Little Book of INNER PEACE HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA
With Frédérique Hatier
Translated from the French by Dominique Side
Table of Contents
Office of Tibet, Paris Representing His Holiness the Dalai Lama
CHAPTER ONE: THE OCEAN OF WISDOM
CHAPTER TWO: TIBET AND LIFE IN EXILE
CHAPTER THREE: THE WORLD TODAY
CHAPTER FOUR: FAITH, SCIENCE, AND RELIGION
CHAPTER FIVE: THE INNER JOURNEY
CHAPTER SIX: LIFE, DEATH, AND REBIRTH
Selected works by the Dalai Lama
Words printed in italics are listed alphabetically in the glossary at the back of the book.
Office of Tibet, Paris Representing His Holiness the Dalai Lama
As a child, I was fortunate enough to attend a teaching given by His Holiness the Dalai Lama. It was based on “The Letter to a Friend” written by the great Indian master, Nagarjuna. I did not understand it all, but at the end, His Holiness summarized the essence of Buddhism in this way: “Try to help others. If you are not able to be of help, then at least do them no harm.”
This advice touched me deeply, and ever since I have tried to remember it at least once a day. Now it comes to mind effortlessly. It gives me the strength to address the many difficulties with which a simple Tibetan refugee is faced as he struggles for his people’s freedom.
I hope and wish that this book, based as it is on the teachings and declarations of His Holiness, will bring happiness to all beings, and will help to bring to an end the tremendous sufferings of the Tibetan people.
Dawa Thondup
Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Kindness, compassion, and wisdom. For His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who has always based his daily activity – whether religious, philosophical, or political – on these principles, these are not just empty words.
When, in 1950, Chinese invaders climbed to the still gleaming roof of the world and hoisted their red flag, the young Dalai Lama of Tibet refused to retaliate, and the fight between David and Goliath never took place. Why? Because of the Buddhist principle of non-violence, which the Dalai Lama has never violated despite the sufferings of a people who remain loyal to him after 40 years of occupation.
For many years, the Dalai Lama lived isolated, in exile and without support, and might have sometimes appeared idealistic. And yet, he is the living proof that a man who is good and wise can have a voice in a world that, only too often, bows to the power of physical strength, of wealth, or of insanity. In 1989, when he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, his message was at last acknowledged internationally.
His childhood and youth were marked by an ancient and traditional form of education, designed to train him as spiritual and temporal guide of a country of six million Tibetans. He became “Most Precious amongst the Precious” in the eyes of an entire nation, which tragically, today, is dominated by China. And, at the same time, he has succeeded in relating to the modern world of the West.
So he has plenty to tell us. About ourselves: human beings who would value peace, if only we took the time and trouble to look deeply into our hearts; about our overcrowded world, where we live alienated from each other; about the Earth and the animal kingdom, which we shamelessly exploit; and about the amazing energy of our minds, which we waste for lack of a spiritual approach.
He also talks to us about oracles, rebirth, and the bardo – the intermediate state that lies between death and rebirth, all of which is strange and foreign to our Western ways of thinking, but in which the Dalai Lama will maintain his belief as long as science cannot formally prove such things do not exist at all.
He speaks, too, about the law of karma, according to which this world is a result of our own doing; we are our own children and not children of a god or of chance. It follows, then, that we cannot avoid our responsibilities, and that there is an urgent need for us to face up to this with kindness and compassion, now that the potential for destruction is more of a threat than ever before.
With a pragmatism firmly rooted in the realities of life, he invites us to rediscover fundamental values such as love, respect for all life, and the desire for peace, all of which are necessary for human survival. “If we have to be selfish, then at least let’s be intelligently selfish,” he says.
Such are the themes of this book. The words of Tenzin Gyatso, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, express a powerful vision and such extraordinary kindness that we hope they will speak to many different people. “Even reading a few pages of this book can be very beneficial,” he assures us.
Frédérique Hatier
CHAPTER ONE THE OCEAN OF WISDOM