Re: [Marxism] Friendly Feudalism: The Tibet Myth

[Greg McDonald <sabocat59@xxxxxxx>]

Walter Lippman wrote:

If you've read Bettina Aptheker's comments on the Dalai Lama, from
her recently-published (2006) memoir, it's my impression that he's
someone who expects, and is, revered as something akin to a God on
earth. Read Aptheker's description of the meeting with the Dalai
Lama which she attended, the way everyone - including Aptheker -
refers to him as "His Holiness" and so forth, and a decidedly
un-democratic impression came over me.

Somwhere at home I've got this wonderful photograph of the Dalai
Lama together with Jesse Helms. It needs to be scanned and then
posted to the web. He really does get in bed with some very, very
unsavory people. And I'm not referring to Betting Aptheker here.


According to the Tibetan tradition, the D.L. is thought of as the  
reincarnation of Avalokitesvara, the bodhisattva of compassion. Some  
people may take this literally, some may take it as a symbolic title,  
such that the carrier of the tradition is meant to embody compassion.  
Be careful with regard to assuming that buddhists have similar  
theistic beliefs to those espoused by western religious traditions.  
It's simply not the case. Traditional Buddhism teaches that even the  
gods are finite, they live and they die, and that their assumption of  
omnipotence and eternal life is a conceit of pride.

Bodhisattvas are in a different category altogether. They are simply  
thought of as enlightened humans who choose to reincarnate in order  
to help humanity. But the D.L. consistently refers to himself as a  
humble  monk, and from all the videos and such where I've seen him  
presiding over ceremonial rituals, he doesn't seem to really "get  
off" on being viewed as some god-king. Of course, I am not inside his  
head, so i can't say for sure. He just seems to be a quite humble  
individual, in my opinion. It's almost impossible not to whittle away  
at the ego if you're doing 4 hours of meditation every morning.

In terms of mixing with unsavory characters, well yeah, so what?  
Sometimes the deference expressed by folks in the buddhist tradition  
toward all beings is mistaken as acceptance of their views. Again,  
just because the D.L. has been seen with Helms does not make him a  
racist. Whatever. I feel myself being drawn in as a defender of all  
things Dalai and tibetan, when my original intention was to provoke  
debate. So from here on out I'll defer to others. Plus i'm over my  
limit of 5 posts daily.

Let me just say that before people jump to quick conclusions, I would  
challenge anyone to go and do a ten day meditation retreat first.  
Melt down on a cushion for ten days without talking and then you may  
have the privilege of passing judgement. Check it out, put on those  
moccasins and walk a mile first, and then see what you think. You  
might be surprised at the conclusions you draw. I myself have  
gravitated toward a group which is all-volunteer, lay people, non- 
monastic, and secular in orientation. Retreats are free; donations  
only are accepted. As I also do not want to be seen as some  
proselytizing buddhist freak, I will not post specifics. Anyone  
interested can contact me personally.

Greg McD
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