Tibet Low Down

So, Pahla, or “dad” in Tibetan, commented on my last post about the people who come to Dharamsala from Tibet. Well, Dad and everyone else, I shall tell you:

First, a little history. Tibet was invaded by the People’s Liberation Army in 1949 pretty much because China felt like it. China viewed Tibet’s Buddhist non-violent way of life as backwards and heathen and wanted to modernize it. Also, there was something about Russia and China fighting over ownership of Tibet because whoever had control of that area more or less dominated Asia. China originally was all about the non-violence too and claimed they wanted to “help” Tibet perpetuate their chosen way of life. But, once they gained Tibet’s trust they started implementing their communist ideals, namely redistributing the land to the lower class. That all sounds fine and dandy, but in Tibet, the monasteries owned the land. The monks of the monasteries are dedicated to practicing Buddhism while the lower class work the land. The lower class is totally fine with this for a number of reasons: (1) anyone can become a monk if they want to, (2) everyone has a close family member who is a monk or nun (Ani-la has a “cousin-sister” here who is a nun and a brother who is a monk in southern India, but also a sister who is still in Tibet with her family), and most importantly, (3) monks’ work is necessary for the perpetuation of their religion, which is the basis of their way of life. When the People’s Republic of China forcibly took the land away from the monks they did so in a rather untactful way – by publicly humiliating and imprisoning the monks, often violently. This goes on for a while with much resistance from the Tibetans, a lot of monk imprisonment and torture, claims of cultural genocide of Tibetans by the Chinese, and gross disregard for human rights – all in complete isolation. No one in the world even knew this was going on. Eventually, in 1959, neotiations with China fail and the Dalai Lama is forced to flee across the Himalayas disguised as a common soldier and takes refuge in India. India gave Tibetans land in the south as refuge before the Dalai Lama fled but when he came, they also gave him and his cabinet Dharamsala to set up their government in exile.

Which leads me to why everyone is here. Many people do go to Nepal and Ladakh (an area on the boarder of China and India) and elsewhere, but Dharamsala is the place to be. People continue to flee and settle here because they want to be close to HHDL. He is more or less their god and so, of course, they want to be near him. However, all the monasteries are set up in such a way that the moment Tibet is liberated they are prepared to pack up and return home immediately. Dharmasala is also home to the IBD, the Institute for Buddhist Dialect, where I am studying, and the best place to be educated in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Most people who flee are children who are sent here to grow up free of Chinese repression, student who want an education, and people who make a pilgrimage to be blessed by His Holiness. People leave their families behind in Tibet in search of a better life, jobs, and the education they are denied in China. They go to great length to get here, such as Ani-la, and when they do, they take their studies very seriously. Many show up after experiencing torture, imprisonment, death of entire families and enter India with frostbite and malnutrition among other...discomforts. The most amazing thing I’ve found, however, is how they can laugh everyday, and do so often. They are some of the most kind, selfless, loving people and I can only hope to learn and emmulate these traits by the end of my stay. Tibetans will give you the world before they take anything for themselves. They are very careful with everything they own and feel blessed to be getting an education. They love to laugh and play and are gentle and quiet all at the same time. They are such a beautiful people that I can scarsely believe such a humanity exists. If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm ridiculously happy and fortunate to be here learning from them.