Yesterday ended the last day of the hunger strike that took place in Upper Dharamsala. The Tibetan Youth Congress organized a protest that included a 50-person three-day fast and a march through Mcloud Ganj on the second day (February 26^th). The demonstration was to protest the Chinese occupation of Tibet and pay respects to the Tibetans who died last year during all of the riots and demonstrations. (pictures available in gallery). There was also a picture of Chinese President Hu Jintao at which protestors threw their shoes.

This year marks the 50^th anniversary of Uprising Day when Tibetans unsuccessfully tried to rise against the Chinese occupation of Tibet on March 10, 1959. In response to this anniversary – China has already closed off sections of Tibet to tourists. It makes sense given the actions that Chinese take inside of and around TAR. For example, according to the Tibet Sun, an online newspaper, “Tibetan youth, 24-year-old Pema Tsepak, reportedly died on 23 January due to torture by Chinese police after he, and two others, publicly called for no Losar celebrations in Chamdo in eastern Tibet. All three held Tibetan national flags during their demonstration.” Also, one monk was reportedly shot by Chinese soldiers in Amdo after he set himself on fire to protest Chinese rule in Tibet. These are only a few of a relatively recent large-scale murder of innocent Tibetans.

I had the opportunity to speak with a woman who was imprisoned by the Chinese for nearly thirty years (name is being withheld for her protection) and according to her…the Chinese opened fire on peaceful Tibetans last year during Uprising Day. All of the dead and the injured were loaded into trucks and taken to a crematory – where their bodies (dead or alive) were cremated.

It is no wonder why so many Tibetans question “the middle way” approach of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The existence of deeply felt anger and a desire to react to such torture and horrendous action with violence seems highly reasonable – especially from a Western perspective where violent retaliation is simply a staple of foreign policy. It is a true indication of the Dalai Lama’s influence and the power of Buddhist faith that more Tibetan Buddhists have not resorted to violent aggression. It is important to note that the Dalai Lama has threatened to resign if Tibetans are as violent this Uprising Day as they were last year, which may explain why Tibetan(s) (Buddhists) do not act violently more often.

When you're in the middle of this...or at least much closer to it..."the middle path" becomes a really complicated...tragic...deeply admirable...confusing strategy. No matter one’s take on the middle path – it is very clear that what’s going in is wrong. It seems that everyone can agree on the presence of a problem, but the solution is another issue. I can only imagine what the response of the U.S. would be if one of our bordering countries entered our territory and opened fire on our innocent citizens and proceeded to take the injured to a crematorium in order to burn them alive. Perhaps we would go on another quest for oil? Whatever our response was…it’s clear that such an event would cause massive media coverage. Certainly…Tibet has received a lot of coverage with regard to Chinese occupation – especially last year during the Olympics. However, more needs to be done. Innocent people are being murdered by our largest importer. One could argue that our money is going to help fund the soldiers who killed innocent Tibetans. But even if one agrees with that logic…an appropriate responsive action is quite complicated. The Dalai Lama does not support a boycott of Chinese products because it is against the Buddhist faith to bring harm to anyone and a boycott would probably cause innocent Chinese people harm. So again…what to do?

I was talking to my roommate here at Sarah campus about a week ago. He’s training to be a teacher and I have committed to join Teach For America. We were pondering the ability of education to help the Tibetan cause. Of course this is a very broad topic of discussion, but we were mostly concerned with what would happen if Tibetans could produce some kind of technology or resource that China needed. It seems right now that most of Tibet’s bargaining power with China (if existent at all) – comes from the support of other more powerful nations – nations that have resources on which China is dependent. If China were dependent on Tibet…imagine how that could tip the scale.

We’re certainly not the only ones who have considered the Tibet issue through an education lens. Yesterday our group had a private audience with Rinpoche Dema Lochoe who told us that one productive way we could adopt Buddhism to our lives as students without actually being Buddhists is to feel as though we are studying for the benefit of all sentient beings. The main message of his talk was for us to study hard. This was a slightly different message than we had been receiving during other audiences – where we were often told to spread information concerning Tibet. For instance, Palden Gyatso specifically told me and others in our study group that we should tell as many people as we can about the movement to free Tibet. But this Rinpoche’s message was slightly different. I’m sure he also wants us to spread information regarding Tibet…but what he was most clear about was our ability to help everyone (not just Tibetans) through our studies. (One should keep in mind that Buddhism considers everything to be interconnected and interdependent…so by helping others who are not Tibetans…we are also helping Tibetans). With this in mind…it is my own humble opinion as an outsider that one of the best things we can do to help the Tibetan cause is to learn and seek understanding. Perhaps this could prove fruitful in finding a common ground with the Chinese.

“Buddhism Is Not a Philosophy – It Is a Religion”

Tibetan Buddhism is absolutely a religion – with the same radical followers, blind faith, and a desire to not question – just like many other religions. I met Rinpoche Tai situ at Sherab Ling monastery. During a private audience with our study group…he told us a number of useful things…like making the most out of everyday. He told us that we should do things, “not tomorrow…nor the day after, but now.” I was especially grateful to receive this advice because a number of criticisms I have heard concerning Buddhism addresses how belief in reincarnation can act as an excuse to lead an apathetic life in which there is no sense of urgency since one literally has all the time in the world (as many lifetimes as it takes) to accomplish something useful. However, he also told us some very strange things about putting large solar panels at the north and south poles so they could help prevent climate change…ignoring the fact that such a plan would have major detrimental environmental effects. He also said we should use airplanes once a day to clean all of the pollution and smog out of the atmosphere, which would be very cost-ineffective with regard to actually reducing the levels of pollutants in the air. He went on to discuss his surprise at how people have not listened to these ideas…suggesting that it is in people’s self interest to not listen to his solutions in order to secure their jobs. For instance…if we eliminate climate change…people working towards preventing global warming will lose their jobs.

Maybe this kind of religious leader is an exception…but it seems strange to offer this person so much reverence when his ideas are ludicrous and he is weird. He also insulted Indian food during our audience (suggesting that it looks like “dog vomit”). He belittled Islam as a simple, error-ridden religion with people worshiping to “some man in the clouds with a long beard”. This is the same kind of ignorance and close-mindedness that I have experienced with other religious institutions. People learn from this man…and they’re happy about it. I can’t believe it. Because so many people respect him…his ideas seem to never be questioned. A number of his students testified to us about how helpful he was and how he had enabled them to see things differently (incorrectly?). This situation was especially troubling because the Buddha himself said that we should examine his teachings as we would a piece of gold – being sure to scrutinize every component.

This is not to say that the religious fervor that is definitely present in Buddhism counteracts the large number of wonderful things that Buddhism can offer to non-believers. I won’t discuss this much right now…but meditation is an amazing practice that has improved the quality of my life a great deal. There are a number of different meditations that one can do to relax and find clarity. I suggest researching these online. My personal favorite meditation thus far is to sit down in the meditative position (legs crossed with your back straight) and imagine that you are inhaling a black smoke (suffering of the world) and exhaling a vibrant gold light (peace you send to help those who are suffering).