As Chinese president Xi Jinping and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi held bilateral talks at Delhi’s Hyderabad House on Thursday, Tibetans activists breached security barriers to protest with flags and slogans against what they claim is Chinese occupation of their country. The police detained at least ten protestors, according to news reprts.
But even as young Tibetan voices were being silenced in Delhi, the world’s most prominent Tibetan – the Dalai Lama – calmly spoke in favour of strong Sino-Indian relations at an event in Mumbai.
The 14th Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, was addressing a gathering of business heads at an event organised by the Indian Merchants Chamber. Most of his lecture was about spiritual ethics, compassion and harmony, but when an audience member asked him about his views on Xi’s visit, the Dalai Lama did not hold back.
“I completely retired from political discourse in 2011,” he began, but then obliged an eager audience with his views on politics, Chinese hardliners and Xi himself.
Mutual trust
“I always say that the Sino-Indian relationship is very important and must be based on mutual trust,” the Dalai Lama said. “These are two very ancient nations and if you combine them, their relations will benefit the world.”
The Dalai Lama said he is optimistic about Xi's intentions. “I have more faith in the new Chinese leadership judging by his way of working in the last three years,” he said. “In Paris earlier this year, Jinping expressed that Buddhism had a very important role in China’s development, which was a very unusual comment – it indicates that he is using common sense, unlike the hardliners who work more like machines.”
The Dalai Lama said that China had a lot to learn from India’s experience with maintaining democracy and a free media despite having so many languages and cultures in one nation. “The democratic system is the proper way to have people’s rule, because you choose your leader to represent you through an election and discuss problems through representatives in Parliament,” said the Dalai Lama.
A Buddhist Marxist
Describing his own political leanings as Marxist, the spiritual leader said, “in the eyes of the wealthy, I am a dangerous person."
The original basis of Marxism, he said, was equal distribution of wealth and genuine love and respect for the working classes. “But today, the Communist party [in China] no longer represents the working class people – the same party has shown the ability to act differently according to a new reality.”
The Dalai Lama’s parting shot for the Chinese government was clear: “In any country, harmony can be based only on trust and friendship. If you use force, it creates fear – and trust and fear cannot exist together.”
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But even as young Tibetan voices were being silenced in Delhi, the world’s most prominent Tibetan – the Dalai Lama – calmly spoke in favour of strong Sino-Indian relations at an event in Mumbai.
The 14th Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, was addressing a gathering of business heads at an event organised by the Indian Merchants Chamber. Most of his lecture was about spiritual ethics, compassion and harmony, but when an audience member asked him about his views on Xi’s visit, the Dalai Lama did not hold back.
“I completely retired from political discourse in 2011,” he began, but then obliged an eager audience with his views on politics, Chinese hardliners and Xi himself.
Mutual trust
“I always say that the Sino-Indian relationship is very important and must be based on mutual trust,” the Dalai Lama said. “These are two very ancient nations and if you combine them, their relations will benefit the world.”
The Dalai Lama said he is optimistic about Xi's intentions. “I have more faith in the new Chinese leadership judging by his way of working in the last three years,” he said. “In Paris earlier this year, Jinping expressed that Buddhism had a very important role in China’s development, which was a very unusual comment – it indicates that he is using common sense, unlike the hardliners who work more like machines.”
The Dalai Lama said that China had a lot to learn from India’s experience with maintaining democracy and a free media despite having so many languages and cultures in one nation. “The democratic system is the proper way to have people’s rule, because you choose your leader to represent you through an election and discuss problems through representatives in Parliament,” said the Dalai Lama.
A Buddhist Marxist
Describing his own political leanings as Marxist, the spiritual leader said, “in the eyes of the wealthy, I am a dangerous person."
The original basis of Marxism, he said, was equal distribution of wealth and genuine love and respect for the working classes. “But today, the Communist party [in China] no longer represents the working class people – the same party has shown the ability to act differently according to a new reality.”
The Dalai Lama’s parting shot for the Chinese government was clear: “In any country, harmony can be based only on trust and friendship. If you use force, it creates fear – and trust and fear cannot exist together.”