Tibetans Mark 50 Years in Exile, Express Gratitude to IndiaTuesday, 31 March 2009, 3:22 p.m.
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| His Eminence Gyalwa Karmapa RInpoche (L) presents a memento to Mr Kishan Kapoor, minister minister of transport, town and country planning, housing board and urban development, government of Himachal Pradesh, at the thank you India function in DHaramshala, India, on 31 March 2009/Photos: Sangjey Kep |
Dharamshala: His
Holiness the Dalai Lama today expressed his profound gratitude to India
for extending its moral and material generosity to the Tibetan people
in India during the last 50 years when Tibet’s identity and the
civilization came under severe threat of extinction.
March
2009 marked the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan people’s peaceful
uprising against repression and occupation by the People’s Republic of
China in 1959, causing His Holiness the Dalai Lama and hundreds of
thousands of Tibetans to flee into exile.To mark the event,
Tibetans in diaspora showcase their efforts in the preservation,
protection and promotion of Tibet’s unique cultural heritage in the
last 5 decades under the generous support from both the government and
people of India.A function was held this morning in
Dharamshala, India, the seat of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the
Central Tibetan Administration. Thousands of Tibetans participated in
the event, during which schoolchildren performed cultural performances
and songs in praise of India’s generosity.Representatives from
the Indian community, including Kishan Kapoor, minister of transport,
town and country planning, housing board and urban development,
government of Himachal Pradesh, attended the function as chief guest. His
Eminence Gyalwa Karmapa Rinpoche presented souveinirs in the form of
Thangka (Tibet’s tradition scroll painting) to the Indian dignitaries.
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| Mr Kishan Kapoor addressing the gathering |
Addressing
the gathering, Kishan Kapoor underlined the need to strengthen and take
forward the harmonious relationship between the local Indian and the
Tibetan community. Extending his tribute to those Tibetans who
sacrificed their lives for the just cause of Tibet last March in Tibet,
Kapoor said the day will come when truth, justice and their non-violent
efforts will bear fruit.
The
minister said the government of Himachal Pradesh will continue to
extend necessary assistance to Tibetans living in the state.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s “Thank You India” address on the occasion
was read out by Mrs Kesang Y Takla, Kalon for the Department of
Information and International Relations. In his address, His
Holiness lauded late Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru’s farsightedness and
personal concern to establish Tibetan farming settlements, with the aim
that Tibetans could live together in communities without being
scattered. His Holiness expressed Tibetan people’s gratitude
to Nehru’s vision for building separate schools for Tibetan children
where they receive modern education in addition to instruction in their
own language, culture and religion.
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| Tibetans present cultural peformance on the occasion |
The
efforts of wide variety of Indian people for establishing many
important Tibet support groups to extend their sympathy for the Tibetan
cause, reflects the unique Indian tradition of the guru showing concern for his chela, His Holiness said.India’s
moral and material generosity to us during this critical period when
our very identity and civilization we derived from India is under
severe threat of extinction truly reflects the English proverb which
says, “A friend in need is a friend indeed”, His Holiness added.Lauding
the genuine harmony and understanding between the Indian and Tibetan
peoples, His Holiness said it is a great source of strength and
satisfaction, and a reflection of India’s valuable tradition of
tolerance and ahimsa or non-violence.His Holiness said Tibetans
have made efforts towards repaying India’s kindness by preserving
Buddhism in Tibet, which declined in the land of its birth, India and
helped others benefit from the teachings of the Buddha.
We
shall be very happy if we are able to contribute to restoring India’s
rich Buddhist heritage. In order to fulfil this dream, Pandit Nehru
established the Sikkim Research Institute of Tibetology, Central
Institute of Buddhist Studies, Leh, Ladakh, and the Central University
of Tibetan Studies in Varanasi, His Holiness said.
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His
Holiness added, as a token of Tibetan people’s willingness to restore
to India the rich culture, a complete sets of the Kangyur (Tibetan
translations of the Buddha’s teachings), and Tengyur (Tibetan
translations of commentaries by subsequent Indian masters), as well as
63 titles restored from Tibetans into Sanskrit and over 150 translated
into Hindi and other languages will be offered to India.Recalling
Tibet’s religious and cultural ties with Bhutan and Nepal, His Holiness
said we are grateful to the people and the governments of these two
countries for providing shelter to the Tibetan refugees.His Holiness also expressed gratitude to all the other countries in which Tibetans receive humanitarian assistance.
His
Holiness the Dalai Lama is in New Delhi to grace the closing session of
a five-day “Thank You India” festival at the India International Centre.
