World’s Largest Book on Display in Miami to Honour His Holiness the Dalai Lama [Thursday, 26 August 2010, 2:04 p.m.]

The Bhutan, the world’s largest book, is displayed with a special exhibit at Miami University’s Walter Havinghurst Special Collections on the third floor of King Library. Photo by Meagan Engl/The Oxford Press

Dharamshala:
The King Library on Miami University’s campus has put on display the
largest book in the world as part of its special collections. “The
Bhutan: A Visual Odyssey Across the Last Himalayan Kingdom” is part of
an exhibit in honour of the upcoming visit by His Holiness the Dalai
Lama. The Bhutan measures 5 feet by 7 feet when opened and weighs 133
pounds, The Oxford Press reported.His
Holiness the Dalai Lama will make a presentation at Miami University on
21 October in Millett Hall titled, “Ethics in a Modern World.”The display is free and open to the public during special collections hours. Everyone
is invited to make an appointment to turn a page in the book, Janet
Stuckey, of special collections, was quoted as saying by The Oxford Press.“Buddhism:
An Exhibit in Honor of the Dalai Lama’s Visit” features books written
by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the Time Magazine cover featuring him,
the Life cover on his flight from Tibet to India and more.Just
a few of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 72 publications are on display,
but the library does have all on hand. Many of his books focus on
happiness, Stuckey said.“It isn’t necessarily about Buddhism, but it’s about living in harmony. That’s why he’s a man of peace,” Stuckey said.Miami
established a relationship with the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics in
Dharamsala, India, during summer workshops in Tibet led by two faculty
in anthropology from 2004-2008. His Holiness is a patron of this
institute, one of the premier institutions for study of Buddhist
thought and philosophy. 

After university faculty visited
Dharamsala and signed an affiliation agreement, Miami began offering a
Tibetan studies semester programme last fall. It will be offered
annually in the fall. 

Venerable Geshe Kalsang Damdul, from
the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics, visited Miami and held a prayer
flag ceremony here last February to commemorate the affiliation
agreement.