February 19

Through My Eyes

Saturday February 19

(We continue to listen to Dalai Lama as he tells of those who came to help!.)

" As it happened, many years later, whilst on a trip to Switzerland, I was on a tour of inspection at a farm where I was shown some electric fencing. Much to the surprise of my guide, I asked him whether he thought that this could deter elephants. He said that if the voltage were turned up sufficiently , he did not see why not. So I arranged for a batch to be sent out to the settlement in question.

Not all our problems were practical however. At times, our culture has made it difficult for us Tibetans to adapt to new conditions. On that first visit to Bylakuppe, I well remember the settlers being very concerned that the burning they were having to carry out to clear the land was causing the death of innumerable small creatures and insects. For Buddhists, this was a terrible thing to be doing, since we believe that all life, not just human life, is sacred. Several of the refugees even came up to me and suggested that the work should be stopped.

A few of the projects set up with the assistance of the overseas aid agencies failed for similar reasons. For example, all attempts to found poultry farms and piggeries have been unsuccessful. Even in their reduced circumstances, Tibetans have shown themselves to be unwilling to become involved in animal production for food. This has given rise to a certain amount of sarcasm on the part of some foreigners, who point out the anomaly between Tibetans' willingness to eat meat and their disinclination to provide it for themselves.

That said, the majority of projects undertaken with the help of these organisations have succeeded very well and our friends have been overjoyed at the positive results.

These experiences of support , freely given by the people from the industrially advanced nations,have confirmed my belief in what I call Universal Responsibility. It seems to me to be the key to human development. Without such a sense of Universal Responsibility, there can only be unequal development in the world. The more people come to realise that we do not live on this planet of ours in isolation-that ultimately we are all brothers and sisters- the more likely is progress for all humankind, rather than for just parts of it.

Some of the people who came from overseas and gave their lives to the refugees stand out. One of these was Maurice Friedmann, a Jew from Poland. I met him for the first time in 1956, together with Uma Devi, a painter friend of his, also Polish. They had both settled (independently) on the sub-continent to pursue the Indian way of life. When we came into exile, they were amongst the very first people to offer their assistance.

Friedmann, who was quite old by this time, was in poor physical condition. He had a permanent stoop and thick spectacles which betrayed his failing sight, yet he had the most piercing blue eyes and an extremely sharp brain. He could be exasperating at times: he would argue stubbornly in favour of projects which were completely impossible. But on the whole, the advice he gave, especially in regard to the establishment of children's homes, was invaluable. Uma Devi, who was more spiritually inclined than Friedmann, but similarly oldish, also devoted the rest of her life to working on behalf of my people.

Another important character was Mr. Luthi, who worked for the Swiss Red Cross. Pala ('Papa' in Tibetan), as he was known, was a man of tremendous zeal and energy, a real leader, who drove the people under him extremely hard. The habitually easy-going Tibetans found him quite difficult to take and I know there was a certain amount of grumbling about his methods, but in reality he was well loved by all. I cherish his memory, and that of others like him, who worked so hard and selflessly for my people.

For us Tibetan refugees, one significant event during the early 1950's was the Sino-Indian War of 1962. Naturally, I was extremely sad when the fighting began, but it was sadness tinged with fear. At that time, the resettlement process was still in it's earliest stage. Several of the road camps were situated perilously close to where the fighting took place, in Ladakh and NEFA, with the result that they were forced to close. Some of my people became refugees a second time. What made the whole experience even sadder was the spectacle of our saviours, the Indians, being humiliated by Chinese soldiers stationed on Tibetan soil.

Mercifully, it was a short war,although at the end of it there were many dead on both sides for no obvious gain to either. Reflecting on his China policy, Nehru was forced to state that India had been 'living in a fools paradise of our own making'. All his life, he had dreamed of a free Asia, in which every country would co-exist in harmony. Now Panch Sheel was shown to be an empty vessel, less than a decade after it had been signed and despite everything that this most humane man had done to preserve it."

( It is a terrible shame that Nehru wasn't successful. I promise to add more tomorrow...)

*( please click here to read of the day with me )

* This is from the book Freedom in Exile The Autobiography of the Dalai Lama by Tenzin Gyatso, the fourteenth

Dalai Lama of Tibet.

( Please see my spinning for you!)

( Tahshi Deleh gentle one! Kehrahng kusu debo yinpeh? I began the day in our studio spinning for you then worked a bit more on the printing block which with we two working as one pulling strongly and patiently together is going quite well! After that I headed up gang rinpoche ngah tso gi with the ladder to begin pruning in the Grove. I was a bit clumsy of course because I was working with the pruners and ladder mostly one handed. The snow has become quite slick again so I was careful when moving about and where I put the ladder! Two as one we've gotten a good start on it though! After that I rested by your Medlar tree as usual then wandered about for awhile taking pictures before returning to our studio to work on our a land of Tibet. Two as one we've fixed a few more mistakes on the pages as usual. I'm going to put the pages up on our infosite;I'll put this up for now so we can rest.

And so, as always we'll continue two as one on to tomorrow

my one gentle beautiful patient swift dream bright

long dark mane in sunlight

so for now I bid goodnight...Simjah Nahngo!)


	Through My Eyes Saturday February 19 (We continue to listen to Dalai Lama as he tells of those who came to help!.) " As it happened, many years later, whilst on a trip to Switzerland, I was on a tour of inspection at a farm where I was shown some electric fencing. Much to the surprise of my guide, I asked him whether he thought that this could deter elephants. He said that if the voltage were turned up sufficiently , he did not see why not. So I arranged for a batch to be sent out to the settlement in question. Not all our problems were practical however. At times, our culture has made it difficult for us Tibetans to adapt to new conditions. On that first visit to Bylakuppe, I well remember the settlers being very concerned that the burning they were having to carry out to clear the land was causing the death of innumerable small creatures and insects. For Buddhists, this was a terrible thing to be doing, since we believe that all life, not just human life, is sacred. Several of the refugees even came up to me and suggested that the work should be stopped. A few of the projects set up with the assistance of the overseas aid agencies failed for similar reasons. For example, all attempts to found poultry farms and piggeries have been unsuccessful. Even in their reduced circumstances, Tibetans have shown themselves to be unwilling to become involved in animal production for food. This has given rise to a certain amount of sarcasm on the part of some foreigners, who point out the anomaly between Tibetans' willingness to eat meat and their disinclination to provide it for themselves. That said, the majority of projects undertaken with the help of these organisations have succeeded very well and our friends have been overjoyed at the positive results. These experiences of support , freely given by the people from the industrially advanced nations,have confirmed my belief in what I call Universal Responsibility. It seems to me to be the key to human development. Without such a sense of Universal Responsibility, there can only be unequal development in the world. The more people come to realise that we do not live on this planet of ours in isolation-that ultimately we are all brothers and sisters- the more likely is progress for all humankind, rather than for just parts of it. Some of the people who came from overseas and gave their lives to the refugees stand out. One of these was Maurice Friedmann, a Jew from Poland. I met him for the first time in 1956, together with Uma Devi, a painter friend of his, also Polish. They had both settled (independently) on the sub-continent to pursue the Indian way of life. When we came into exile, they were amongst the very first people to offer their assistance. Friedmann, who was quite old by this time, was in poor physical condition. He had a permanent stoop and thick spectacles which betrayed his failing sight, yet he had the most piercing blue eyes and an extremely sharp brain. He could be exasperating at times: he would argue stubbornly in favour of projects which were completely impossible. But on the whole, the advice he gave, especially in regard to the establishment of children's homes, was invaluable. Uma Devi, who was more spiritually inclined than Friedmann, but similarly oldish, also devoted the rest of her life to working on behalf of my people. Another important character was Mr. Luthi, who worked for the Swiss Red Cross. Pala ('Papa' in Tibetan), as he was known, was a man of tremendous zeal and energy, a real leader, who drove the people under him extremely hard. The habitually easy-going Tibetans found him quite difficult to take and I know there was a certain amount of grumbling about his methods, but in reality he was well loved by all. I cherish his memory, and that of others like him, who worked so hard and selflessly for my people. For us Tibetan refugees, one significant event during the early 1950's was the Sino-Indian War of 1962. Naturally, I was extremely sad when the fighting began, but it was sadness tinged with fear. At that time, the resettlement process was still in it's earliest stage. Several of the road camps were situated perilously close to where the fighting took place, in Ladakh and NEFA, with the result that they were forced to close. Some of my people became refugees a second time. What made the whole experience even sadder was the spectacle of our saviours, the Indians, being humiliated by Chinese soldiers stationed on Tibetan soil. Mercifully, it was a short war,although at the end of it there were many dead on both sides for no obvious gain to either. Reflecting on his China policy, Nehru was forced to state that India had been 'living in a fools paradise of our own making'. All his life, he had dreamed of a free Asia, in which every country would co-exist in harmony. Now Panch Sheel was shown to be an empty vessel, less than a decade after it had been signed and despite everything that this most humane man had done to preserve it." ( It is a terrible shame that Nehru wasn't successful. I promise to add more tomorrow...) ( please click here to read of the day with me ) This is from the book Freedom in Exile The Autobiography of the Dalai Lama by Tenzin Gyatso, the fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet. ( Please see my spinning for you!) ( Tahshi Deleh gentle one! Kehrahng kusu debo yinpeh? I began the day in our studio spinning for you then worked a bit more on the printing block which with we two working as one pulling strongly and patiently together is going quite well! After that I headed up gang rinpoche ngah tso gi with the ladder to begin pruning in the Grove. I was a bit clumsy of course because I was working with the pruners and ladder mostly one handed. The snow has become quite slick again so I was careful when moving about and where I put the ladder! Two as one we've gotten a good start on it though! After that I rested by your Medlar tree as usual then wandered about for awhile taking pictures before returning to our studio to work on our a land of Tibet. Two as one we've fixed a few more mistakes on the pages as usual. I'm going to put the pages up on our infosite;I'll put this up for now so we can rest. And so, as always we'll continue two as one on to tomorrow my one gentle beautiful patient swift dream bright long dark mane in sunlight so for now I bid goodnight...Simjah Nahngo!)