They crowded the park's wet lawns with blankets - some sitting
cross-legged in the lotus position -” and they purchased Tibetan
memorabilia from robe-clad monks who set up shop at a makeshift
bookstore. They traded stories about how far the drive had been to
Atlanta, and they looked expectantly at the sky, ironically hoping for
no rain during a dangerous statewide drought.
And when the 14th Dalai Lama took the podium, they gave him a standing
ovation and their full attention. Hands pressed above his head, the
Tibetan spiritual leader bowed his head as the audience cheered and
showered him with camera flashes. Then he abruptly motioned for them to
sit.
"It's a great pleasure for me to be able to meet with you," he
said through a translator. After about a minute, he became more at ease
with what he called his 'broken English' and delivered the rest of
his address on his own.
The Dalai Lama prefaced the speech by saying Atlanta had a special
significance for him as the hometown of Martin Luther King Jr., a
nonviolent leader with whom he feels a kinship.
"When I hear his name, something very deep in my heart," he said.
The Dalai Lama's message addressed the importance of inner peace and self-contentment as a path to lasting world peace.
"According to my own little experience, what I learned, when we have
difficulties, most reliable friend is our own inner feelings," he
said. "Peaceful society must come from genuine inner peace."
Reducing anger and jealousy on an individual level - what he termed 'inner disarmament' leads to 'external disarmament' on a
wider level, he said.
"Last century, millions of people killed - not much benefit," he
said. "The concept of war is outdated, it's very clear. This
century, 21st century, should be century of dialogue."
He posited that humans, unlike some other species such as turtles,
naturally tend toward compassion, and he encouraged the audience to
nurture their children and take to heart the lessons gleaned from
family life.
"The seed of compassion, from birth, we already have. Very nature, we
come from our mother - our entire life depends on others' care,"
he said, adding that his affection for all people comes not from
Buddhism, but from his own mother.
"My mother was very warm-hearted. Never angry," he said. "My compassion, I learned from her."
And this instruction for children, he said, should also take place in classrooms.
"I raise question whether modern education system effective," he
said. "Adequate at brain development, not adequate at developing
warm-heartedness."
"Please give your children maximum affection, maximum care," he
advised the audience, adding, playfully, "Of course, I am monk so I
have no responsibility."
Gretchen Greminger from Brunswick, Ga., arrived at the venue four hours before the Dalai Lama took the stage.
"It was perfect," she said after the speech. "Seeing him was number four on my top 20 things to do in life."
Peter Wang, a Taiwan native now living in Atlanta, heard the speech on
the grass, sitting over a blue baseball cap next to his young daughter.
"He is a real religious leader," he said. "He teaches us how to
live together peacefully and use our wisdom to approach peace amongst
the conflict around us today."
Wang hesitated to call himself a Buddhist, until his daughter nudged him and smiled.
University President James W. Wagner, Board of Trustees Chair Ben
Johnson and U.S. Rep. John Lewis took turns presenting the Dalai Lama
and welcoming him to Atlanta and the sprawling park at the heart of
downtown.
"As a man of peace, nonviolence and love, we welcome you," Lewis said. "We welcome your wisdom and your teachings."
The Dalai Lama, speaking to a crowd of about 7,000 people, also
stressed the need for universal respect, regardless of individual
beliefs.
"As much as you love to God, you must love to fellow human being,"
he said, adding that even if individuals have "no need to be
religious minded, is no point to neglect inner values and
compassion."
Later, in response to a previously submitted question about reconciling
his Buddhist teachings with Christianity, he described the similarities
between many of the world's religions and his affinity for other
religious practices.
"I'm Buddhist. I may argue with Jesus Christ, but in practice I fully agree with his ," he said.
"All religious belief, same practice," he said, describing an
example in southern France, where nuns and monks at a Christian
monastery shared a remarkably similar daily routine and way of life as
Buddhist monks.
"Why? Perhaps same source," he said, slowly waving his hand toward the sky.