Photo: OHHDL
His Holiness the Dalai Lama visited Germany and Switzerland during his four-nation trip to Europe, from September 18 to 23.
His Holiness took part in a symposium on non-violence on September 19 in Darmstadt where he said that basic human nature is compassionate and violence will bear only hatred – and that violence is not the right method for solving problems. His Holiness also spoke on the aim of building a demilitarised and nuclear-free world.
Asked about refugees, His Holiness said, “Give them shelter; give their children education and their young people practical training to equip them to rebuild their own countries when the time comes…”
Dardon Sharling, Secretary of the Department of Information and International Relations of the Central Tibetan Administration, was also a speaker at the symposium and spoke about Tibet’s continuous struggle and its non-violent resistance against China’s rule.
On September 20, His Holiness was invited to speak at the dialogue on Happiness and Responsibility in Heidelberg, Germany. After his talk, he was asked why he had not intervened in the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar. He replied that he was an outsider to that conflict, however, he said he had spoken and written to Aung San Suu Kyi, the de facto leader of Myanmar, about the issue.
On September 21, now in Switzerland for the 50th anniversary of Swiss Tibet Institute Rikon, His Holiness spoke to the media in Zurich. When a journalist asked today’s stressful life, His Holiness said “Look at my face; I was 16 when I lost my freedom, 24 when I lost my country. Since then news from Tibet has been distressing, but because I’ve trained my mind from childhood I’m able to keep my peace of mind.If you’re faced with a problem, analyse whether you can overcome it. If you can, that’s what you should do. If you can’t, worrying about it won’t help.”
Speaking on Swiss television His Holiness said, “The world is passing through an emotional crisis, which only training the mind can solve. To complement the physical hygiene we observe to remain physically fit, we need emotional hygiene to strengthen the mind.”
For the Tibet Institute Rikon’s anniversary celebrations, His Holiness gave teachings, Introduction to Buddhism and Nagarjuna’s Precious Garland, to a crowd of over 9,000 at the Zurich Hallenstadi on on September 23.
He also spoke later to more than 6,000 Tibetans and Tibet supporters, saying“Wherever Tibetans are, whether born in Tibet or outside, we all have a body of blood, flesh and bone that is Tibetan. The name Tibetan cannot be obliterated from the world while we still live”.
On September 24, His Holiness spoke at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences in Winterthur, giving a talk entitled Human Values and Education.
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