DHARAMSHALA: His Holiness the Dalai Lama yesterday began teachings on ‘The Three Principal Aspects of the Path, The Concise Stages of the Path and Praise to Dependent Arising by Je Tsongkhapa at Gyuto tantric monastery in Sidhpur, near Dharamshala.
Over 5,000 devotees comprising of monks, nuns and lay people attended the first of the four-day teachings.
In his introductory remarks before commencing the teaching, His Holiness talked about sustaining the essence of Buddhism, non-violence, interdependency and the need to foster kinship among the various religious traditions.
Speaking on the essence of Buddhism, His Holiness emphasised the importance moving with the times and becoming a 21st century Buddhist. “Today, Buddhists are able to come out into the world and interact with people. We need to be more informed about what is going on in such a world,” he said. He reaffirmed the need to approach world affairs with the same unbiased attitude with which Buddhists should approach their religion.
His Holiness also talked about the teachings of Buddha as the source of light which helps dispel the darkness of ignorance in sentient beings.
Talking about the scourge of violence that is currently taking place in the world in the name of religion, His Holiness remarked that such violence is very confusing as all religions preach love and compassion and blamed ignorance as the root of all trouble.
His Holiness also blamed human greed and the lack of empathy for the rising violence against each other. He recounted a visit to Hyderabad where he witnessed deers roaming freely in a park with lions. Won’t the lions harm the deer?’ His Holiness remembered asking the park attendant– and was told that once the lions are full they won’t harm other animals, explaining that lions eat only to survive.
His Holiness then reasoned that, “humans although having a high functioning brain, and far greater critical faculties that allow us to make judgments, instead of using our intelligence to overcome suffering, we often decide to use it to cause pain because of an inability to see another person’s point of view. Because of our inappropriate way of looking at things, we develop negative emotions.”
His Holiness the Dalai Lama gave the teachings in Tibetan with simultaneous translations in English, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Hindi. Live webcast of the teachings are available here.
The teachings will continue till 13 May.
