His Holiness’ Birthday Celebrated in 31 Tibetan Communities of North America
New York, 7 July 2005 (Office of Tibet, New York): Close to 200 well wishers, including government officials, diplomats, scholars, writers, and Tibet supporters, attended a reception hosted yesterday by the Office of Tibet at Tibet House, New York, to celebrate the 70th birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Welcoming the guests, Representative Nawang Rabgyal said His Holiness the Dalai Lama is not only the spiritual and political leader of Tibetans, “he is also the source of our inner strength and happiness”.
“He is the symbol of our unity, hope and aspiration,” Representative Rabgyal said, adding that the Tibetan people owe him a “big debt of gratitude for leading us in this most difficult and tragic period in the history of Tibet”.
Rabgyal called on the international community to help save the cultural heritage of Tibet from the systematic destruction taking place in Tibet.
Professor Robert Thurman spoke on the need for the world to listen to His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s message of peace and non-violence. Thurman pointed out that the growing culture of militarism is a reflection on the weakness of people in positions of power, “who feel the need to show that they are strong by destroying something”. It takes a lot of strength to be compassionate, tolerant and non-violent, Thurman said.
Meanwhile, in upstate New York, Karma Triyana Dharmachakra held a special long life prayer meeting for His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Likewise, Nechung Foundation of New York organized a tsok-offering ritual.
Earlier, on 2 and 3 July, the Tibetan Community of New York and New Jersey organized a two-day celebration.
On the first day, over 3,000 Tibetans, including a sizeable number from other states of America, gathered at Columbia University’s Alfred Lerner Hall. Prayers for the long life of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, scarf-offering ceremony, and cultural performances by Cholsum Doegar Tsokpa, former members of Dharamsala-based Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts, and children of the Tibetan Sunday school, and Mongolian step dances by Kalmyk community took up much of the morning. The day ended with the traditional all-can-join dance of Gorshey.
On the second day, the celebrants converged on Central Park for a day-long picnic. The highlight of the day was an opera performance of the story of “The Celestial Maiden Sukyi Nyima”, believed to be a Tibetan adaptation of Sanskrit classic Shakuntala. The professionalism of the performance delighted opera buffs and connoisseurs who said that this was the best thing they had seen since arriving in the United States. Echoing them, a Belgian scholar of Tibetan opera remarked happily on the high quality of aria-singing.
As the opera ended, picnickers formed small groups to perform Bashey dance, Gorshey dance and Lhasa’s famous nangma.
Elsewhere, in Minneapolis, a special birthday celebration was held with sporting events.
In Los Angeles, the Tibetan Association purchased and freed 70 captive birds. Director Nubpa Chodak Gyatso of Thondup Ling Dharma Center said that his center had bought and freed 100,000 fish.
Reports of birthday events continue to come in from other Tibetan associations and Dharma Centers in North America.