In a rare emotional moment yesterday the Dalai Lama, Tibet's visiting leader, broke down and cried during the last session of a three day discussion of Buddhism's core book of scripture, the Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra.
When discussing the concept of compassion, the Dalai Lama bowed down in mid-session for nearly two minutes to wipe away his tears, before he resumed his teachings yesterday morning.
"I don't have the Bodicitta [(
The Dalai Lama said that Buddhism would not be what it is now without the selfless work of the early Indian adepts of the religion, such as Nagarjuna and Asanga.
Yesterday's talk held his followers in rapt attention, many of them moved to tears by the spiritual leader's talk.
Indeed, the Dalai Lama said yesterday that his teachings are his present for his followers in Taiwan and urged them not to reward him with monetary gifts.
"If you trust me, you don't have to give me red envelopes," he told nearly 10,000 followers which attended his teachings. "I hope you will practice Bodicitta, because it will make you happier."
Asked about the legitimacy of the Falun Gong's teachings, the Dalai Lama said that since he has not studied the teachings in detail, he is in no position to comment. But he expressed his regret over the brutal crackdown on Falun Gong practitioners by the Beijing government.
The Dalai Lama, however, urged his followers to stick to one religion to avoid confusion. He made the statement when asked about allegations by some Falun Gong members that Buddhism is "no longer capable of helping other sentient beings" and reports by some members that the head of Falun Gong, Lee Hongzhi (
At the end of the day's teachings on Buddhist philosophy, the Dalai Lama reserved an hour to answer questions from his followers on a wide range of issues.
On the destruction of the Buddhas of Bamiyan by Afghanistan's fundamentalist Taliban regime, the Dalai Lama said that such behavior is not conducive to his efforts to promote inter-faith harmony.
Last month, the Taliban destroyed the gigantic 2nd century Buddhas carved into the mountains along the famed Silk Road after a state edict was issued which claimed the statues were against the teachings of Islam.
"Since it is a precious historical artifact, it is also not good for their tourism industry," he said.
But the Nobel Peace Laureate urged his followers not to condemn or hate the Taliban for their act.
The Dalai Lama, on the last leg of his teachings on his second trip to Taiwan, will perform a two-day initiation of Avalokiteshvara, or Kuanyin, beginning today.
GET TO SAFETY: Authorities were scrambling to evacuate nearly 700 people in Hualien County to prepare for overflow from a natural dam formed by a previous typhoon Typhoon Podul yesterday intensified and accelerated as it neared Taiwan, with the impact expected to be felt overnight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, while the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration announced that schools and government offices in most areas of southern and eastern Taiwan would be closed today. The affected regions are Tainan, Kaohsiung and Chiayi City, and Yunlin, Chiayi, Pingtung, Hualien and Taitung counties, as well as the outlying Penghu County. As of 10pm last night, the storm was about 370km east-southeast of Taitung County, moving west-northwest at 27kph, CWA data showed. With a radius of 120km, Podul is carrying maximum sustained
Tropical Storm Podul strengthened into a typhoon at 8pm yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with a sea warning to be issued late last night or early this morning. As of 8pm, the typhoon was 1,020km east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving west at 23kph. The storm carried maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts reaching 155kph, the CWA said. Based on the tropical storm’s trajectory, a land warning could be issued any time from midday today, it added. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said Podul is a fast-moving storm that is forecast to bring its heaviest rainfall and strongest
TRAJECTORY: The severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday, and would influence the nation to varying degrees, a forecaster said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it would likely issue a sea warning for Tropical Storm Podul tomorrow morning and a land warning that evening at the earliest. CWA forecaster Lin Ting-yi (林定宜) said the severe tropical storm is predicted to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving west at 21kph and packing sustained winds of 108kph and gusts of up to 136.8kph, the CWA said. Lin said that the tropical storm was about 1,710km east of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, with two possible trajectories over the next one
TALKS CONTINUE: Although an agreement has not been reached with Washington, lowering the tariff from 32 percent to 20 percent is still progress, the vice premier said Taiwan would strive for a better US tariff rate in negotiations, with the goal being not just lowering the current 20-percent tariff rate, but also securing an exemption from tariff stacking, Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君) said yesterday. Cheng made the remarks at a news conference at the Executive Yuan explaining the new US tariffs and the government’s plans for supporting affected industries. US President Donald Trump on July 31 announced a new tariff rate of 20 percent on Taiwan’s exports to the US starting on Thursday last week, and the Office of Trade Negotiations on Friday confirmed that it
RSS