The Dalai Lama is more than just Richard Gere's buddy or the subject of big-budget Brad Pitt movies. Tibetan Buddhism is about more than benefit rock concerts, and they're both much more than the Cause of the Moment. Buddhism goes back 1,500 years in the Himalayas and for followers like Maura Moynihan, an activist who works on behalf of Tibetan refugees, "the Dalai Lama is the greatest teacher of his time."
Devotees and the spiritually curious will have a chance to experience the legacy and the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism with the upcoming visit of the Dalai Lama himself. He will be speaking on the modern relevance of Tibetan medicine at the First International Conference on Tibetan Medicine on Nov. 7 and giving a talk on democracy at Lisner Auditorium on Nov. 10. But the highlight for devotees and dilettantes alike is the teaching he will give on Nov. 8 at American University. Other events are happening in conjunction with his visit, ranging from the creation of a sand mandala to Buddhist chanting and percussion.
The teaching will be based on a Tibetan spiritual classic called the Eight Verses of Training the Mind. "We asked that he teach the Eight Verses," explains Matthew Pistono of the Conservancy for Tibetan Art and Culture, a co-sponsor of the event, "because they are applicable to the scene in Washington." The eight verses suggest that we consider other people's points of view before our own. "It kind of loosens the grip on our position, thinking we're always right," explains Pistono.
Lest you think that only Capitol Hill types would benefit from a day of Buddhism, Moynihan points out that this is a rare opportunity, not just for Buddhists, but for anyone interested in religion, philosophy and Asian civilization. Tibetan Buddhism is a culture and religion threatened with extinction. Moynihan estimates that 98 percent of Tibetan cultural institutions – libraries, hospitals, temples, monasteries –have been destroyed by the Chinese government since 1951 and around 1.2 million people killed. The Chinese, however, insist that Tibet has been part of their country since the mid-13th century. Last summer, the Foreign Ministry gave a statement to The Post's Marc Fisher, saying: "We are firmly opposed to activities, in whatever name or under whatever pretext, which support the Dalai Lama's political maneuvers to split Tibet from China."
But the Dalai Lama, Moynihan says, is "of a generation of the last Buddhist teachers educated in old Tibet, a world that has been almost completely destroyed." In other words: see him while you can.
The teaching takes place at American University's Bender Arena on Nov. 8 from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a break from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tickets range from $35 to $125 and are available at the AU box office (202/885-3267) or through Ticketmaster.
For information about the Dalai Lama's Nov. 7 appearance at the Tibetan medicine conference, call 800/805-3976.
