if it were only that easy

Holy man in the Holy Land
Feb. 16, 2006

The arrival of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in Israel yesterday has generated only mild attention from the general public. After all, what relevance to the lives of ordinary Israelis can this venerable Buddhist monk (and Nobel peace laureate) bring?

The answer is: A great deal. We need only appreciate what a rare opportunity we have to learn from one of the most respected religious figures in the world, one whose concern for our own concerns is untainted by history or culture. After all, he is not a Muslim, a Christian or a Jew.

We can learn from his kindness. ...

We can learn from his scholarship. The Dalai Lama is no devotional guru followed by the faithful. His Holiness is a keen scholar, conversant in many languages, and the author of numerous books. His wisdom lies in the same economy of thought. He believes that making an effort to end violence, anger and anxiety both in our world and in ourselves is essential even if everything - to a pure Buddhist - is temporary.

He teaches: "As anger is a phenomenon, like all other phenomena it cannot exist without dependence on other phenomena. Hence it cannot be eternal. It would be useless to work against an eternal state, but since all negative states are phenomena, we have both the opportunity to change them, and with proper effort, to end them."

COMPASSION isn't just being nice, it's a logical practice. ...

SO WHY can't we all get over the differences and live in peace? Because of the one thing Buddhists really hate. Ignorance.

The Dalai Lama never stops his ongoing attack on the ignorance that leads us astray, and tricks us into stupid acts based on our dreams and our fears rather than the basic goodness of every living creature. He's been fighting all his life. ...

He comes to Israel to talk to us about collective and universal responsibility, our daily responsibility to use our precious human bodies and minds to truly act like humans.

He comes to honor the 100th anniversary of the aliya of David Ben-Gurion. Israel's first premier awoke every day to engage in his daily practice of yoga, a discipline near and dear to this wise monk and world leader. ...
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