Dalai Lama talks about life in exile in first speech since surgery

In his first public speech since knee replacement surgery in June, the Dalai Lama spoke on Friday about how living in exile had brought awareness about Tibet and Buddhism to a global audience.

“If I had not been a refugee, I may be sitting on a high throne in Lhasa, Tibet,” the Tibetan spiritual leader told over 100 Tibetans and other well-wishers gathered at the Dalai Lama Library and Learning Center in Ithaca, New York.

“By coming into exile, I had an opportunity to travel around the world explaining the essence of Buddhism to a wider audience, building a human-to-human connection that has proved to be beneficial and connect with many people globally,” he said.

“People around the world today feel a deep sense of closeness and unity with Tibet and Tibetans,” said the 89-year-old spiritual leader during his first visit to the center that was established by the Namgyal Monastery.

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The center, which opened to the public in September 2023, includes a digital audio archive with 40,000 hours of the Dalai Lama’s teachings, about 4,000 books with translations of ancient texts on the evolution of Buddhist thought, and Buddhist artifacts from India and Tibet.  

Clad in the finest Tibetan attire and holding white silk ceremonial scarves, Tibetans of all ages stood in long rows in the center’s premises to welcome the Dalai Lama.

The roughly 100-strong Tibetan community in Ithaca had spent weeks helping with the preparations at the center. 

“We all took turns to volunteer at the center over the past month, doing everything from gardening to cleaning to hoisting prayer flags and other chores with the intention of making the center as beautiful and as clean and as ready as possible to receive His Holiness,’ said Tenzin Tsokyi, a resident. 

Oneness of humanity

In his address on Friday, the Dalai Lama reaffirmed his commitment to serving the Tibetan people and promoting the Buddhist tradition, and emphasized the importance of preserving their religious and cultural heritage.

“Everyone has done their best, and I encourage you to keep doing so,” he told those gathered at the center. 

“I was born in Amdo and have had good relationships with people since my childhood,” he said. “And now, even as I am aging, I have built relationships with people from all over the world. 

“Under the concept of oneness of humanity, I have received compassion and care from others,” he said. “No matter where I go in the three provinces of Tibet, I never waver in my belief in our shared humanity.” 

The Dalai Lama, who celebrated his 89th birthday last month, has been in the United States since late June for medical treatment.

After undergoing successful knee surgery at a top New York hospital, the Dalai Lama has been recovering and undergoing physical therapy in Syracuse, New York. Dr. David Mayman, chief of the adult reconstruction and joint replacement who performed the surgery, on June 28 said the Dalai Lama was progressing positively. 

On Aug. 22, more than 10,000 Tibetans, Mongolians and people of Himalayan communities based in North America are scheduled to offer a collective long life prayer offering to the Dalai Lama at the UBS Arena in New York. 

The following day, the Dalai Lama is scheduled to depart for India via Switzerland. 

The Dalai Lama arrived in New York on June 23, marking his first visit to the United States in over seven years and his first overseas trip since November 2018. 

Translated by Tenzin Dickyi and Tashi Wangchuk. Edited by Tenzin Pema and Malcolm Foster.