Who is Dalai Lama?

A Brief Biography 

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is both the head of state and the spiritual leader of Tibet. He was born on 6 July 1935, to a farming family, in a small hamlet located in Taktser, Amdo, northeastern Tibet.At the age of two the child, who was named Lhamo Dhondup at that time was recognized as the reincarnation of the 13th Dalai Lama, Thubten Gyatso.  The Dalai Lamas are believed to be manifestations of Avalokiteshvara or Chenrezig, the Bodhisattva of Compassion and patron saint of Tibet.  Bodhisattvas are enlightened beings who have postponed their own nirvana and chosen to take rebirth in order to serve humanity.

Education in Tibet

His Holiness began his monastic education at the age of six.  The curriculum consisted of five major and five minor subjects.  The major subjects were logic, Tibetan art and culture, Sanskrit, medicine, and Buddhist philosophy which was further divided into a further five categories: Prajnaparimita, the perfection of wisdom; Madhyamika, the philosophy of the middle Way; Vinaya, the canon of monastic discipline; Abidharma, metaphysics; and Pramana, logic and epistemology.  The five minor subjects were poetry, music and drama, astrology, motre and phrasing, and synonyms.  At 23 he sat for his final examination in the Jokhang Temple, Lhasa, during the annual Monlam (prayer) Festival in 1959.  He passed with honours and was awarded the Geshe Lharampa degree, the highest-level degree equivalent to a doctorate of Buddhist philosophy. Leadership Responsibilities

In 1950 His Holiness was called upon to assume full political power after China's invasion of Tibet in 1949.  In 1954, he went to Beijing for peace talks with Mao Zedong and other Chinese leaders, including Deng Xiaoping and Chou Enlai.  But finally, in 1959, with the brutal suppression of the Tibetan national uprising in Lhasa by Chinese troops, His Holiness was forced to escape into exile.  Since then he has been living in Dharamsala, northern India, the seat of the Tibetan political administration in exile.

Since the Chinese invasion, His Holiness has appealed to the United Nations on the question of Tibet. The General Assembly adopted three resolutions on Tibet in 1959, 1961 and 1965.


Democratisation Process

In 1963 His Holiness presented a draft democratic constitution for Tibet that was followed by a number of reforms to democratise our administrative set-up.  The new democratic constitution promulgated as a result of this reform was named "The Charter of Tibetans in Exile".  The charter enshrines freedom of speech, belief, assembly and movement.  It also provides detailed guidelines on the functioning of the Tibetan government with respect to those living in exile.

In 1992 His Holiness issued guidelines for the constitution of a future, free Tibet.  He announced that when Tibet becomes free the immediate task would be to set up an interim government whose first responsibility will be to elect a constitutional assembly to frame and adopt Tibet's democratic constitution.  On that day His Holiness would transfer all his historical and political authority to the Interim President and live as an ordinary citizen.  His Holiness also stated that he hoped that Tibet, comprising of the three traditional provinces of U-Tsang, Amdo and Kham, would be federal and democratic.

In May 1990, the reforms called for by His Holiness saw the realisation of a truly democratic administration in exile for the Tibetan community.  The Tibetan Cabinet (Kashag), which till then had been appointed by His Holiness, was dissolved along with the Tenth Assembly of Tibetan People's Deputies (Tibetan parliament in exile).  In the same year, exile Tibetans on the Indian sub-continent and in more than 33 other countries elected 46 members to the expanded Eleventh Tibetan Assembly on a one-man one-vote basis.  The Assembly, in its turn, elected the new members of the cabinet.  In September 2001, a further major step in democratisation was taken when the Tibetan electorate directly elected the Kalon Tripa, the senior-most minister of the Cabinet.  The Kalon Tripa in turn appointed his own cabinet who had to be approved by the Tibetan Assembly.  In Tibet's long history, this was the first time that the people elected the political leadership of Tibet.

Peace Initiatives

In September 1987 His Holiness proposed the Five Point Peace Plan for Tibet as the first step towards a peaceful solution to the worsening situation in Tibet.  He envisaged that Tibet would become a sanctuary; a zone of peace at the heart of Asia, where all sentient beings can exist in harmony and the delicate environment can be preserved. China has so far failed to respond positively to the various peace proposals put forward by His Holiness

The Five Point Peace Plan

In his address to members of the United States Congress in Washington, D.C. on 21 September 1987, His Holiness proposed the following peace plan, which contains five basic components: 

Transformation of the whole of Tibet into a zone of peace.
Abandonment of China's population transfer policy that threatens the very existence of the Tibetans as a people.

Respect for the Tibetan people's fundamental human rights and democratic freedoms.
Restoration and protection of Tibet's natural environment and the abandonment of China's use of Tibet for the production of nuclear weapons and dumping of nuclear waste.
Commencement of earnest negotiations on the future status of Tibet and of relations between the Tibetan and Chinese peoples.

Strasbourg Proposal

In his address to members of the European Parliament in Strasbourg on 15 June 1988, His Holiness made another detailed proposal elaborating on the last point of the Five Point Peace Plan.  He proposed talks between the Chinese and Tibetans leading to a self-governing democratic political entity for all three provinces of Tibet.  This entity would be in association with the People's Republic of China and the Chinese Government would continue to remain responsible for Tibet's foreign policy and defence. 

Universal Recognition

His Holiness the Dalai Lama is a man of peace.  In 1989 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his non-violent struggle for the liberation of Tibet.  He has consistently advocated policies of non-violence, even in the face of extreme aggression. He also became the first Nobel Laureate to be recognized for his concern for global environmental problems.

His Holiness has travelled to more than 62 countries spanning 6 continents.  He has met with presidents, prime ministers and crowned rulers of major nations.  He has held dialogues with the heads of different religions and many well-known scientists.

Since 1959 His Holiness has received over 84 awards, honorary doctorates, prizes, etc., in recognition of his message of peace, non-violence, inter-religious understanding, universal responsibility and compassion.  His Holiness has also authored more than 72 books.

His Holiness describes himself as a simple Buddhist monk.

Awards and Honors

Date	Name of the Award	Awarded by	Country
May 24, 2012	Honorary Citizenship	City of Huy, Huy	Belgium
May 22, 2012	Udine City Key	City of Udine, Udine	Italy
May 20, 2012	Carinthia State Gold Medal	Carinthia State	Austria
May 18, 2012	Gold Medal of Klagenfurt	City of Klagenfurt, Klagenfurt	Austria
May 14, 2012	Templeton Prize	John Templeton Foundation, West Conshohocken	U.S.A.
April 26, 2012	Honorary Degree	Loyola University, Chicago	U.S.A.
December 2, 2011	Dayanand Modi Award for Art, Culture and Education 2011	Dayawati Modi Foundation, New Delhi	India
October 9, 2011	Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Reconciliation and Peace	The Gandhi Development Trust, Durban	South Africa
September 5, 2011	Doctor Honoris Causa	Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi	India
August 18, 2011	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Tartu, Tartu	Estonia
July 13, 2011	Lifetime Achievement Award	Caring Institute, Washington	U.S.A.
May 11, 2011	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Arkansas, Fayetteville	U.S.A.
May 9, 2011	Doctor Honoris Causa	Southern Methodist University, Dallas	U.S.A.
May 8, 2011	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Minnesota, Minneapolis	U.S.A.
May 4, 2011	Shine A Light Award	Amnesty International USA, Los Angeles	U.S.A.
November 23, 2010	Doctor Honoris Causa	Jamia Millia Islamia University, New Delhi	India
October 21, 2010	Harry T. Wilkes Leadership Award	Harry T. Wilks Foundation, Oxford	U.S.A.
October 21, 2010	Doctor Honoris Causa	Miami University, Oxford	U.S.A.
October 20, 2010	International Freedom Award	National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Cincinnati	U.S.A.
September 21, 2010	Menschen in Europa Award	Menschen in Europa, Passau	Germany
September 18, 2010	Honorary Citizenship	City of Budapest, Budapest	Hungary
May 23, 2010	President's Medal	Hunter College, New York	U.S.A.
May 18, 2010	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls	U.S.A.
March 18, 2010	Nirmala Deshpande Memorial Award for Peace and Global Harmony	Gandhi Ashram Reconstruction Trust	India
February 23, 2010	Baccalaureate Honoris Causa	Broward College, Davie	U.S.A.
February 19, 2010	Democracy Service Medal	National Endowment for Democracy, Washington	U.S.A.
October 6, 2009	The Lantos Human Rights Prize	Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice, Washington	U.S.A.
September 30, 2009	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Calgary, Calgary	Canada
September 27, 2009	Prize for Love and Forgiveness	Fetzer Institute, Vancouver	U.S.A.
September 23, 2009	International Freedom Award	National Civil Rights Museum, Memphis	U.S.A.
August 3, 2009	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Marburg, Marburg	Germany
July 29, 2009	Honorary Citizenship	City of Warsaw, Warsaw	Poland
June 7, 2009	Honorary Citizenship	City of Paris, Paris	France
February 10, 2009	German Media Prize	Editors of Germany, Baden Baden	Germany
February 10, 2009	Honorary Citizenship	City of Venice, Venice	Italy
February 9, 2009	Honorary Citizenship	City of Rome, Rome	Italy
December 8, 2008	Doctor Honoris Causa	Jagiellonian University, Krakow	Poland
July 25, 2008	Global Leadership Award	Aspen Institute, Aspen	USA
July 13, 2008	Doctor Honoris Causa	Lehigh University, Bethlehem	U.S.A.
April 14, 2008	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Washington, Seattle	U.S.A.
Oct. 22, 2007	Presidential Distinguished Professor	Emory University, Atlanta	U.S.A.
October 17, 2007	U.S. Congressional Gold Medal	U.S. Congress, Washington	U.S.A.
October 8, 2007	Ahimsa Award	Institute of Jainology, London	U.K.
September 20, 2007	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Muenster, Muenster	Germany
June 8, 2007	Doctor Honoris Causa	Southern Cross University, Melbourne	Australia
May 12, 2007	BILD Award	BILD Magazine, Germany	Germany
May 9, 2007	Doctor Honoris Causa	Smith College, Northampton	U.S.A.
December 10, 2006	Order of the White Lotus	Republic of Kalmykia, Russian Federation	Kalmykia
October 14, 2006	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Rome 3, Rome	Italy
September 19, 2006	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Buffalo, New York	U.S.A.
September 9, 2006	Honorary Citizenship	Canada	Canada
May 4, 2006	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Santiago, Santiago	Chile
February 16, 2006	Ben Gurion Negev Award	Ben Gurion University, Be'er Sheva	Israel
November 6, 2005	Inspiration & Compassion Award	American Himalayan Foundation, San Francisco	U.S.A.
September 25, 2005	Doctor Honoris Causa	Rutgers University, New Jersy	U.S.A.
August 12, 2005	Manhae Peace Prize	Manhae Foundation	South Korea
July 27, 2005	Hessian Peace Prize	Parliament of Hesse, Wiesbaden	Germany
October 7, 2004	Doctor Honoris Causa	Universidad Iberoamericana, Mexico City	Mexico
October 5, 2004	The Gold Medal	National University of Mexico (UNAM), Mexico City	Mexico
September 27, 2004	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Costa Rica, San Jose	Costa Rica
September 24, 2004	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Puerto Rico, San Juan	Puerto Rico (U.S.A.)
September 23, 2004	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Miami	U.S.A.
September 18, 2004	Doctor Honoris Causa	Nova Southeastern University, Miami	U.S.A.
May 28, 2004	Humphreys Memorial Award for Services to Buddhism	Buddhist Society of U.K.	U.K.
April 27, 2004	International Acharya Sushil Kumar Peace Award	University of Toronto, Toronto	Canada
April 27, 2004	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Toronto	Canada
April 20, 2004	Doctor Honoris Causa	Simon Fraser University, Vancouver	Canada
April 19, 2004	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of British Columbia, Vancouver	Canada
April 16, 2004	2nd Citizens Peace Building Award	University of California, Irvine	U.S.A.
October 9, 2003	Award for Promotion of Human Rights	Foundation Jaime Brunet, Madrid	Spain
September 19, 2003	Human Right Award	International League for Human Rights, New York	U.S.A.
September 5, 2003	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of San Francisco	U.S.A.
June 3, 2003	Manfred Bjorkquist Medal	Sigtuna Foundation, Stockholm	Sweden
December 5, 2002	Basavashree Award	Basavakendra, Sri Murugha Math, Chitradurga	India
November 7, 2002	Doctor Honoris Causa	Mongolian University of Science & Technology	Mongolia
November 7, 2002	Doctor Honoris Causa	National University of Mongolia	Mongolia
October 14, 2002	Human Rights Prize	University of Graz	Austria
July 6, 2002	Man of the Year	Croatian Academic Society	Croatia
May 21, 2002	Peace Award 2000	UN Association of Australia	Australia
December 5, 2001	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Tromso	Norway
November 26, 2001	Doctor Honoris Causa	University of Lusiada Porto	Portugal
June 10, 2001	Ecce homo Order	Kancelaria Kapituly Orderu	Poland
October 16, 2000	Doctor Honoris Causa	Comenius University, Bratislava	Slovakia

Source:Dalailama.com