What's the big deal with the Dalai Lama?

I think the whole philosophy he represents plays well with a lot of people. It’s tough to live like it, but people wish they could.

@Adirondackwannabe Uh I agree but they’re not all celebrated on television 24/7.

@pallen123 Sorry, I changed that, I thought your question deserved better because it was in general.

He doesn’t claim to be anything special at all. You could say that the most impressive thing about him is that despite the fact that he gets treated day in and day out like a “living god” by some, and a media star by others, he refuses to but into his own specialness and makes no effort to come off as “impressive”. That does say something about the quality of the man.

He also is very interested in science had has regular programmes to scientifically educate his monks.
He once said:
“If science proves some belief of Buddhism wrong, then Buddhism will have to change. In my view, science and Buddhism share a search for the truth and for understanding reality. By learning from science about aspects of reality where its understanding may be more advanced, I believe that Buddhism enriches its own worldview.”

Now compare that with other religions

He probably is a force for moderation in the world, even if I’m inclined to agree that he doesn’t exactly seem like one of the world’s brightest highbeams. Part of his appeal is he’s fairly nonoffensive, at least to western political moderates. He can canoodle Obama, The Pope, and most other government and religious leaders without really raising tempers – which would be impossible if he took remotely clever political, economic, or religious positions. He was famous, early on, for being very naive, and I don’t think that ever wore off.

Also, keep in mind, you can say the same thing about the people who give him press – except they tend to have the wit and wisdom of an Alabama ditch digger.

He is a wise and good man. He has been treated for many years by traditional Tibetan medicine for cancer. He meditates a great deal.

“All major religious traditions carry basically the same message, that is love, compassion and forgiveness the important thing is they should be part of our daily lives.”

“I believe that the very purpose of our life is to seek happiness. That is clear. Whether one believes in religion or not, whether one believes in this religion or that religion, we all are seeking something better in life. So, I think, the very motion of our life is towards happiness…”

“Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.”

“We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.”

“The ultimate authority must always rest with the individual’s own reason and critical analysis.”

“This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.”

Dalai lama quotes

He seems to me to be a very wise and decent person. If people are fascinated by him, this gives me hope.

The many atheists on Fluther will not like this statement.

There are some people that seem to be very connected to a spiritual plane, people such as Mother Teresa or Mata Amritanandamayi (also known as Amma). Those who meet them often express that they felt they were in the presence of something other-worldly or downright holy. The same is often said about the Dalai Lama.

So, if one believes that spiritual connections are possible, and that some people exude this, be aware that it is often said of the Dalai Lama. If you don’t believe that, then he is just a nice man who leads his people in a non-violent search for justice, and leave people to follow as they believe.

Most politicians these days seem not to have the intellect and wisdom of bartenders. By comparison, he looks pretty impressive.

@zenvelo: Mother Teresa and Mata Amritanandamayi are downright nuts and fraudulent. Their chauvinistic sanctimony is exactly why religion leaves a bad taste in the mouths of many atheists.

I wouldn’t say the Dalai Lama rises to their level of disingenuousness, of course. But plenty of other sacred cows do (including Gandhi, arguably).

What’s the big deal about the Pope? You can apply this question to all leaders of masses. People look for hope, and many turn to religion. If you are believed (and revered) to be a leader or high up of that religion, you are going to be a “big deal.” Maybe you personally do not see it, but others do. Who are we to question who they want to follow? He stands for something, and people find the similarites in that.

@Ponderer983
Well, the pope, the current one anyway, is outright offensive and evil.

@ragingloli I’m not debating him as a Pope, just throwing out the comparison. I’m non-religious.

@Ponderer983: yeah, but the way I interpreted it (and apparently @ragingloli too) is the OP was asking about the person, not the office. It makes sense for people inside the religion to think he’s The Shit, but it doesn’t make much sense for outsiders to hold him in especially high esteem. (Not that he’s a bad guy, but there’s not much that lends itself to him as a great person either.)

He is just a mortal man ..nothing else.

@bolwerk Well, I don’t know all that much about Amma, but I am not the one claiming anything in particular in her presence.

Mother Teresa, however, did devote herself to helping the poorest of the poor. I guess you are saying that atheists don’t approve of those who commit to serving the least in our world?

@bolwerk I was taking the stance more like the position making the man. If the Dalai Lama or the Pope were just guys without that title, no one would care. We only care because they lead masses and have influence and clout because of that. I was going to make a reference about MLK JR too, so as it all not to be just about religion. Any movement really. You don’t always have the most intelligent person in the position of power, but there are intangibles that place these people in the positions they are/were in. So I understand if how I presented it was confusing.

@zenvelo: Mother Teresa palled around with dictators and lived lavishly while pretending to help the poor. Whatever incidental good she did was counteracted by her demand to keep rape babies to term, and her pushing to deprive poor women of the one thing that might actually help lift them out of poverty: reproductive healthcare. And besides her batty stance on abortion, she was against painkillers for the souls she wanted to save. I can’t speak for (other) atheists, but other Teresa was no Dorothy Day, a Catholic I personally do somewhat admire.

@Ponderer983: I dunno, maybe. Though whatever the reasoning for liking someone who becomes Pope, I guess there is at least a merit needed to get the position. I think the Dalai Lama is just chosen at birth, so you might accidentally get a blithering idiot if you pick wrong.

This could be due to there being more and more people who are getting sick and tired of the overglamorization of confidence and the typical ‘alphamale’ BS that is drilled into us over and over and over again. What is wrong with embracing humility, modesty and courtesy for a change? Hint: We need far more Dalai Lamas in this world than John Waynes.

Thanks all. I was kinda hoping someone would say “Oh you haven’t heard him talk about X” or “I used to feel the same way until I heard him explain Y”. Alas, my question remains “what’s the big deal with the Dalai Lama”. Those that say things like he represents a different type of un-macho, humble leader, that’s a lazy response. That’s obvious. What I’m asking is why in the world he’s so celebrated and revered by anyone that interviews him. They call him God-like and lavish all sorts of praise on him. It’s unrelenting. Why?? Because he’s a bumbling Joe-average leader who’s about as articulate and insightful as any old person on the street? I don’t buy it.

@pallen123 Honestly I have never heard him speak or read anything he has published/said/written about. So it would be ignorant of me to have answered in that manner.

He tolerates other religions and doesn’t claim that Buddhism is superior. Now compare this with the Pope or the mullahs in Iran or the religious leaders in Saudi Arabia.

@pallen123: “What I’m asking is why in the world he’s so celebrated and revered by anyone that interviews him. They call him God-like and lavish all sorts of praise on him. It’s unrelenting. Why?? Because he’s a bumbling Joe-average leader who’s about as articulate and insightful as any old person on the street? I don’t buy it.”

I think we probably live in different universes. I live in one in which “strong” war-mongering sociopaths are celebrated and respected. I live in a universe where the old people on the street are exuding self-interest at the expense of everyone else. I live in a universe where corporate pop star fictions are relentlessly followed and considered god-like.

When I come across someone who embodies compassion and kindness, I am inspired. This can be my neighbor, a meditation teacher, or the Dalai Lama. There is nothing god-like about it. Just something inspiring.

If you read his words or hear him speak and it doesn’t resonate with you, well….then it doesn’t resonate with you. Plain and simple.

Note: I don’t find anything “lazy” about the responses above.

@mattbrowne One thing I’ve appreciated about him is that when speaking to non-Buddhist audiences, he advises them to work within the context of whatever faith they may already have. Christians should work to be better Christians, Muslims should work to be better Muslims, etc.

Not an ideological warrior.

@pallen123 Westerners tend to have a very different view of what makes a person “impressive”. In the Dalai lama’s culture—and in Buddhist cultures generally—charisma, polish, oratorial skills, and intellect don’t count for much. They expect that wisdom will make a person humble, compassionate, and unpretentious.

I just read a story by a Japanese executive talking about an incident at his company. There was a problem with graffiti in the men’s room. All kinds of memos from the top brass failed to stop it. One day the dudes found a note hanging in the bathroom scrawled in poor script: “Please don’t dirty my good workplace with your graffiti”.

It was from the woman who cleaned the bathrooms. To the guys in suits, this was a shit-house; to her it was her “good workplace”. They were so impressed by this spirit that no one ever wrote on the walls again. This is the kind of person that Buddhist cultures find impressive.

@thorninmud – Exactly. He’s extremely popular in Germany. A few years ago our chancellor met with him in Germany and the Chinese government was really pissed. They canceled some planned business deals.