It must have been in the mid-90s that I knew one day I would meet the Dalai Lama. When he visited Long Beach and then UCI, Irvine, California and I couldn't attend either simply because both events were sold out and no tickets were to be had I thought I'd just have to wait for him to return. Never, in my wildest dreams would I have thought I would meet him in Holland.
Why was it important for me to meet him, listen to him, confirm one simple answer to his one simple question directed to me?
Well the universe works in mysterious ways, and it's the nature of that one question, that one answer that explains all.
HOW IT CAME ABOUT
So I am in the Nederlands; it is the Thursday following the Youth Camp. The family has eaten dinner and a few of us are in Jaap's office. Jaap indicates he is going to see the Dalai Lama the coming Monday and without any thought, I reach out and say to him, "May I go with you?"
"No," replies Jaap, and I think seeing the look that comes across my face adds, "It's sold out."
Naturally, I understand, but he suddenly says, "Let me send an email though, it can't hurt to try."
I am excited, hopeful, but trying my best to hold no expectations. We go on about our evening.
Now it is 11:30pm and I am preparing for bed. There is a knock on the door.
"Come in," I say. The door opens and Jaap peeks his head in. "News?" I ask. He comes in and is holding a paper in his hand. He explains that he'd emailed his brother-in-law who was responsible for coordinating the Dalai Lama's visit in the Nederlands, but had not heard anything back and so he'd thought to send off an email to "Esmee", the woman at the University coordinating the attendance. He'd only sent the email to her about thirty minutes ago, but just received a reply.
"Just ten minutes ago there was a cancellation at your table and so your colleague can attend."
I was elated! We laughed at how I was obviously meant to go! But it didn't stop there, for you see, that following Monday when we arrived at the University in Rotterdam, we were shown to our table #35 that happened to be front and center of the stage! Again, we marveled at the synchronicity of events, and then when Jaap spoke with a colleague who would be one of the speakers and informed me that there was a waiting list of 500 names, neither of us could find an answer as to how I was sitting there. But I knew. The answer was simple. I was always supposed to be sitting there and the Universe did what it always does: it co-created with me, or I with it. Who knows, but I was upfront and center stage to hear the Dalai Lama speak.
H.H. THE 14TH DALAI LAMA
First off, while I respect Buddhism, I am not interested in following it as a religion as I truly feel all religious orders from the last age are fading and evolving into something broader and more applicable to our current needs of the new earth. What these new religions or rather, what these NEW WAYS are, I believe, those of us walking spiritual pathways are co-creating, and so as we lay down foundations upon which new thinking can be paved upon, all we can really do is trust the process.
During his visit to the Nederlands in 2009, H.H. The 14th Dalai Lama spoke to us of The Paradox of Our Age. He said:
"We have bigger houses, but smaller families, more conveniences, but less time;
We have more degrees, but less sense; more knowledge, but less judgement; more experts, but more problems; more medicines, but less healthiness;
We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble in crossing the street to meet the new neighbour;
We built more computers to hold more information to produce more copies than ever, but have less communication;
We have become long on quantity, but short on quality;
These are times of fast foods, but slow indigestion;
Tall man but short character;
Steep profits but shallow relationships.
It's a time when there is much in the window, but nothing in the room."
He expressed the need for incorporating inner values into education for the development of a sustainable economy and a flourishing society; he called it the "Education of the Heart." His return visit would continue on this theme in a symposium designed in such a way that it could become an experience not just for the brain but also for the heart. For that reason they selected children and students to take part in the program, accompanied by inspiring music from Plezant and moments of dialogue and reflection with his Holiness. Out of some 40 inspiring examples in the education field in the Netherlands, prescribing to three principles: wholeness, relational and responsible, 13 inspiring alternative schools and education programs were presented. The day was both inspiring and lending hope that our educational system, and thus eventually our business sectors and other professional, as well as social communities in society will also change.
I'm going to share with you now a very rough 8 minute video I took of the Dalai Lama speaking. Don't give up. Listen and you will begin to understand his words. If you put on headphones and listen carefully you will hear a very important message, simple though it may be, and also feel his energy. For you can feel it. Infact, I knew the moment he arrived. I felt the room shift, my head expand and a lightness of being flood the room. I leaned over and penned at the bottom of Jaap's journal: "Dalai Lama has just arrived."
Jaap asked how I knew and I simply replied, "I felt it, don't you?"
Within 5 minutes it was announced we'd be taking our shortened lunch break now, to return quickly when we heard the bell sounding, as we did NOT want to keep his Holiness waiting now that he'd arrived.
Please enjoy this small taste of his wisdom. I do apologize for the quality, but I filmed him on my cell phone.
"Change takes compassion and self confidence," says the Dalai Lama, and I whispered to him, "
Thank you. I needed to hear that."
ONE SIMPLE QUESTION, ONE SIMPLE ANSWER
Our time with him is ending. He rises and begins to remove his mic. People begin to rush the stage. In realizing I can become buried in a sea of people, I move up quickly, after all, I am only 10 feet from him. Now, I am less than 4 feet from him, and looking up at him, listening. He is reminding the young people in the audience not to do it the way the older generation did it. "We got it wrong," he tells them. "So do it a new way, a better way." He bows with humility.
And then, he is looking directly at me, his eyes are on mine, he has leaned slightly forward.
"It's about teaching our children to use their head, their heart and their gut, isn't that right?" he asks me, nodding his head.
"Yes, that's right, " I reply back to him.
"Yes, that's right," he says, gives his smile, makes his prayer hands, then turns as he is escorted off the stage.
NEVER GIVE UP
no matter what is going on
Never give up
Develop the heart
Too much energy in your country
is spent developing the mind
instead of the heart
Develop the heart
Be compassionate
not just to your friends
but to everyone
Be compassionate
Work for peace
in your heart and in the world
Work for peace
and I say again
Never give up
No matter what is happening
No matter what is going on around you
Never give up
The Dalai Lama
Thank you for reading... until the next installment of my Holland Adventures Blog...
