July 24

Through My Eyes

Saturday July 24

(We continue to listen to the Dalai Lama as he tells of the harsh Chinese methods.)

" Whilst on paper PCART promised to mark an important advance towards autonomy, the reality was very different. When Chen Yi announced the appointments, it turned out that of these fifty-one delegates ( none of whom was elected), all but a handful owed their positions to the Chinese: they were allowed to keep their power and property as long as they did not voice any opposition. In other words, it was all a sham.

Nevertheless, there were a few surprises. One of these was Lobsang Samten's appointment as a member of the newly created security department. Being such a kind and gentle person, there can have been no one less suited to the job than he. I shall never forget the look on his face when he returned from a meeting with his Chinese opposite number. All had gone well until the man turned to Lobsang Samten ( who spoke some Chinese) and asked him what was the Tibetan word for 'Kill him'. Up to that moment my brother had thought this new official to be quite pleasant and straightforward, but this question left him dumbfounded. The idea of killing even an insect was so far from his mind that he was lost for words. When he arrived at the Norbulingka that same evening, his face was full of bewilderment. ' What am I to do?' he asked. This story is another illustration of the differences between Chinese and Tibetan attitudes. To one, the killing of human beings was a fact of life; to the other it was unthinkable.

Shortly after the inauguration of PCART, I heard that the Chinese authorities in Kham made an attempt to win over all the local leaders. This they did by calling them all together and asking them to vote on the introduction of the 'democratic reforms', meaning, specifically, the establishment of several thousand agricultural co-operatives which were to comprise more than 100,000 households in the area that included Gar-chu and Karze. Of the 350 people they assembled, about two hundred agreed to go along with the reforms when I and my cabinet consented to them. Forty said that they were prepared to accept them straight away, and the remainder said that they never wanted these so-called reforms. After that, they were allowed home.

A month later, the dissenters were summoned once more, this time to a fort called Jomdha Dzong, which lay to the northeast of Chamdo. As soon as they were inside, the building was surrounded by 5,000 PLA troops and the captives were told they would not be released until they agreed to accept the reforms and promise that they would help carry them out. After two weeks of imprisonment, the Khampas gave in. There seemed to be no alternative. However, that night the guard was reduced. Seeing their opportunity, every one of them escaped and took to the hills. At a stroke, the Chinese had created a nucleus of outlaws, which in the years to come caused them many difficulties.

The incident at Jomdha Dzong occurred at around the same time as I was given a copy of the newspaper, published by the Chinese authorities at Karze in Kham. In disbelief, I saw that it contained a photograph of a row of severed heads. The caption said something to the effect that they had belonged to 'reactionary criminals'. This was the first concrete evidence of Chinese atrocity that I had seen. Thereafter, I knew that every terrible thing I had heard about our new masters was true. The Chinese authorities, for their part, realising the bad effect that this newspaper was on the people, tried to call it back- even offering to buy copies.

With this new information, coupled with the realisation that PCART was nothing more than tzuma (eyewash), I began to wonder whether there could be any hope for the future. I was sick at heart. Outwardly. however, my life continued much as usual . I prayed , meditated and studied hard under my tutors. I also continued as usual to take part in all the religious festivals and ceremonies and to give and receive teachings from time to time. Occasionally, I used my authority to travel and left Lhasa to visit various monasteries. One such excursion was to Reting monastery, seat of the former Regent, which lay a few days' journey to the north of Lhasa. Shortly before leaving, I received a letter sent from an important Tibetan already living in exile. The situation in Lhasa had become so grave that even I became suspicious and rather than open it , I kept it on my person, at night placing it carefully under my pillow until after I left for Reting.

It was such a relief to get out of the city and away from the madness of trying simultaneously to work with the Chinese authorities and to limit the damage they caused. As ever, I travelled as unostentatiously as possible and tried to remain incognito. In this way I was able to meet with the local people and hear what they had to say."

( Reting was one of the monasteries of the Kadampa tradition brought by Atisha which was eventually absorbed into the Gelukpa lineage; Karze is probably the same as Kandze, a place in Kham where there remains a lot of turmoil. 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.

Through my eyes

( Please see my spinning for you!)

( Tahshi Deleh gentle one! Kehrahng kusu debo yinpeh? I began the day in our studio spinning for you and working a bit more on the weaving. After that I headed up our precious snow mountain to the Grove to scythe around our trees and native plants. The grass isn't growing a lot and it's been cut several times already so the scything is going fairly quickly. Then I rested by your Medlar tree for awhile before heading to our studio to work on our a land of Tibet. Working two as one we've gotten a lot done! I'm going to put up the pages on our infosite. Two as one we've fixed a few more mistakes on the pages as usual. 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 July 24 (We continue to listen to the Dalai Lama as he tells of the harsh Chinese methods.) " Whilst on paper PCART promised to mark an important advance towards autonomy, the reality was very different. When Chen Yi announced the appointments, it turned out that of these fifty-one delegates ( none of whom was elected), all but a handful owed their positions to the Chinese: they were allowed to keep their power and property as long as they did not voice any opposition. In other words, it was all a sham. Nevertheless, there were a few surprises. One of these was Lobsang Samten's appointment as a member of the newly created security department. Being such a kind and gentle person, there can have been no one less suited to the job than he. I shall never forget the look on his face when he returned from a meeting with his Chinese opposite number. All had gone well until the man turned to Lobsang Samten ( who spoke some Chinese) and asked him what was the Tibetan word for 'Kill him'. Up to that moment my brother had thought this new official to be quite pleasant and straightforward, but this question left him dumbfounded. The idea of killing even an insect was so far from his mind that he was lost for words. When he arrived at the Norbulingka that same evening, his face was full of bewilderment. ' What am I to do?' he asked. This story is another illustration of the differences between Chinese and Tibetan attitudes. To one, the killing of human beings was a fact of life; to the other it was unthinkable. Shortly after the inauguration of PCART, I heard that the Chinese authorities in Kham made an attempt to win over all the local leaders. This they did by calling them all together and asking them to vote on the introduction of the 'democratic reforms', meaning, specifically, the establishment of several thousand agricultural co-operatives which were to comprise more than 100,000 households in the area that included Gar-chu and Karze. Of the 350 people they assembled, about two hundred agreed to go along with the reforms when I and my cabinet consented to them. Forty said that they were prepared to accept them straight away, and the remainder said that they never wanted these so-called reforms. After that, they were allowed home. A month later, the dissenters were summoned once more, this time to a fort called Jomdha Dzong, which lay to the northeast of Chamdo. As soon as they were inside, the building was surrounded by 5,000 PLA troops and the captives were told they would not be released until they agreed to accept the reforms and promise that they would help carry them out. After two weeks of imprisonment, the Khampas gave in. There seemed to be no alternative. However, that night the guard was reduced. Seeing their opportunity, every one of them escaped and took to the hills. At a stroke, the Chinese had created a nucleus of outlaws, which in the years to come caused them many difficulties. The incident at Jomdha Dzong occurred at around the same time as I was given a copy of the newspaper, published by the Chinese authorities at Karze in Kham. In disbelief, I saw that it contained a photograph of a row of severed heads. The caption said something to the effect that they had belonged to 'reactionary criminals'. This was the first concrete evidence of Chinese atrocity that I had seen. Thereafter, I knew that every terrible thing I had heard about our new masters was true. The Chinese authorities, for their part, realising the bad effect that this newspaper was on the people, tried to call it back- even offering to buy copies. With this new information, coupled with the realisation that PCART was nothing more than tzuma (eyewash), I began to wonder whether there could be any hope for the future. I was sick at heart. Outwardly. however, my life continued much as usual . I prayed , meditated and studied hard under my tutors. I also continued as usual to take part in all the religious festivals and ceremonies and to give and receive teachings from time to time. Occasionally, I used my authority to travel and left Lhasa to visit various monasteries. One such excursion was to Reting monastery, seat of the former Regent, which lay a few days' journey to the north of Lhasa. Shortly before leaving, I received a letter sent from an important Tibetan already living in exile. The situation in Lhasa had become so grave that even I became suspicious and rather than open it , I kept it on my person, at night placing it carefully under my pillow until after I left for Reting. It was such a relief to get out of the city and away from the madness of trying simultaneously to work with the Chinese authorities and to limit the damage they caused. As ever, I travelled as unostentatiously as possible and tried to remain incognito. In this way I was able to meet with the local people and hear what they had to say." ( Reting was one of the monasteries of the Kadampa tradition brought by Atisha which was eventually absorbed into the Gelukpa lineage; Karze is probably the same as Kandze, a place in Kham where there remains a lot of turmoil. 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. Through my eyes ( Please see my spinning for you!) ( Tahshi Deleh gentle one! Kehrahng kusu debo yinpeh? I began the day in our studio spinning for you and working a bit more on the weaving. After that I headed up our precious snow mountain to the Grove to scythe around our trees and native plants. The grass isn't growing a lot and it's been cut several times already so the scything is going fairly quickly. Then I rested by your Medlar tree for awhile before heading to our studio to work on our a land of Tibet. Working two as one we've gotten a lot done! I'm going to put up the pages on our infosite. Two as one we've fixed a few more mistakes on the pages as usual. 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!)