Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Mixed Aussie welcome for Dalai Lama

From Live News

The Dalai Lama has arrived in Australia to a warm welcome from supporters but was branded a "liar" and a "hypocrite" by some 50 protesting Buddhist monks and nuns.

Members of a Buddhist group known as the Western Shugden Society (WSS) accuse the Dalai Lama of suppressing religious freedom and driving them out of the Buddhist community.

They chanted "Dalai Lama stop lying" and waved placards calling for religious freedom when the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader held a meditation seminar at Sydney's Olympic Park.

"He is a hypocrite, and it's very sad to say that about a religious leader," said WSS spokesperson Kelsang Pema after the Dalai Lama flew into Sydney for a visit that includes talks with both the federal government and opposition.

"He is not practising what he preaches.

"He's here teaching about love and compassion but he endorses human atrocities, basically."

She said the Dalai Lama's "inflammatory" campaign against a Buddhist deity called Dorje Shugden had resulted in thousands of monks being expelled from monasteries, supporters denied food, medicine and travel visas, families being ostracised and Shugden temples being destroyed.

"It's mainstream Tibetan Buddhism, but he is making us look like an off-shoot because he has had a change of heart.

"He has banned a prayer which he himself engaged in for half of his life."

The protest was peaceful, so much so that the demonstrators took a morning tea break.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

If you check the original source of this article you will find an 11min video of the DL talking to the Aussie Press.

I have to say I could only watch half of it - its barefaced hypocrisy and lying on a massive scale. He talks about religious harmony - how dare he do this while he is simultaneously destroying Je Tsongkhapa's pure tradition!

It is truly unbelievable to watch this man knowing what he is doing worldwide to destroy harmony between buddhists...it is shocking stuff.