Goleman Daniel - A Force for Good: The Dalai Lamas Vision for Our World

The fifty-six years since I left Tibet as a refugee for freedom in India have been hard for Tibetans including myself. One instruction from our tradition that has helped sustain us is to try to transform even the most adverse circumstances into opportunities. In my own case, life as a refugee has broadened my horizons. If I had remained in Tibet, I would most likely have been insulated from the outside world, shut off from the challenge of different points of view. As it is, I have been fortunate to have been able to travel to many different countries, to meet many, many different people, to learn from their experiences and share some of my own with them. This suited my own temperament that dislikes formality, which only serves to create distance between people.

As a human being I acknowledge that my well-being depends on others and caring for others well-being is a moral responsibility I take seriously. Its unrealistic to think that the future of humanity can be achieved on the basis of prayer or good wishes alone; what we need is to take action. Therefore, my first commitment is to contribute to human happiness as best I can. I am also a Buddhist monk, and according to my experience, all religious traditions have the potential to convey the message of love and compassion. So my second commitment is to foster harmony and friendly relations between them. Thirdly, I am a Tibetan, and although I have retired from political responsibility, I remain concerned to do what I can to help the Tibetan people, and to preserve our Buddhist culture and the natural environment of Tibetboth of which are under threat of destruction.

I am very happy to see that my old friend Dan Goleman has written this book exploring and describing how these basic commitments have unfolded over the past several decades. An experienced writer and someone with an active interest in the science of our inner and outer worlds, he has been very helpful to me and is well qualified to express these things clearly as he has done here.

The goal of happier human beings living together and supporting each other more fully in a more peaceful world is, I believe, something we can achieve. But we have to look at it taking a broad view and a long-term perspective. Change in ourselves and in the world in which we live may not take place in a hurry; it will take time. But if we dont make the effort nothing will happen at all. The most important thing I hope readers will come to understand is that such change will not take place because of decisions taken by governments or at the UN. Real change will take place when individuals transform themselves guided by the values that lie at the core of all human ethical systems, scientific findings, and common sense. While reading this book, please keep in mind that as human beings, equipped with marvelous intelligence and the potential for developing a warm heart, each and every one of us can become a force for good.

February 8, 2015

PART ONE

A World Citizen

CHAPTER ONE

Reinvent the Future

The British Broadcasting Corporation transmits its world-news report globally, the shortwave signals reaching even the remote Himalayan hill district of Dharamsala and its ridge-hugging town McLeod Ganj, where Tenzin Gyatso, the fourteenth Dalai Lama, lives.

He numbers among the BBCs most devoted listeners, having started in his youth back in Tibet. He sets great store in its reliability as a news source, tuning in whenever he is home at 5:30 A.M. , about the time he has breakfast.