The sudden interest in Tibet by the global main stream media (MSM), with the Olympic protests as a backdrop, has brought on a full-blown debate that has swept from Parliaments to the Blogosphere with this long-ignored issue. The geopolitical focus of the debate, however, leads nowhere if it doesn’t factor in what is arguably the most important variable of them all: the spiritual relevance of Tibet for millions of non-Tibetan Buddhists worldwide. The global reach of the Olympic Torch protests cannot be explained geopolitically, which is why pundits, bloggers and Chinese bureaucrats just don’t get it –it’s the Buddha, stupid!

By Jordi Barrett

May 2008

Special to The East Coast Ledger

As the Torch sputters doggedly through its international “Olympic Spirit” shit parade (as invented by J. Goebbels) shielded by armies of police and sequestered for its own safety— Japan’s foremost Buddhist temple has politely refused to allow the Torch to visit its premises in solidarity with their brothers and sisters of Tibet.

“We are Buddhists, just like them,” explained a temple insider.

This item, which was duly reported by the MSM, slipped right under the radar of the political commentators, who were busy trying to frame the unprecedented global reach of the protests in terms of geopolitical realities –and failing miserably. Because this isn’t some itinerant Tibetan protest squad following the flame from country to country, but the very natives themselves who are protesting, together with members of the local Tibetan Diaspora. In China, this has been interpreted as Western anti-Chinese sentiment fanned by the Tibetan exile, while in the West it is seen as just another bunch of professional activists, Today-Tibet-and-Tomorrow-the-Baby-Seals types. Either way, it just doesn’t add up.

While the Chinese government’s attempt to accuse His Holiness the Dalai Lama of masterminding the protests is laughable to anyone who knows shit from shinola, the deeper truth is that without this man’s untiring dedication to his mission over fifty years, Tibet would remain as forgotten as so many other occupied and repressed territories around the world. Tenzin Gyatso will be remembered as the first Dalai Lama to open the treasures of Tibetan Buddhism to Humankind, and the first to have a global following. Never before had a Dalai Lama been the spiritual leader not only of his people, but of hundreds of thousands of non-Tibetans worldwide. These are the people who are out protesting in the US, Europe and Asia, in defense of what they consider their spiritual homeland. These are the people who cannot be explained geopolitically, and are thus invisible to the establishment… or were, until the Torch shit parade hit town.

China has often belittled the Dalai Lama for being a monk and not a statesman, as if this somehow precluded him from having strategic judgment. In fact, he has been patiently gathering soft power teaching the words of Buddha throughout the world, and has now countered China’s hard power with a parry and a jab. And the giant has winced, because that kind of soft power is precisely where it is most vulnerable… just ask any practioner of Falun Gong in China, if there are any left, to explain how the Party feels about spiritual movements involving concepts like peace, love and harmony. Or just ask the next Tibetan you meet in your whereabouts.

 The Gift of Occupation and Exile

Tibetan Buddhists are known for thanking the difficulties that arise in their lives, because overcoming these obstacles purifies the karma and sets one up for better-placed reincarnations. As this perspective extends over many lifetimes, it necessarily transcends mere geopolitics to fit a larger picture, in which everything happens for specific karma-related reasons. As a Buddhist spiritual leader, the XIV Dalai Lama saw the Chinese invasion as a situation of huge karmic import which had to be corrected if some day his people were to return to their homeland, and to this task he dedicates his life and work.

By giving thanks to the obstacles in one’s life, Buddhism seeks to defuse the dual good-or-bad perception of reality by remembering that even the most tragic events hold a hidden lesson, if only one is prepared to accept it. It may seem difficult, even callous, to think that the occupation and subsequent exile from Tibet, followed by sixty years and counting of repression, could have a silver lining. And yet surely millions of Tibetans prefer to think that all the pain and suffering has not been in vain, and that their ongoing work in this life will ensure a better future for all Humanity to reincarnate in.

As the Dalai Lama understood from the beginning, the forcible expulsion of the Dharma (knowledge) and the Sangha (monks) from Tibet was a clear karmic message for the renewal of a system that had grown spiritually complacent and socially weak. A breath of fresh air was needed for practices that had become too closed and inbred; teachings had to be purified and opened to a new generation of custodians. Humanity was ready for the Teachings, starting with the few and becoming the many.

Deprived of the protection of their native land, Tibetan Buddhism went back to basics, humbly seeking refuge in the Dharma, the Sangha and the Buddha in strange lands. This experience led to the understanding that Tibet is not just a physical location, but a state of mind, a realization which is the refuge of all exiles. This simple truth is the essence of the Dalai Lama’s teachings, and explains why so many Buddhists around the world consider Tibet their spiritual home. The Tibet State of Mind (TSM) has found its place in the global community, and its denizens have risen, if briefly, to show that Tibet is also part of us now.

Has a critical mass been reached? A critical mass for what? Right now, China has “accepted” to meet a representative of the Dalai Lama. Wait and see, maybe the feelers are out in acquisition and reevaluation mode. The bottom line is that while China was busy occupying Tibet, Tibet was conquering the world. Now it’s time to measure up and see what gives. Only one thing is certain: Tibet has done its karmic homework. Can China say the same?

Coming Soon…

Tibet: Custodian of Kailash