Tibetan Buddhist Monks At The Reopening of Laserium

A Deccan Chronicle Photo

Tibetan Buddhist monks pray at the Lumbini Park laserium at its reopening ceremony. The laserium was closed for four months following twin bomb blasts in Hyderabad in August 2007. The laserium shows the history of Hyderabad with lasers on a water screen.

Lumbini is the name of the place where the Buddha was born, and it is in present-day Nepal. The monks above are wearing yellow hats. The Dalai Lama, who is the spiritual and temporal head of the Tibetan people, belongs to the Yellow Hat Sect, called Gelugpa in Tibetan. Tibetan Buddhism consists of Red Hat and Yellow Hat schools, not to be confused with the red hat and yellow hat in the six de Bono hats. :) For Red Hat Linux enthusiasts, a while ago linux.com had published a April 1 piece called "Dalai Lama announced Yellow Hat Linux." :)

After the Chinese invaded and annexed Tibet, they forced the Tibetans to change their society, and the Dalai Lama was forced to flee to India. (This is depicted in the movie Kundun, for which director Martin Scorcese and writer Melissa Mathison were banned by the Chinese Government from ever entering China.) The Dalai Lama set up a government-in-exile in Dharamsala in the North Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. (Richard Gere is a frequent visitor to Dharamsala.) Even to this day, Tibetan refugees continue to enter India. Many Tibetan refugees also live in Tibetan settlements in South India. The thing that strikes me most is how joyous and ever-smiling the Tibetan people are in spite of the hardships!! It is indeed ironic and sad that a democracy like India no longer allows anti-Chinese demonstration by Tibetans when Chinese dignitaries visit!!

"There's a certain Buddhistic calm that comes from having money in the bank." -Tom Robbins

"The Dalai Lama visited the White House and told the President that he could teach him to find a higher state of consciousness. Then after talking to Bush for a few minutes, he said, "You know what? Let's just grab lunch." " -Bill Maher

"If you have fear of pain or suffering, you should examine whether there is anything you can do about it. If you can, there is no need to worry about it; if you cannot do anything, then there is also no need to worry." -Dalai Lama