Dalai Lama, Hokule'a share role of worldwide emissary

By Ira Zunin

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Apr 21, 2012

~~<p>My first meeting with His Holiness the Dalai Lama was in the '70s in Dharamsala, India, the seat of the Tibetan government in exile, nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas. I had been working in the Kathmandu Valley running courses for Westerners to learn Tibetan medicine, but during those years there were only a dozen or so Tibetan doctors who had escaped Chinese occupation. It was challenging to secure instructors at times, so my Tibetan teacher suggested we go speak to His Holiness to ask for support.</p>
<p>His Holiness looked me square in the eye, pointed his index finger and asked, "How do you propose to teach Tibetan medicine to Westerners?" I was all of 19. Trembling, I explained that the courses first offered a foundation in Tibetan culture and philosophy and an opportunity to learn basic meditation. The morning lectures given by the Tibetan physician and translated by a young missionary were later discussed and analyzed in a cultural context. Students were invited to observe treatments in a makeshift clinic, and those who wished could also receive care firsthand.</p>
~~

My first meeting with His Holiness the Dalai Lama was in the '70s in Dharamsala, India, the seat of the Tibetan government in exile, nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas. I had been working in the Kathmandu Valley running courses for Westerners to learn Tibetan medicine, but during those years there were only a dozen or so Tibetan doctors who had escaped Chinese occupation. It was challenging to secure instructors at times, so my Tibetan teacher suggested we go speak to His Holiness to ask for support.

His Holiness looked me square in the eye, pointed his index finger and asked, "How do you propose to teach Tibetan medicine to Westerners?" I was all of 19. Trembling, I explained that the courses first offered a foundation in Tibetan culture and philosophy and an opportunity to learn basic meditation. The morning lectures given by the Tibetan physician and translated by a young missionary were later discussed and analyzed in a cultural context. Students were invited to observe treatments in a makeshift clinic, and those who wished could also receive care firsthand. Login for more...