



Home > Issues



Death of Osama bin Laden was "sad" from Buddhist perspective, says Dalai Lama IANS, May 5, 2011 Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama said the death of Osama bin Laden was sad if it was looked from a Buddhist point of view DHARAMSALA, India -- On being asked during a youth summit in California about his feelings regarding celebrations at the death of bin Laden, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate said: "From a Buddhist perspective of your enemy being your greatest teacher, it was sad." << Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Wednesday said the death of al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden was sad if it was looked from a Buddhist point of view. "But for those who believed in the enemy being the absolute enemy, they would have a different perspective," the Dalai Lama said, according to a post on the official website of the Tibetan government-in-exile here. He said much of the tragedy in today's world is on account of emphasis on secondary values like nation and religion instead of having a global outlook. "There is a need for inculcating a feeling of global responsibility and to incorporate teachings in moral ethics in the education system." The monk was bestowed with the 'Shine a Light Award' by the Amnesty International at a ceremony in California on Wednesday in recognition of his unprecedented contributions to making it a better world with his wisdom. During the question-answer session, the spiritual guru emphasised on the need to "promote friendship between Tibetans and Chinese and outlined his efforts at reaching out to the Chinese people". He also asked people to "learn the issue of Muslim community and promised to put effort in promoting better relations between Muslims and Buddhists in India". The Dalai Lama, 75, has lived in India since 1959 when he fled his homeland after a failed uprising against the communist rule. His government-in-exile is based here but is not recognised by any country, including India. Some 140,000 Tibetans live in exile around the world, over 100,000 of them in India.