This Sunday on Brian's "Shakedown Street" Blog Talk Radio show, the topic will be "Who Is the Dalai Lama?" Learn about the Tibetan Buddhist tradition of how they select each new Dalai Lama, and hear how the current Dalai Lama made a frightening and dangerous escape across the Himalayas into India when the Chinese destroyed Tibet. Tune in at 4:00 Pacific, 7:00 Eastern, to learn more about this amazing man!Here's a classic Bill Murray bit from "Caddy Shack"
Carl Spackler: "So I jump ship in Hong Kong and make my way over to Tibet, and I get on as a looper at a course over in the Himalayas. A looper, you know, a caddy, a looper, a jock. So, I tell them I'm a pro jock, and who do you think they give me? The Dalai Lama, himself. Twelfth son of the Lama. The flowing robes, the grace, bald... striking. So, I'm on the first tee with him. I give him the driver. He hauls off and whacks one -- big hitter, the Lama -- long, into a ten-thousand foot crevice, right at the base of this glacier. And do you know what the Lama says? Gunga galunga...gunga -- gunga galunga. So we finish the eighteenth and he's gonna stiff me. And I say, "Hey, Lama, hey, how about a little something, you know, for the effort, you know." And he says, "Oh, uh, there won't be any money, but when you die, on your deathbed, you will receive total consiousness." So I got that goin' for me, which is nice."
If I was going to be any religion I'd probably be a Buddhist, but I'm not, so I'm er...not ;0)
ReplyDeleteActually Buddhism is a philiosphy, it's not really a "religion"
ReplyDeletejulie...
ReplyDeleteBrian is such a fountain of knowledge. If I am home at that time I will definitely tune in.
I'd love to hear how they select a new Dalai Lama. The only thing I know about it, is what I saw in the film...Little Buddah!
ReplyDeletereminds me that the dalai lama was actually in leipzig two weeks ago to accept a prize for his work (and probably for his pure existence, too). the ceremony was in the townhall here and i wanted to go to the red carpet and see the dalai lama at first, but i don't like red carpets and i doubted that he would walk over it and apparently he didn't. but to know that he was so near (and the hotel he stayed in is just about 1,5 kilometers from my home) is kinda magic. because the way people speak about him is often not like they speak about a human being, but more about a holyness, you know? so it's somewhat weird to accept that he's actuall a living person. ;)
ReplyDeleteCan someone tell me if I'm remembering correctly that the Dalai Lama is chosen at birth? Anonymous Brian, I presume you know.
ReplyDeleteval: as far as i know they search for the kid in which the dalai lama is reborn after he dies. so he's not really selected or chosen, but "found" again.
ReplyDeletetherefore the dalai lama starts reigning as a kid already and gets the full responsibility when he's old enough and educated. but sometimes this can't wait for some urgent reasons and then the country is lead by a child or a teenager basically.
What you saw in Little Buddha or 7 Years in Tibe is pretty close.
ReplyDeleteWhen the 13th Dalai Lama died the began looking for clues right away, whil he was laying in State, his head turned towards the East, so they knew to look in Eastern Provinces.
Then they sned out missions, disguied as beggars to visit all the towns in the area, when they find or hear of a boy the right age, they vist in thier guise as beggars and they have some of teh fprmer Dalai Lama's possesions with them to see if the child reacts. they pull them out casally, no oine, not even the family knows at this point.
In the case of Tenzing Gyatso (14th and current Dalai Lama)he reacted to the possesions but saying they were his and saying it in a dialect that was spoken in Lahsa, not the local dialect of Amdo. (he was 2 at the time)
He also has the same birthmarks and some other identifying features.
Once they had this initial anonymous visit, they left to return "officially" and they brought more personal items that belonged to the 13th Dali Lama.
In each case the small child reacted appropiately and passed enough of the criteria that they knew he was the 14th Dalia Lama, but if you ask him, he will tell you he is just a simple Buddhist monk.
You can learn more about teh Dalai Lama by tuning in Sunday, May 27 @ 4PM PAcific, 7 PM East Cost.
ReplyDeletewww.blogtalkradio.com/-shakedown-street
Sorry for the piss poor typing!
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