Why the Dalai Lama Matters: His Act of Truth as the Solution for China, Tibet, and the World by Robert Thurman

Author:Robert Thurman
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Tags: International Relations, Social Science, Diplomacy, Discrimination & Race Relations, General, Religion, Buddhism, Political Science, Tibetan
ISBN: 9781582702209
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Published: 2008-06-03T04:34:40+00:00

A particularly sad fact of human history is that conflicts have arisen in the name of religion. Even today, individuals are killed, their communities destroyed, and societies destabilized as a result of misuse of religion and encouragement of religious bigotry and hatred. According to my personal experience, the best way to overcome obstructions to inter-religious harmony and to bring about understanding is through dialogue with members of other faith traditions. This I see occurring in a number of different ways. In my own case, for example, my meetings with the late Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk, in the late ’60s, were deeply inspiring. They helped me develop a profound admiration for the teachings of Christianity. I also feel that meetings amongst different religious leaders and joining together to pray from a common platform are extremely powerful, as was the case in 1986 during the gathering at Assisi in Italy. The recent United Nations Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual Leaders held last year was also a laudable step.

However, there is a need for more of these initiatives on a regular basis. On my part, to show my respect for other religious traditions I went on pilgrimage to Jerusalem, a site holy to three of the world’s great religions. I have paid visits to various Hindu, Islamic, Christian, Jain, and Sikh shrines both in India and abroad. During the past three decades I have met with many religious leaders of different traditions and have discussed harmony and inter-religious understanding. When exchanges like these occur, followers of one tradition will find that, just as in the case of their own, the teachings of other faiths are a source of both spiritual inspiration as well as ethical guidance to their followers. It will also become clear that irrespective of doctrinal and other differences, all the major world religions help to transform individuals to become good human beings. All emphasize love, compassion, patience, tolerance, forgiveness, humility, self-discipline, and so on. We must therefore embrace the concept of plurality in the field of religion too.

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