![]() Many people, particularly in the West, doubt their own goodness. Sitting this close to you, Your Holiness, I have to say I’ve never seen anybody who is just about to turn eighty who looks so youthful and healthy. I have practiced that and I’ve found immense benefit to myself. ![]() You don’t need drugs or tranquilizers if you keep more affection in your heart. Therefore, the conclusion is that affection and concern for others’ well-being is the best way to achieve your own happy life, healthy body, and longer life. Fortunately, my mother was very, very compassionate, so I received maximum affection and benefit from her. If my mother had not been an affectionate person, then maybe I would be a different kind of person, suspicious and insecure. I often tell people that my first guru who taught me about compassion was my mother. Everybody experiences that, right from the beginning of life. There is no need for philosophy, no need for research. But if their parents show them a negative face, or punish them, they will be very unhappy. But when people have an artificial smile, I think it shows that inside they are a little bit distant from others.Ĭhildren who receive maximum affection from their parents and friends are usually very happy. If we examine people who easily show a genuine human smile, we see they experience more peace. So logically, all the negative things that are created by a self-centered attitude are reduced when you care for others. That attitude is the opposite of self-centered narrow-mindedness. Now let’s look at the other way-having a sense of concern for others’ well-being. You prefer distance from other people because you are self-centered and feel you are something very important. An extreme self-centered attitude is the opposite of that. An individual’s happy life depends on the rest of the community. ![]() Scientists say constant fear and anger do great damage to your immune system. This is very bad for your own peace of mind and for your health. Thinking only about yourself-having a very self-centered attitude-creates a lot of anxiety, loneliness, fear, and anger. The ultimate source of a happy mind and healthy body is your own mental attitude. It may appear you are more concerned about others’ well-being than your own, but in reality you get the maximum benefit. There is no conflict, because caring about others’ well-being is the best way to achieve your own happiness. How do you tell people that it is not selfish to be happy, and that they can care about-and benefit-both themselves and others? That conflict between our own happiness and other people’s doesn’t exist in Buddhism, which teaches that dharma practice simultaneously benefits both ourselves and others. They are told that the correct moral choice is to sacrifice their own happiness. Many people in the West have been taught that they have to choose between their own happiness and the well-being of others. Your Holiness, on behalf of myself and our readers, thank you for sharing your wisdom with us. I went inside for an hour of life-changing conversation. As they wept, the Dalai Lama expressed his love and concern for them. I witnessed too his deep connection with the Tibetan people, as he blessed a small group who had made the arduous journey from Tibet to meet their national and spiritual leader. Young and old, Tibetan, Indian, and Westerner, well-off and poor, he opened his heart to everyone, and they to him. ![]() He makes us feel it is possible.īefore our interview, I watched His Holiness greet people in the courtyard outside. He opens our hearts and touches our deepest longing for a life of happiness and affection. Why does the Dalai Lama touch so many people, not just those he meets personally but the hundreds of millions around the world who are inspired by his message of wisdom and kindness? I think it’s because he sees past all our differences and connects with the essence of who we are as human beings. As I write this many weeks later, the glow has not worn off. Spending an hour in his presence, talking about life, human nature, and Buddhism, was a life-changing experience. I think everyone who meets His Holiness the Dalai Lama comes away feeling they have been changed for the better. His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama with Lion’s Roar editor-in-chief Melvin McLeod.
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