person are interacting with each other in a harmonious manner and these intraspecific biotic interactions display characteristics such as mutual assistance, mutual cooperation, mutual tolerance, and mutual functional subservience to provide a benefit to the human individual who lives because of the functions of these cells, tissues, and organs. The constituent parts of the human body interact with each other with a sense of devotion, sympathy, compassion, and understanding.
We often try to find compassion in the actions performed by others in response to the pain and suffering that we may experience. We describe compassion from the thoughts, emotional feelings, understanding, and sympathetic response that we witness in the behavior and action of others.
I recognize compassion in the nature of the interactions between the cells, tissues, and organs of my body and consider that such compassion always operates to keep me the human person in good and positive health. I understand the reality of human existence and suggest that the existence is made possible because compassion is innate to human nature guiding the normal living functions both in health and sickness. I observe the operation of compassion in the wound healing mechanism that is described as ‘Inflammation and Repair’. The emotional feelings of compassion are important for the survival of the man who exists to find emotional satisfaction from his living experience. The instinctive behavior of compassion supports the survival of man as it provides an emotional sense of satisfaction and contentment which contributes to the experience of joy and happiness in life.
COMPASSION IS THE KEY TO HUMAN NATURE:
The Key to Human Nature could be discovered by knowing the Cell Structure and Functions. If hereditary behavior is operated by the information present in genes, it must be noted that the genes have no independent existence of their own. The nucleus and the genes perform their cellular functions deriving energy from the cytoplasm or protoplasm of the cell. The biological properties, characteristics, and the biological nature of the living substance or protoplasm could account for the instinctive behavior pattern of compassion.
The biological properties, characteristics, and the biological nature of the living substance or protoplasm could account for an instinctive behavior pattern like compassion. Biological functions and characteristics such as nutrition, recognition, awareness, responsiveness, and communication with other living cells have not evolved because of their survival value for the species. At a fundamental level, certain living characteristics or nature is innate or implanted in the matter at the beginning of life. The nature called compassion is implanted or innate to the living substance or matter which is known as protoplasm.
I make the distinction between Individual Identity and Group Identity. The first operates to display behavior or actions called Compassion. The second operates to display behavior or actions called Aggression. Human Aggressive Behavior is of particular concern as humans when acting as a Group cause more harm and destruction as compared to their actions when acting strictly as Individuals.
Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada
Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA 48104
SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE
My Reflections on the Hindu-Sikh Connection. The Individual Identity vs The Group Identity.
The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.
On September 17, 2019, I celebrate Constitution Day and Citizenship Day reflecting upon the words shared by Apostle Paul in his Second Letter to the Ephesians.
The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.
On Tuesday, September 17, 2019, as the nation celebrates Constitution Day and Citizenship Day, I have no reason to feel unloved, unimportant, or insecure for I remember to whom and to which Kingdom I belong.
Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada
SPECIAL FRONTIER FORCE
September 17, 2019
Constitution Day and Citizenship Day
The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.
Constitution Day and Citizenship Day is a single celebration that commemorates the formation and signing of the US Constitution while also recognizing both naturalized citizens and those born in the US. It’s a day to learn about these subjects, as well as a day many people become naturalized citizens in group ceremonies. (On average, about 700,000 people become US citizens every year.) To celebrate, we’re looking at an unusual close-up of the Statue of Liberty, a welcoming sight to immigrants and a symbol of freedom since 1886. The statue’s tablet has the date of the signing of the Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) inscribed in Roman numerals: JULY IV MDCCLXXVI.
So why is today both Constitution Day and Citizenship Day? The reason is rooted in the World War II era. In 1940, Congress created I Am an American Day, a demonstration of US patriotism. Twelve years later, President Harry Truman signed into law Citizenship Day, which replaced I Am an American Day and moved the observance to September 17, the day the Constitution was signed in 1787. Eventually, in 2004 the day was designated as the mash-up of observances we have today—the jointly celebrated Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.
The Citizenship of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. The celebration of Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.
BACKSTABBERS OF THE TIBETAN NATION. THE DOOMED PRESIDENCY OF NIXON AND FORD
The doomed presidency of Nixon and Ford. Doomed for not playing the ‘Tibet Card’.The doomed Presidency of Nixon and Ford. Doomed for not playing the ‘Tibet Card’.The doomed Presidency of Nixon and Ford. Doomed for not playing the ‘Tibet Card’.The doomed Presidency of Nixon and Ford stands in Ann Arbor. Doomed for not playing the ‘Tibet Card’.The doomed Presidency of Nixon and Ford. Doomed for not playing the ‘Tibet Card’.The doomed Presidency of Nixon and Ford. Backstabbers of Tibetan Nation.September 08, 1974. President Ford grants pardon to President Nixon. The doomed presidency of Nixon and Ford. Doomed for not playing the ‘Tibet Card’.
On September 08, 1974, President Gerald R. Ford grants unconditional pardon to Richard M Nixon, 37th President of the United States of America. I served in Special Frontier Force during the presidency of Nixon and Ford. I live in Ann Arbor, Michigan where I have the opportunity to visit Gerald R. Ford’s Presidential Library on the University of Michigan Campus.
The doomed Presidency of Nixon and Ford. Nixon and Kissinger treacherous actions in the Vietnam War cannot be pardoned.
In my opinion, President Ford’s pardon may not include Nixon’s Vietnam Treason. I cannot grant pardon to Nixon for he had never admitted his crime of Betrayal, Treachery in the conduct of the Vietnam War. I still recognize Nixon and Ford as Backstabbers of Tibetan Nation. Their Presidency doomed for they failed to play the ‘Tibetan Card’.
Nixon and Ford attending the funeral function of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The doomed Presidency of Nixon and Ford.
This Day in History: Ford pardons Nixon
SEPTEMBER 08
In a controversial executive action, President Gerald Ford pardons his disgraced predecessor Richard Nixon for any crimes he may have committed or participated in while in office. Ford later defended this action before the House Judiciary Committee, explaining that he wanted to end the national divisions created by the Watergate scandal.
The Watergate scandal erupted after it was revealed that Nixon and his aides had engaged in illegal activities during his reelection campaign–and then attempted to cover up evidence of wrongdoing. With impeachment proceedings underway against him in Congress, Nixon bowed to public pressure and became the first American president to resign. At noon on August 9, Nixon officially ended his term, departing with his family in a helicopter from the White House lawn. Minutes later, Vice President Gerald R. Ford was sworn in as the 38th president of the United States in the East Room of the White House. After taking the oath of office, President Ford spoke to the nation in a television address, declaring, “My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over.”
Ford, the first president who came to the office through appointment rather than election, had replaced Spiro Agnew as vice president only eight months before. In a political scandal independent of the Nixon administration’s wrongdoings in the Watergate affair, Agnew had been forced to resign in disgrace after he was charged with income tax evasion and political corruption. Exactly one month after Nixon announced his resignation, Ford issued the former president a “full, free and absolute” pardon for any crimes he committed while in office. The pardon was widely condemned at the time.
Decades later, the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation presented its 2001 Profile in Courage Award to Gerald Ford for his 1974 pardon of Nixon. In pardoning Nixon, said the foundation, Ford placed his love of country ahead of his own political future and brought needed closure to the divisive Watergate affair. Ford left politics after losing the 1976 presidential election to Democrat Jimmy Carter. Ford died on December 26, 2006, at the age of 93.
BLESSINGS FOR PEACE FROM THE HOLY WATERS OF YAMDROK LAKE
Aerial View of Yamdrok Lake in Tibet
The scenery of the Yamdrok Lake and surrounding villages in Nagarze County of Shannan, Tibet. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)
Placid and peaceful: enjoy the aerial view of Tibet’s holy lake, Yamdrok Lake.
SHANNAN, Sept. 2, 2019 (Xinhua) — Yamdrok Lake with an area of about 590 square km is located in Nagarze County in the city of Shannan, Tibet. It’s about 100 kilometers south of the region’s capital Lhasa.
Yamdrok Lake along with Lake Namtso and Lake Manasarovar are regarded as the three holy lakes of Tibet.
The scenery of the Yamdrok Lake in Nagarze County of Shannan, Tibet. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
The scenery of the Yamdrok Lake in Nagarze County of Shannan, Tibet. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje
The scenery of the Yamdrok Lake in Nagarze County of Shannan, Tibet. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)
The scenery of the Yamdrok Lake in Nagarze County of Shannan, Tibet. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
The scenery of the Yamdrok Lake in Nagarze County of Shannan, Tibet. (Xinhua/Jigme Dorje)
The scenery of the Yamdrok Lake in Nagarze County of Shannan, Tibet. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
I am sharing the film review of Indian Movie ‘Anuradha'(1960) to comment upon the concepts of ‘Free Will’ and ‘Predestination’. In my view, the man has no ‘Free Will’ to define his “Essence” for his “Existence” is always conditioned by predetermined external circumstances upon which the man has no control even by changing the place of residence or place of work.
Anuradha (1960): Stalwarts Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Leela Naidu, Balraj Sahni and Pt Ravi Shankar Join Hands in Graceful Classic
Bhagyalakshmi Seshachalam 30 August 2019
Anuradha (1960) was produced and directed by the prolific Hrishikesh Mukherjee. The film had Balraj Sahni and Leela Naidu in lead roles, along with Nasir Hussain, Asit Sen, Mukri, Hari Shivdasani, Abhi Bhattacharya, David and Ranu Mukherjee. Leela Naidu had won the Miss India title and had been offered this eponymous role by Mukherjee.
The film’s music was composed by Pandit Ravi Shankar, who rarely composed music for Bollywood films. The film was based on a story by Sachin Bhowmick that was published in the Bengali magazine Desh. The film went on to win the National Film Award for Best Feature Film and was nominated for the Golden Bear at the 11th Berlin International Film Festival in 1961.
A noted radio singer and dancer Anuradha Roy (Leela Naidu) falls in love with an idealistic doctor, Dr. Nirmal Chowdhary (Balraj Sahni). Her father is against this relationship as he feels that there is a wide gap between his status as a wealthy man and that of the doctor of humble origins and meager means.
Dr. Nirmal was her brother Ashim’s friend. They had met in a saree store. When Anu sprains her ankle after a performance, Dr. Nirmal treats her. Her father Brijeshwar Prasad Roy (Hari Shivdasani) is biased against Dr. Nirmal but his family doctor assures him that Dr. Nirmal is competent.
So enchanted is Anu with her lover that she is willing to give up everything for him.
Anu decides to marry Dr. Nirmal against her father’s will. Nirmal’s mother had died without adequate medical help. Since then he has this burning desire to serve the rural poor so that no one meets his mother’s fate. He decides to serve the poor in a distant village called Nandagaon. He cautions Anu about the life of hardship that she would have to endure with him.
But Anu decides to throw caution to the winds. She marries him and follows him to the village. Her father had plans to get her married to the London-returned Deepak (Abhi Bhattacharya). Deepak is magnanimous when he comes to know of Anu’s love with Dr. Nirmal. He promises to help her in the future in case she needs any help.
After her marriage, Anu is blessed with a daughter. But soon life becomes monotonous and humdrum. Anu gets busy with the household chores and quits singing. Ten years later, Anuradha is a homebody with a life characterized by drudgery. Her husband is forever preoccupied with his patients. He has little time for his wife. He forgets to take her to the village festival she had been excitedly looking forward to.
After many years, her father visits her and requests her to relocate to the city. He is unable to see his daughter in financial distress. But Dr. Nirmal refuses the offer.
Deepak meets with an accident while traveling with his girlfriend. Dr. Nirmal successfully operates on his girlfriend and Deepak lands up in Dr. Nirmal’s home where he is tended by Anu with lots of care and affection. He realizes the hardships the once-rich girl has to endure in a remote village. He suggests that she leave Nirmal and move to the city to lead a life of luxury and comfort. Dr. Nirmal agrees to this proposal. Maybe Anu can start her singing career all over again. So what decision does Anuradha take? Does she leave her husband and go out in pursuit of a singing career that can give her name, fame, and prosperity? Or is she satisfied leading the life of a homemaker?
Lyricist Shailendra wrote the lyrics for timeless classics like “Hai Re Who Din Kyon Na Aaye”, “Bahut Din Huye”, “Kaise Din Beete, Kaise Beeti Ratiyan”, “Sanware Sanware Kahe Mose” and “Jane Kaise Sapno Mein”.
“Haye re wo din’ was based on raga Janasammohini – a variant of the more common Kalawati.
Anuradha is a film about the common man and the problems that he faces in his day-to-day life. Here the spotlight is on the housewife. The story of a young woman who gives up her dreams to be with the love of her life is not a common script in Bollywood. Similar themes resonated in films like Abhinetri (Hema Malini & Shashi Kapoor) and Anubhav (Sanjeev Kumar & Tanuja) but the treatment was completely different.
Characters like the man who falls sick thinking about his wife (Mukri) or the man on a diet who cannot resist sweets (Asit Sen) or Ram Bharose (Rashid Khan), the conductor of the bus, who engages in idle conversation with Dr. Nirmal are lovable and believable. They add sparkle to the plot that otherwise runs the risk of becoming mundane.
Balraj Sahni’s acting skills are legendary and well-documented and therefore do not need any special mention. He is one of the finest actors in Indian cinema. His restrained performance in Anurdaha is exemplary. This is Leela Naidu’s debut but she delivers her role with so much conviction that you start believing in the trials and tribulations of Anuradha. What you see on the screen is not Naidu but Anuradha Roy – melancholic and desolate, pining for her lost love and struggling to deal with the loneliness unsuspectingly bestowed on her.
Ranu Mukherjee (playback singer Hemant Kumar’s daughter) plays Anuradha’s daughter. Mukherjee has shown glimpses of domestic life that lend authenticity to the narrative (like Anuradha tucking in a mosquito net around her child’s bed) or the sound of dogs howling late at night.
The film raises an important question. Should a woman sacrifice her career for her love? Will giving up on your dreams lead to happiness?
A complex film that manages to portray a marital relationship sensitively, Leela Naidu’s exquisite beauty and effervescent charm add immense value to the plot. Actresses like Nargis or Nutan could have enacted the role but then Anuradha would not have been the classic as it is touted to be today. Considering Nargis had done Lajwanti with Sahni and Nutan had done Sone Ki Chidiya and Seema with Sahni, the novelty value would have been lost.
Leela Naidu was unique – an intellectual woman who strayed into Bollywood for a brief while – blithe about the name, fame, and money associated with the film industry. Surprisingly, both Naidu and Sahni share great screen chemistry despite the fact that Naidu was just 20 years old and Sahni was much older than her.
Mukherjee had the knack of making extraordinary films about ordinary people and Anuradha is symbolic of his directorial ability and editorial panache. Dialogues are simple and devoid of any cinematic touches.
The ending may appear trite but if a woman really loves a man, she may just leave everything and follow him. The argument about home or career after a woman’s marriage is still considered relevant but there are so many illustrious personalities who have given up their flourishing career to make peace at home. Anuradha could have still continued her singing at home with a little encouragement from Dr. Nirmal who ought not to have taken his wife for granted. A woman’s marriage must not lead to the end of her career aspirations but then how many women are lucky to sail both the boats at the same time?
(After working in the corporate world for close to two decades, Bhagyalakshmi started her second career innings as a head-hunter. She is passionate about Hindi movies and loves retro music. When her family shifted to Chennai in the ’80s, Bhagya had a taste of Tamil cinema too. In the long term, she plans a book on two of her favorite directors – Guru Dutt and K Balachander. She travels across the country on work and is based in Mysore.)
Thanks for sharing this film review. I was in School in 1960 and had no time to spend watching movies.
I like the title of the movie for it relates to my belief in Hindu Astrology that names 27 stars or “Nakshatras”. The name “Anuradha” refers to ‘the disciple of divine spark’. Indian traditions attach personalities to various celestial objects including the Sun and Moon.
I have chosen the name Doom Dooma for I got married while serving in Doom Dooma, Tinsukia District, Assam. The marriage has predicted the “doom” of my medical career, the career that I rejected in July 1986.
I made the decision to leave my doctor’s career to keep the marriage that has given me two children named Ashwini, and Anuradha. I believe in the principle of predestination, a principle that does not sanction freewill to the man. People may think that I am making my own choice and have given up my options to pursue my doctor’s career. The predestination acts in a mystical manner. It alters the external circumstances forcing the man to choose a predetermined course of action.
Anuradha gave up her singing career to seek marital bliss in the company of a doctor. I gave up my doctor’s career to maintain a marital relationship. The choices are similar. But, I reconcile to the choice for I have no ability to change the external circumstances that compel me to change the direction of my life’s journey.
SPIRITUALITY SCIENCE. COMPASSION CANNOT BE RECRUITED. WHO IS THE FATHER OF COMPASSION?
Spirituality Science. Compassion cannot be recruited. Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness demand the God Connection, the connection to the original source of Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness.
There are two basic problems with the current medical education and health care policy that formulates the delivery of medical services to people. Medical Science has not yet defined the meaning of the term called man. “What is Man?” Without answering that question, we will not be able to answer the question, “What is Health?”
Unlike His Holiness the Dalai Lama, I recognize the man as a created being. I speak about compassion after identifying the source of the behavioral response identified as compassionate care.
The natural healing mechanism called Repair and Inflammation is a divine gift and it guides me to reflect upon Providence or Divine Mercy, Grace, and Compassion that formulates the human existence both in good health as well as ill-health.
Spirituality Science. Compassion cannot be recruited. Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness demand the God Connection, the connection to the original source of Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness. Dr. William James, Father of Psychology defines ‘True Ideas’.
I cannot validate, I cannot verify, I cannot corroborate, and I cannot assimilate the ideas shared by Gyatso Tenzin, the 14th Dalai Lama, and Dr. Ralph Snyderman, the “Father of Personalized Medicine” on compassion and its role in health care. Their basic assumptions about compassion are fundamentally flawed for the following reasons:
1. Compassion is neither a desire nor an emotion. The acts or behavioral response called compassion does not involve thoughts or thinking process.
Spirituality Science. Compassion cannot be recruited. Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness demand the God Connection, the connection to the original source of Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness. Compassion is neither Acquired nor Learned Behavior.
2. Compassion cannot be recruited and it cannot be imparted or acquired through the learning process or educational experience.
3. The existence of man as well as that of all living things at all stages of their existence at any given time or place is dependent upon the Divine Providence which is the original source of compassion. The experience called compassion is dependent upon ‘God Connection’ for the man’s Existence always precedes his Essence.
4. The primary role of a Physician is that of promoting good and positive health. The medical interventions are of secondary importance.
Recruiting The Dalai Lama To Bring Compassion Back Into Medicine
ByDANA TERRY & FRANK STASIO•AUG 9, 2019
Spirituality Science. Compassion cannot be recruited. Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness demand the God Connection, the connection to the original source of Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness. Compassion is neither acquired nor learned behavior.
Ralph Snyderman spoke with the Dalai Lama at the leader’s residence in India last year.
COURTESY OF RALPH SNYDERMAN
Ralph Snyderman is known as “The Father of Personalized Medicine.” He used to oversee the selection of medical students at Duke University in his role as chancellor for health affairs at Duke University and Dean of the Duke School of Medicine. He focused on admitting students who showed a clear desire for empathy and to serve the needs of others.
Host Frank Stasio talks with Ralph Snyderman, Dean of the Duke School of Medicine, about the importance of empathy in medicine and the insight he gained from his meeting with the Dalai Lama.
But he realized compassionate care is difficult to achieve in the current health system in the United States because of a variety of factors. Snyderman now directs the Duke Center for Personalized Health Care. His mission is to create more personalized and compassionate ways of delivering medicine. Earlier this year he published a conversation he had with the 14th Dalai Lama about how to foster that change. The revelations from that conversation became a manuscript entitled “Compassion and Health Care: A Conversation with the Dalai Lama” recently published in the medical journal “Academic Medicine.”
Host Frank Stasio talks to Snyderman about the importance of empathy in medicine, what the Dalai Lama had to say on the subject and what changes he hopes to see in medical care.
Compassion and Health Care
A Discussion With the Dalai Lama
Snyderman, Ralph MD; Gyatso, Tenzin the 14th Dalai Lama
Academic Medicine: August 2019 – Volume 94 – Issue 8 – p 1068–1070
doi: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000002709
The calling to be a physician has historically been driven by compassion—that is, the desire to relieve the suffering of others. However, the current health care delivery system in the United States has increasingly limited the ability of physicians to express compassion as they are afforded little time for meaningful interaction with their patients. One of the authors (R.S.) draws on his current focus on developing personalized, proactive, and patient-driven models of care to argue that patient engagement plays a critical role in achieving favorable outcomes. Believing that compassion is key for establishing the physician-patient relationship needed to foster patient engagement, R.S. sought the advice of one of the world’s most recognized thought leaders on this topic, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. This Invited Commentary describes the meeting between the two authors, the Dalai Lama’s thoughts about compassion, and his challenge to bring attention to the importance of compassion in medical education, practice, and research.
Compassion is an emotion and a commitment to engage with, understand, and mitigate another’s suffering.1 The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) has articulated 15 core competencies expected of entering medical students, the first of which—Service Orientation—is defined as follows: “Demonstrates a desire to help others and sensitivity to others’ needs and feelings; demonstrates a desire to alleviate others’ distress; recognizes and acts on his/her responsibilities in society….”2 As a former medical school dean, I (R.S.) can attest that each student entering Duke University School of Medicine not only possesses outstanding academic credentials but also demonstrates compassion to serve the needs of others. “To cure when possible, to care always” is an adage that virtually all physicians learn while training. Yet, as students become physicians, equipped with the knowledge and tools to understand and treat human disease, their desire and ability to deliver care with compassion become increasingly challenged by a bureaucratic delivery system focused on volume, leaving little time for meaningful engagement with patients. Such engagement is essential, especially for effective care of complex chronic diseases where physicians must understand their patients’ capabilities and needs. Equally important, patients must be engaged to embrace difficult behavioral changes best nurtured by their trusted providers.3 In my view, the lack of compassionate engagement between physicians and patients not only limits the satisfaction of both, but it also fosters in the effective treatment of complex chronic diseases. Restoring the historic caring bond between physician and patient in our increasingly technical and fragmented health care system should be amongst the highest priorities for a more effective, fulfilling, and cost-effective practice of medicine.
I believe health care approaches designed to foster compassion will be more cost-effective, especially for treating chronic diseases, many of which are preventable, and for which patient engagement is a critical component of success.4,5 As director of the Duke Center for Personalized Health Care, I have witnessed that patients are more motivated and committed when they experience a close relationship with a caring provider. Understanding this, the center is developing cost-effective care models that engage patients with their physicians to identify their health risks, develop shared goals and strategies to meet their goals, coordinate care, and track progress. In addition to the best available therapeutics, this model emphasizes the need for a compassionate setting to help patients realize why their health is so important to them and what they are willing to do to enhance it. Mindfulness meditation and group interactions with other patients help to achieve this awareness. This approach is currently being piloted in different clinical settings including the Veterans Health Administration and federally qualified health center.5
An Audience With the Dalai Lama
Believing in the intrinsic well of compassion within physicians, the value it plays in their sense of satisfaction, and the effectiveness it can bring to care, I sought to learn more about this emotion and how to facilitate it from perhaps the world’s deepest thinker in this field, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. While the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists is amongst the world’s most respected and revered religious figures, His Holiness is also highly pragmatic and believes that good science can inform and potentially outweigh religious beliefs. He has encouraged the engagement of Buddhist leaders and Western scientists to better understand consciousness and compassion. With this objective, the Mind & Life Institute (https://www.mindandlife.org) was established in the United States in 1987 to foster such dialogues. I first met the Dalai Lama in Washington, D.C., at the 2005 Mind & Life XIII meeting titled “Investigating the Mind: The Science and Clinical Applications of Meditation.” At that time, I had the opportunity to engage in a conversation with His Holiness in front of an audience of over 5,000 people where we discussed evolving concepts of personalized health care.
To reengage in a discussion of compassion and health care, I reached out to Tenzin Taklha, Secretary to His Holiness, who graciously granted an audience with the Dalai Lama for me and my wife, Renée. On April 30, 2018, we had the honor of spending an hour with His Holiness at his offices in Dharamshala, India. This visit provided a great practical understanding of the power of compassion to enhance one’s happiness and effectiveness and the need for the emotion to be strengthened through education and practice. Importantly, it identified opportunities to improve health care through a greater focus on compassion as a self-reinforcing driver of physician-patient engagement.
Much of our early conversation centered on the Dalai Lama’s insights regarding the importance of compassion for individuals and the world. He indicated that while his foundational belief about compassion comes from his religious learning, he grew to understand that compassion transcends the realm of religion and is a pragmatic, secular concept. Compassion, His Holiness stated, is a deep inborn emotion and the source of true happiness.6 By leading a compassionate life, the Dalai Lama means that one naturally becomes deeply engaged and committed to being involved with and care about other people. Compassion is an inherent trait, but it does not necessarily maintain its focus and intensity in a world with so many factors suppressing it. His Holiness indicated that compassion can be enhanced by attention to it but requires mental discipline to sustain it. In other words, it requires commitment and works to make it a way of life.
While His Holiness indicated that science has proven that people are born with a tendency toward compassion, he observed that their surroundings and their education influence whether they move toward a compassionate life or one dominated by aggression and hostility. He advocated for the concepts and practice of compassion to be taught early in life but indicated that they can be embraced at any age. He explained that when education was provided by religious entities, the concepts of compassion could be a primary focus. As education became secular, the attention to teaching compassion largely disappeared. The Dalai Lama thought it ironic that so little attention is focused on compassion in our educational systems given its importance for the well-being of the individual, of communities, and indeed of the world. To make his point, he noted that conflict, previously a localized experience, is now a worldwide reality. As such, humankind is quite literally capable of destroying the planet. Thus, in our global existence of more than seven billion people, he indicated, the concepts of compassion are now essential for human survival.
With a smile, he said that many people consider the Dalai Lama to be a god. He said that if he accepted this notion, he would be one alone, above his believers. If, however, he did not accept this premise but rather connected to all others as a compassionate person, he would be part of seven billion people. “Which would you prefer?” he asked. Upon reflection, I arrived at a profoundly pragmatic insight. An essential component of compassion is the feeling of interconnectedness with others, which naturally leads to engagement—a critical component of effective health care. Rather than a vague concept to strive for in the abstract, compassion is an active driver of feeling interconnected and engaged. In turn, being engaged leads to feelings of interconnectedness, compassion, and satisfaction. Compassion and engagement are interrelated and self-reinforcing. Since compassion is nurtured through awareness, education, and mental discipline, the strengthening of this emotion should be a focus for enhancing the practice of medicine. His Holiness firmly believes that compassion, while an innate emotion, can be enhanced and maintained by focused attention through mindfulness and the awareness of the need to control one’s anger and hostility. This pursuit takes training and commitment as do other skills needed for the practice of medicine. This being the case, the Dalai Lama and I discussed the importance of making compassion a serious focus of medical education to foster the benefit of this emotion for the deep satisfaction of all physicians and the quality of care they deliver.
Training physicians to be aware of the exponentially increasing amount of information underlying the basis of health and disease grows more challenging each year. Nonetheless, medical education needs to be reexamined from the perspective of what it will take to train physicians to understand and practice compassion, a necessary component to enhance the value, effectiveness, and joy of being a physician. Although the AAMC’s definition of Service Orientation is well aligned with the concept of compassion,2 there is little direct attention or standardization in most medical school curricula for teaching, supporting, and measuring compassion. Also troublesome is the lack of attention on compassion as a competency during postgraduate training and in practice. The Dalai Lama and I agreed that teaching and evaluating compassion should be given the same status in medical school curricula as the teaching of other core competencies. Equally important, clinical care must be designed to allow physicians the time to engage compassionately with their patients. I suggested that leaders of medicine, perhaps through the auspices of the AAMC, convene to explore how better to instill compassion into medical education and practice, and His Holiness enthusiastically agreed. Furthermore, the Dalai Lama emphasized that compassion is a product of the human brain. Given his interest in the scientific basis of emotions ranging from compassion to anger and hatred, he believes that understanding the development and maintenance of compassion should be a critical area of research to define its neurological basis and how it can be enhanced as human emotion.
As we were coming to the close of our meeting, my wife, Renée, said, “I have an important idea.” The Dalai Lama’s gaze immediately moved from me to Renée, who suggested that the Dalai Lama and I should write a thought piece for an influential journal. “This is our obligation, Madame!” was his instantaneous reply. And thus, we have summarized the initial thoughts of our conversation with the hope of beginning a meaningful dialogue about the importance of compassion as a part of medical education, health care, and research.
Summary
The practice of medicine has historically been driven by the desire of physicians to reduce the suffering of others—the very definition of compassion. This inborn emotion fosters interconnectedness and, as a result, brings deep satisfaction to both the giver and the recipient. Current health care delivery models limit the development of compassionate engagement between the physician and patient, resulting in a lack of the very relationships needed for physicians, not only to understand their patient’s disease but also to know their patient’s capabilities and willingness to make the behavioral changes needed to improve their health. The lack of meaningful physician-patient relationships has not only reduced the joy of the practice of medicine, but it has also contributed to the epidemic of chronic diseases. To abate this epidemic requires the engagement of the physician and the patient to develop effective treatment plans that will be followed. We must focus not only on developing the best scientifically driven care but also on creating delivery models that facilitate compassion, making them more personalized to the needs and capabilities of the patient and, hence, more cost-effective and humane than our current fragmented approach to care. Given its importance to health care, teaching compassion and how to foster and maintain it should be an integral part of medical education and a core competency expected of physicians. As the concept of compassion is so important for all aspects of society, research to understand the factors governing this emotion should be a high priority. Most critical is the need of the medical community to recognize the importance of compassion as a fundamental tenet of the practice of medicine and to spur initiatives to unleash its power to improve health and well-being.
Acknowledgments:
Ralph Snyderman gratefully acknowledges Tenzin Taklha, Carol Weingarten, Susan Bauer-Wu, and Jon Kabat-Zinn for their assistance in facilitating the audience with the Dalai Lama; Renée Snyderman for her advice and guidance; and Cindy Mitchell and Renée Snyderman for their outstanding editorial assistance.
3. Simmons LA, Wolever RQ, Bechard EM, Snyderman R. Patient engagement as a risk factor in personalized health care: A systematic review of the literature on chronic disease. Genome Med. 2014;6:16.
5. Drake C, Meade C, Hull SK, Price A, Snyderman R. Integration of personalized health planning and shared medical appointments for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. South Med J. 2018;111:674–682.
6. Gyatso T. The Compassionate Life. 2001.Boston, MA: Wisdom Publications, Inc.
This article in PubMed
Spirituality Science. Compassion cannot be recruited. Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness demand the God Connection, the connection to the original source of Love, Compassion, and Forgiveness. Dr. William Osler, the Father of Modern Medicine emphasized the first duties of the physician in promoting good, and positive Health.
THE TWO EVIL DOCTRINES TORMENTING INDIA-TIBET RELATIONS FROM THE VERY BEGINNING
India gained full independence in 1947 but is besieged with two evil doctrines tormenting her from the very beginning. On one hand, India faces an insurmountable problem due to the evil doctrine of the ‘Divide and Rule’ policy of the British Empire to systematically weaken India using Pakistan as a hostile force. On the other hand, India faces a very serious threat to her security by the evil doctrine of ‘Expansionism’, the State policy of Communist China which replaced the Imperialist China in 1949. Apart from Pakistan’s invasion and occupation of Kashmir, India faces the difficult challenge to defend the entire Himalayan Frontier which basically existed for several centuries with no troops guarding the border.
I entirely agree with Indian Prime Minister Nehru’s assessment made in 1953. India lacks the military capabilities to intervene in Tibet to counter Communist China’s Expansionist Policy.
Rudra Narasimham Rebbapragada
Special Frontier Force
Review: Will Tibet Ever Find Her Soul Again? by Claude Arpi
Claude Arpi’s new book is particularly relevant as China rolls out the Belt and Road Initiative
BOOKSUpdated: Apr 05, 2019 17:59 IST
Thubten Samphel
Hindustan Times
A view of Lhasa, Tibet, on March 27, 2019.(VCG via Getty Images)
578pp, Rs 1550; Vij Books
The brilliance of new China’s leaders in pursuing their hard-nosed strategic objectives in Tibet was to weave a plausible narrative of ‘liberation’ around what was an outright invasion of the country. The other twist in the narrative was to force Lhasa to sign the 17-Point Agreement in 1951 in which Tibet promised to “return voluntarily to the lap of the motherland.” Half the world, largely the socialist camp, bought China’s story on Tibet.
The process of dealing with China’s fait accompli on the Roof of the World was particularly painful in the corridors of power in New Delhi. Should close cultural, commercial bonds and an open, unguarded border between India and Tibet blindside New Delhi to the changed new geopolitical reality in which the balance of power between independent India and new China had shifted in Beijing’s favor?
In dealing with the issue of Tibet, the two Asian giants brought two different mindsets. India had hoped, as articulated by Nehru, de-colonizing Asia and Africa would come together as one big family to work for common prosperity and peace. China on the other hand was there for itself, in whatever form that enduring Chinese imperial impulse was dressed up in the reigning ideology of the day.
The clash of views of men on the ground who figured out China’s true intentions in Tibet and beyond and those who took Beijing’s comforting words at their face value are put together in Will Tibet Ever Find Her Soul Again? The value of Claude Arpi’s contribution to scholarship on the subject is that it is based on the Nehru papers housed in the Nehru Memorial Library and Museum and the National Archives of India. “It is the first time such documents have been used (or even seen),” says Arpi.
At the time these events unfolded in Tibet, New Delhi’s man in Lhasa was Sumul Sinha. In his briefing to New Delhi about Chinese intentions, he wrote: “It seems to me that we are not facing fairly and squarely the realities of the situation here, inclined as we are to gloss over Chinese dislike and distrust for insignificant aliens like us, for no better reason than to keep Delhi in good humour and to keep alive the illusions of our policy-makers who still believe that much maligned Chinese are just as good today as they were in the past.”
Author Claude Arpi ( Courtesy the author )
In his briefing note to Major SM Krishnatry, the Indian Trade Agent in Gyantse, Sinha was brutally honest. He accused the People’s Liberation Army of doing a Robert Clive act on Tibet. “I hardly think that Chinese officials in Tibet can help being adventurous nor do I blame them for dreaming of conquest far beyond the confines of Tibet. They are physically placed at the outskirt of an empire and has happened in so much of history, think and behave like modern Clives and Hastings, always anxious to out-do their own achievements.”
The critique to this assessment came from Nehru himself. In 1953, India’s first prime minister wrote that Sinha “looks with certain nostalgia to the past when the British exercised a good deal of control over Tibet and he would like India to take the place of the British of those days. As a matter of fact, the weakness of our position in Tibet has been that we are successors, to some extent, of an imperial power which has pushed its way into Tibet. When that imperial power has ceased to have any strength to function in the old way, it is patent that we cannot do so, even if we so wished.”
In this Great Game played out between independent India and re-united China, Arpi’s ability to piece together all the confidential memos and exchange of notes in high places serve as a fly on the wall. His contribution on the subject will serve as a guide for new players not to repeat the mistakes of the past. With China rolling out the almost globe-girdling Belt and Road Initiative to improve sea and land connectivity to purportedly facilitate international trade but also to assert its political influence on the countries strung along the new Silk Road, the Great Game is being played with new vigour. Arpi’s contribution constitutes a playbook for the participants in the new Great Game, now rebranded and re-sold as the Belt and Road Initiative.
