College for Higher Tibetan Studies hosts debate on secular educationMonday, 27 July 2009, 4:06 p.m.

From Right: Geshe Jampal Dakpa, principal, college for higher Tibetan studies, Sarah, Geshe Damchoe, director, Institute of Buddhist Dialectics, Kalon Tripa Prof Samdhong Rinpoche, Speaker Penpa Tsering, Tsewang Rigzin, president, Tibetan Youth Congress during the opening ceremony at the college of higher Tibetan studies at Sarah, near Dharamsala, India, on 27 July 2009/Photos: Sangjey Kyap

Dharamshala: A group of Tibetan students doing studies in ten colleges in different parts of India have gathered at the College for Higher Tibetan Studies (CHTS) at Sarah near Dharamsala to participate in the third annual debate on the Tibetan system of secular education.The four-day educational event was inaugurated this morning by Mr Penpa Tsering, Speaker of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile and Kalon Tripa Prof Samdhong Rinpoche.  The director of the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics and President of the Tibetan Youth Congress were other dignitaries present at the function.The participants are college students from Institute for Higher Tibetan Studies, Kirti Monastery; Chennai; Baroda, Gujarat; Tibetan Medical and Astro Institute, Dharamsala; Bangalore; College for Higher Tibetan Studies, Sarah and Delhi University.“This educational programme was organised to examine the negligence on the part of Tibetans in exile and set backs in the field of education for the past thirty years,” a representative of the youth organisation at CHTS, which is organising the event said.It was also aimed to bring together the Tibetan students on a common platform to undertake thorough discussion and introspection towards attaining specialisation in higher Tibetan studies and preservation of Tibetan cultural heritage, he added.

In his address, the speaker of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile said organising a discussion on Tibetan studies has become more imperative following the advice of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to the Tibetans in exile, particularly the youths, towards strengthening studies in specialised academic fields.Speaker Penpa Tsering said the younger generation of Tibetans should use the educational opportunities to engage in in-depth research and study to attain expertise in different areas of modern and traditional Tibetan studies.Kalon Tripa Prof Samdhong Rinpoche lauded the efforts of youth organisation for arranging the debate on Tibetan studies, which he said is the best way traditional method to make advancement in different fields of studies.Having profound wisdom and expertise on Tibetan studies, Kalon Tripa expounded on the Tibetan system of secular education, which comprised of five minor subjects of drama, dance and music, astrology, poetry and composition and five higher subjects such as the art of healing, Sanskrit, dialectics, arts and craft, and metaphysics and the philosophy of religion.Kalon Tripa also spoke in detail on the importance of Tibetan script as the most unique and suitable language to translate the teachings of Buddha, which forms the basis of the philosophy of religion, the most important and fundamental amongst the five higher subjects.In the subsequent days, the participants and resource persons will deliberate on a wide range of issues including the basic education policy of the Tibetans in exile, specialisation in different fields of studies and methods to improve education standard of the Tibetans in exile.