NARITA, Japan: His Holiness the Dalai Lama arrives in Japan on Sunday morning for a 12-day visit from 7-18 April. Representative Lhakpa Tshoko, staff members of the Office of Tibet, representatives of Shinto religious organisation and long time Japanese supporters and well-wishers welcomed His Holiness at the airport.
Speaking to Tibetonline.TV, Representative Lhakpa Tshoko said His Holiness is in Japan at the invitation of three organisations – Shinto religious organisation, Koko Scientific Research Center of Kyoto and the Mind & Life Institute, and Koyasan Monastery.
“One the main purposes of His Holiness’s visit is to provide emotional support to those who had been affected by the devastating earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster which struck Japan in March 2011,” he said, adding, “Though those affected have undergone material recovery with the government’s support, many people still need inner strength to overcome the trauma.”
His Holiness will attend a Shinto special prayer service for those affected by the natural disaster in Sendai on 7 April. Following the prayer service, His Holiness will give a public talk to people from all walks of life mostly from Shinto community including 1000 people whose lives had been devastated by the natural disaster. (Watch live webcast)
“Another important programme is His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s dialogue with top Japanese and western scientists at a first-ever conference being hosted at Kyoto university. We hope the dialogue would expand interaction between science and religion in Japan and contribute to the humanity’s well-being,” Representative Lhakpa Tshoko said.
On 11-12 April, His Holiness will participate in a two-day conference on “Mapping the Mind: A Dialogue Between Modern Scientists and Buddhist Science” organised by Koko Research Center of Kyoto University and the Mind & Life Institute. Themes for the discussion include Mind in Early Buddhism, Change Your Brain by Transforming Your Mind: Neuroscientific Studies of Meditation, The Role of Mind in Quantum Physics and A Process-based Map of Compassion and its Implications on Compassion Training.
On 9 April, His Holiness will visit Seifu Gaken Boys High School and give a talk to students on “What one would hope for the young people to do”.
At the invitation of Koyasan Monastery, His Holiness will give a teaching on Tsongkhapa’s Concise Stages of the Path to Enlightenment (Tib: lamrim dudon) and Geshe Langri Thangpa’s 8 Verses of Training the Mind (Lojong Tsik Gyema) on 13 April. Next day, he will confer the Vairocana-abhisambodhi Initiation (namnang ngoenjang wang). His Holiness will also give a public talk on “How should we live our lives? – Religion and Ethics in the 21st Century” on 15 April.
His Holiness will give teachings on Heart Sutra (Sherab Nyingpo), Nagarjuna’s In Praise of Dhammadhaty (Choeying Toepa) and Gyalsey Thokme Sangpo’s 37 Practices of a Boddhisattva in Tokyo on 17 April.
His Holiness will give an audience for Tibetan community in Tokyo on 18 April.
This is His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 20th visit to Japan. He first visited the country in 1967. On asked about his impression about His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s visits, Representative Lhakpa Tshoko said “during the last 10-15 years, the visits have generated tremendous awareness among Japanese people about the issue of Tibet. Now a days, almost all the books authored by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and others related with Tibetan culture and religion are available in Japanese language. Moreover, the office of Tibet has been able to very good relationship with key organisations in Japan, the government and foreign offices.”
