His Holiness the Dalai Lama to visit the United States and Canada, APRIL
12 to MAY 6, 2004
NEW YORK: His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the spiritual and temporal leader of
the Tibetan people, will visit Los Angeles, California and three Canadian cities from April 12 to May 6, 2004, at which time He will offer lectures in Buddhist philosophy and universal responsibility, receive multiple Honorary Doctorate Degrees, participate in a conference with other Nobel Peace Laureates, and help to introduce a curriculum of Ethics for a New Millennium and Modern Tibetan Studies to two Universities. He will also bestow the extensive 12-day Kalachakra Initiation for World Peace, the largest Buddhist ritual and initiation given by His Holiness.
Commencing His visit from Los Angeles, California (April 12-17), His Holiness will offer a three-day teaching on Nagarjuna’s 60 Stanzas on Reasoning, sponsored by the Compassion and Wisdom Buddhist Association. For further information on the teaching, please visit: www.cwbausa.org While in Los Angeles, His Holiness will also spend one day at the University of California at Irvine where He will offer a Public Talk and help to introduce the subject of Ethics for a New Millennium to the University’s curriculum.
From Los Angeles, His Holiness will visit Vancouver, British Columbia from April 17 to 21, marking His first visit to that city since 1993. In Vancouver, His Holiness will offer a Buddhist teaching, a public talk, will receive Honorary Doctorate Degrees from both the University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University, and will join other Nobel Peace Laureates while participating in a conference, entitled Tibet and the Contemporary World. While at the University of British Columbia, His Holiness will also celebrate the introduction of Modern Tibetan Studies to the University’s curriculum. For more information, please visit: www.dalailamavancouver.org
On April 21, 2004 His Holiness will travel to the Canadian capital city of Ottawa, where He will offer a Public Talk and spend two days engaged in meetings with members of the Parliament and other government leaders. The Ottawa visit is sponsored by Canada Tibet Committee, which is actively engaged in the initiative for a Tibet-China negotiation campaign. For more information, please visit: www.tibet.ca
His Holiness will conclude His North America visit in Toronto from April 24 to May 6, during which time He will bestow the extensive Kalachakra Initiation, receive a Peace Award and Doctorate Degree from the University of Toronto, and offer a Public Talk. The twelve-day Kalachakra Initiation serves as a universal prayer for the development of the ethics of peace and harmony within oneself and humanity. The Kalachakra is considered a unique and special blessing for all participants, as well as for the environment in which it is given. His Holiness has bestowed 27 Kalachakra Initiations on four continents, with His first one occurring during the month of May 1954 in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. For further information, please visit: www.kalachakra2004.com
“Regardless of the city, state, or country to which His Holiness travels, His objectives are always global in scope: to promote basic human values; to promote inter-religious harmony and world peace; and to look after the welfare of the Tibetan people and the preservation of the Tibetan cultural heritage”, states Nawang Rabgyal, the Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to the Americas.
His Holiness will be meeting with the local Tibetan communities of each city He visits. He has been traveling to the United States since 1979, with His most recent visit taking place during the month of September 2003. This trip will mark His Holiness’ fourth visit to Canada, and the first since 1993.
A report by The Office of Tibet, New York