Dalai Lama -The Man of Peace

The Dalai Lamas are thought to be embodiments of Tibet's patron saint, Avalokiteshvara, also known as Chenrezig, the Bodhisattva of Compassion. Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, characterizes himself as a straightforward Buddhist monk. He is Tibet's spiritual head. He was born in Taktser, Amdo, northern Tibet, on July 6, 1935, into a farming family in a tiny village. The youngster, then known as Lhamo Dhondup, was acknowledged as the reincarnation of Thubten Gyatso, the previous 13th Dalai Lama, at the tender age of two.He was the fifth kid in the family of sixteen when he was christened. He was one of the seven who made it through early life.

He started attending school when he was six years old, and in 1959, at the age of 25, he earned his Geshe Lharampa Degree (Doctorate of Buddhist Philosophy). He passed the entrance exams at Drepung, Sera, and Ganden monastic universities when he was twenty-four. The final exam was held in the Jokhang, Lhasa, during the Monlam Festival of Prayer, which takes place in the first month of the Tibetan calendar each year.

November 17, 1950 His Holiness was tasked with assuming total governmental authority following China's 1949–50 invasion of Tibet. He traveled to Beijing in 1954 to hold peace negotiations with Deng Xiaoping, Chou Enlai, Mao Zedong, and other Chinese officials. Ultimately, nevertheless, His Holiness was compelled to flee into exile in 1959 when Chinese troops brutally put down the Tibetan national movement in Lhasa. He has been residing in Dharamsala, northern India, ever since.He met with Prime Minister Nehru and Premier Chou on several occasions over the worsening situation in Tibet while in India for the 2500th Anniversary of Buddha Jayanti.

Major Works:-

• His first significant political action came in 1950, when he sent a team to Beijing endorsing the Seventeen Point Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet.

• As a delegate, he was present at the National People's Congress's inaugural session. He was later chosen to serve as the National People's Congress Standing Committee's deputy chairman, a position he maintained until 1964.
• In 1989, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his nonviolent efforts toward Tibet's liberation.
• Due to the violent Chinese military suppression of the 1959 Tibetan uprising in the Lhasa region, the Dalai Lama was compelled to flee into exile out of fear for his life. With the help of the CIA Special Activities Division, the Dalai Lama traveled into India and arrived in Tezpur, Assam.

• In the Indian city of Dharamsala, which is located in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh, His Holiness founded the Government of Tibet in Exile. 'Little Lhasa' became the nickname for the city. His Holiness has been residing in Dharamsala ever since.

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  In the early years of exile, His Holiness appealed to the United Nations on the question of Tibet, resulting in three resolutions adopted by the General Assembly in 1959, 1961, and 1965, calling on China to respect the human rights of Tibetans and their desire for self-determination.
  
  
• During the early years of the exile, His Holiness made multiple pleas to the UN on Tibet; therefore, the General Assembly passed three resolutions in 1959, 1961, and 1965 requesting China to protect Tibetans' human rights and their right to self-determination.

• Pope Paul VI and His Holiness met in Vatican City in 1973. He subsequently made multiple visits to Pope John Paul II in 1980, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1990, and 2003.
  
  
  
• He put forth a Five-Point Peace Plan in 1987 at the Congressional Human Rights Caucus in Washington, D.C., as a starting point for settling Tibet's future position. In addition to urging "earnest negotiations" on Tibet's future, this plan calls for the designation of Tibet as a zone of peace, the cessation of China's massive influx of ethnic Chinese into Tibet, the restoration of basic human rights and democratic freedoms, and the giving up of Tibet's use by China for the production of nuclear weapons and the disposal of radioactive waste.

• In May 1990, the Tibetan community living in exile established a government that was genuinely democratic thanks to the efforts of His Holiness. The Tibetan Cabinet, or Kashag, which had until then been chosen by His Holiness, was dissolved together with the Tenth Assembly of the Tibetan People's Deputies, the exiled Tibetan parliament. 

• The election of Kalon Tripa, the senior Cabinet minister, by the Tibetan people through direct election in September 2001 marked a major step towards democracy. The Kalon Tripa chose his own government after consulting the Tibetan Assembly.

• The Dalai Lama participated in the Third Meeting of the Board of World Religious Leaders, which was held in 2007 in Amritsar, India. He was there to share his thoughts on forgiveness and love. He now serves on the Board of World Religious Leaders of The Elijah Interfaith Institute.

Over six continents and over 67 nations have been visited by His Holiness. In appreciation of his message of nonviolence, compassion, interfaith understanding, and peace, he has been granted over 150 honorary doctorates, prizes, and other honours. Over 110 novels have been written by him alone or in collaboration.

His Holiness asked the Assembly of Tibetan People's Deputies, the exiled Tibetan Parliament, to relinquish his temporal (political) authority in a letter dated March 14, 2011. His Holiness was still recognised as the head of state in theory, according to The Charter of the Tibetans in Exile.His Holiness officially transferred his temporal authority to the democratically chosen leader on May 29, 2011, when he signed the legislation. The 368-year-old custom of the Dalai Lamas serving as Tibet's temporal and spiritual leader came to an end as a result.

As early as 1969, the 14th Dalai Lama declared that Tibetans should determine whether or not the Dalai Lama institution "should continue."He has alluded to the prospect of a future vote among all Tibetan Buddhists to determine whether or not to acknowledge his reincarnation. A choice will be made in light of that. If it is determined that the Dalai Lama should continue to reincarnate and that the recognition of the Fifteenth Dalai Lama is necessary.The 14th Dalai Lama expressed support for the idea that a woman might be his next incarnation.