Saturday, February 25, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Calm before the Storm: Tibetans Observe a Quiet Losar
Today is Losar, the first day of the Tibetan Lunar Year 2139.
Many people describe Losar, somewhat inadequately, as the Tibetan equivalent of the western New Year. But Losar is much more than just a marker between two separate years; it is a day steeped in religious rituals and spiritual symbolism. Losar for Tibetans is like several holidays wrapped into one; it delights children and adults alike, reunites families and renews friendships, reminding us of who we are as a people, and as a nation.
This Losar, however, will be a quiet one. From Lhasa to Lithang, Golok to Dharamsala, and Ngaba to New York, there will be no fireworks, no merrymaking, no exchange of gifts. For this is no ordinary time. In the past year, 22 Tibetans have set themselves on fire in the most pure and powerful expression of defiance to Chinese rule. The self-immolations in Tibet have shocked the world and galvanized the Tibet movement. Just last week, Dhamchoe Sangpo and Nangdrol self-immolated. Their demands were clear: freedom for Tibet and the return of the Dalai Lama.
In an expression of national grief, Tibetans everywhere are foregoing festivities today to salute those who have given their lives for freedom this past year. Though we are aware that grief alone does not bring about revolutionary change, there is something undeniably powerful about this collective mourning because it is an act that we Tibetans control, a phenomenon that the Chinese government cannot stop.
In many parts of Tibet, Chinese authorities have been paying Tibetan families to celebrate Losar. In a perverse attempt to create a picture of normalcy, the authorities have been almost begging Tibetans to "have a good time" on Losar. Tibetans, by canceling the festivities and taking control over their own lives, are seizing power away from the state through this widespread act of civil disobedience.
Deciding how to mark Losar is perhaps the most poignant expression of the Tibetan people's growing cultural and social sovereignty, the foundation upon which political freedom can be built. Our collective grief and spiritual reflection this Losar is an act of resilience, of defiance, and ultimately, of hope. As we pay tribute to those who have selflessly offered their lives to advance our cause, let us remember what they died for, and recommit ourselves to the goal of a free Tibet.
This Losar, we urge you to honor the Tibetan heroes of 2138 by taking a pledge of resistance for Tibet. Here are some examples of the pledges Tibetans and our supporters are making today:
- I pledge to update my MP or Congressperson every week about Tibet.
- I pledge to boycott Made-in-China products.
- I pledge to recruit a new member to the Tibetan Freedom Movement every month.
- I pledge to join a Tibet rally or vigil at least once a month.
- I pledge to join Rangzen Circle to sustain SFT's work for Tibetan freedom: http://studentsforafreetibet.org/rangzencircle.
To make your pledge, please visit: www.Lhakar.org/pledge. Here you can read more about how Tibetans are exercising control over their social and cultural lives and building a vibrant self-reliance, non-cooperation movement that is starting to shake the very foundations of China's colonial rule in Tibet.
May the Tibetan Water Dragon Year 2139 bring us closer to a free and independent Tibet.
Bho Gyalo. Victory to Tibet.
Many people describe Losar, somewhat inadequately, as the Tibetan equivalent of the western New Year. But Losar is much more than just a marker between two separate years; it is a day steeped in religious rituals and spiritual symbolism. Losar for Tibetans is like several holidays wrapped into one; it delights children and adults alike, reunites families and renews friendships, reminding us of who we are as a people, and as a nation.
This Losar, however, will be a quiet one. From Lhasa to Lithang, Golok to Dharamsala, and Ngaba to New York, there will be no fireworks, no merrymaking, no exchange of gifts. For this is no ordinary time. In the past year, 22 Tibetans have set themselves on fire in the most pure and powerful expression of defiance to Chinese rule. The self-immolations in Tibet have shocked the world and galvanized the Tibet movement. Just last week, Dhamchoe Sangpo and Nangdrol self-immolated. Their demands were clear: freedom for Tibet and the return of the Dalai Lama.
In an expression of national grief, Tibetans everywhere are foregoing festivities today to salute those who have given their lives for freedom this past year. Though we are aware that grief alone does not bring about revolutionary change, there is something undeniably powerful about this collective mourning because it is an act that we Tibetans control, a phenomenon that the Chinese government cannot stop.
In many parts of Tibet, Chinese authorities have been paying Tibetan families to celebrate Losar. In a perverse attempt to create a picture of normalcy, the authorities have been almost begging Tibetans to "have a good time" on Losar. Tibetans, by canceling the festivities and taking control over their own lives, are seizing power away from the state through this widespread act of civil disobedience.
Deciding how to mark Losar is perhaps the most poignant expression of the Tibetan people's growing cultural and social sovereignty, the foundation upon which political freedom can be built. Our collective grief and spiritual reflection this Losar is an act of resilience, of defiance, and ultimately, of hope. As we pay tribute to those who have selflessly offered their lives to advance our cause, let us remember what they died for, and recommit ourselves to the goal of a free Tibet.
This Losar, we urge you to honor the Tibetan heroes of 2138 by taking a pledge of resistance for Tibet. Here are some examples of the pledges Tibetans and our supporters are making today:
- I pledge to update my MP or Congressperson every week about Tibet.
- I pledge to boycott Made-in-China products.
- I pledge to recruit a new member to the Tibetan Freedom Movement every month.
- I pledge to join a Tibet rally or vigil at least once a month.
- I pledge to join Rangzen Circle to sustain SFT's work for Tibetan freedom: http://studentsforafreetibet.org/rangzencircle.
To make your pledge, please visit: www.Lhakar.org/pledge. Here you can read more about how Tibetans are exercising control over their social and cultural lives and building a vibrant self-reliance, non-cooperation movement that is starting to shake the very foundations of China's colonial rule in Tibet.
May the Tibetan Water Dragon Year 2139 bring us closer to a free and independent Tibet.
Bho Gyalo. Victory to Tibet.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
What Remains Undiscussed About Self-immolations
Every Tibetan who has self-immolated to date made a profoundly important decision that remains undiscussed: the decision not to take a single Chinese life, whether that of an innocent civilian or a military personnel. Yet Beijing has claimed that self-immolation is a terrorist act, in a move that can only be understood as a self-destructive policy aimed at driving Tibetans toward real terrorism.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
A Prophecy and a Woman from Lhasa
The Mayan prophecy that the world will end in 2012 has spawned hundreds of books, films, plays and satires. Although the public fascination with apocalyptic stories does not necessarily translate into real belief, I admit to secretly subscribing to an alternative vision of a 2012 apocalypse - one where the world is cleansed of tyranny, colonialism, and totalitarianism.
If the watershed events of the past year were any indication, we have reason to believe that in 2012 dictatorships everywhere will have a harder time withstanding the wave of resistance that is brewing in the streets, on the web, in the tea houses, and in people's minds.
Barely three weeks into the year, we're seeing groundbreaking change in Burma, where hundreds of political prisoners have been released and Aung San Suu Kyi has gone from being a prisoner of the state to the nation's most esteemed stateswoman. As the structures of oppression fall - whether in neighboring Burma or in distant Tunisia - the democratic pressure on China intensifies.
Tibetans are at the forefront of this revolutionary wave. In the last 11 months, 16 Tibetans have set fire to themselves in protest of Chinese rule, laying bare the colossal failure of China's colonial project in Tibet. The self-immolations - as overwhelming as they are underreported - are a flashpoint for the growing resistance movement in Tibet. Beijing is quickly learning that it can imprison Tibetans, but not their ideas, their words, or their dreams.
In spite of China's pitch-black oppression, Tibetans are charging forward, armed with their nonviolent weaponry of political protest, economic noncooperation, civil disobedience, cultural renaissance and social innovation. And while we have been devastated by each incident of self-immolation, we have also been inspired by the unparalleled courage and sacrifice that motivated these acts.
It was with a similar courage that a hundred years ago, on March 26, 1912, Tibetans formally declared war against Imperial China, effectively ending the Manchu invasion of Tibet. In 1913, the 13th Dalai Lama formally declared Tibetan independence.
2012 marks a century since the collapse of the Manchu empire. My vision of apocalyptic change in China does not seem out of place at a time when people across the Chinese empire are restless for freedom from corruption, inequality, pollution, poverty and repression. The message from Tibet is clear: there is no turning back. I believe Tibetans will once again be ready to seize the moment and restore Tibet's independence, taking our rightful place in the global community of sovereign nations.
My belief in this future is reaffirmed every day, not only by the tectonic political shifts that are changing the world beneath our feet, but also by my personal interactions with friends and strangers - sometimes at the most unexpected moments.
A few days ago at the Kalachakra in Bodh Gaya, India, I saw a middle-aged woman with a familiar face walking past me. I caught her attention with a respectful nod and asked, "Achala, have we met before?"
She smiled and replied in impeccable Lhasa dialect, "Not sure... but where are you from?" Answering that I was from New York but previously from Dharamsala, I asked where she was from.
"Well, I'm from Lhasa," she replied courteously. With a Lhasa accent that strong, I thought to myself, it was almost unnecessary to name the place.
"Oh, really?" I couldn't conceal my excitement at meeting someone from Tibet. "I must have seen you in Lhasa then; I was there in 2007 for a few days. I must have seen you in Bharkor Square."
"Ah, that explains it," her eyes twinkled. I could tell that she felt extremely fortunate to be one of the few thousand Tibetans to cut through China's nightmarish political restrictions to attend the Kalachakra in India. As we parted, she held my hand tightly in a way older Tibetans do when saying farewell to close relatives. With a calm yet intense gaze, she said:
"We will meet again. I think we will all meet again, very soon, back home."
We both knew what she meant. I said, yes, we absolutely will.
If the watershed events of the past year were any indication, we have reason to believe that in 2012 dictatorships everywhere will have a harder time withstanding the wave of resistance that is brewing in the streets, on the web, in the tea houses, and in people's minds.
Barely three weeks into the year, we're seeing groundbreaking change in Burma, where hundreds of political prisoners have been released and Aung San Suu Kyi has gone from being a prisoner of the state to the nation's most esteemed stateswoman. As the structures of oppression fall - whether in neighboring Burma or in distant Tunisia - the democratic pressure on China intensifies.
Tibetans are at the forefront of this revolutionary wave. In the last 11 months, 16 Tibetans have set fire to themselves in protest of Chinese rule, laying bare the colossal failure of China's colonial project in Tibet. The self-immolations - as overwhelming as they are underreported - are a flashpoint for the growing resistance movement in Tibet. Beijing is quickly learning that it can imprison Tibetans, but not their ideas, their words, or their dreams.
In spite of China's pitch-black oppression, Tibetans are charging forward, armed with their nonviolent weaponry of political protest, economic noncooperation, civil disobedience, cultural renaissance and social innovation. And while we have been devastated by each incident of self-immolation, we have also been inspired by the unparalleled courage and sacrifice that motivated these acts.
It was with a similar courage that a hundred years ago, on March 26, 1912, Tibetans formally declared war against Imperial China, effectively ending the Manchu invasion of Tibet. In 1913, the 13th Dalai Lama formally declared Tibetan independence.
2012 marks a century since the collapse of the Manchu empire. My vision of apocalyptic change in China does not seem out of place at a time when people across the Chinese empire are restless for freedom from corruption, inequality, pollution, poverty and repression. The message from Tibet is clear: there is no turning back. I believe Tibetans will once again be ready to seize the moment and restore Tibet's independence, taking our rightful place in the global community of sovereign nations.
My belief in this future is reaffirmed every day, not only by the tectonic political shifts that are changing the world beneath our feet, but also by my personal interactions with friends and strangers - sometimes at the most unexpected moments.
A few days ago at the Kalachakra in Bodh Gaya, India, I saw a middle-aged woman with a familiar face walking past me. I caught her attention with a respectful nod and asked, "Achala, have we met before?"
She smiled and replied in impeccable Lhasa dialect, "Not sure... but where are you from?" Answering that I was from New York but previously from Dharamsala, I asked where she was from.
"Well, I'm from Lhasa," she replied courteously. With a Lhasa accent that strong, I thought to myself, it was almost unnecessary to name the place.
"Oh, really?" I couldn't conceal my excitement at meeting someone from Tibet. "I must have seen you in Lhasa then; I was there in 2007 for a few days. I must have seen you in Bharkor Square."
"Ah, that explains it," her eyes twinkled. I could tell that she felt extremely fortunate to be one of the few thousand Tibetans to cut through China's nightmarish political restrictions to attend the Kalachakra in India. As we parted, she held my hand tightly in a way older Tibetans do when saying farewell to close relatives. With a calm yet intense gaze, she said:
"We will meet again. I think we will all meet again, very soon, back home."
We both knew what she meant. I said, yes, we absolutely will.
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
On Turning 32
I am turning 32 today. And it's hard enough not to feel fortunate to be living in a time when history is being rewritten. But what makes me feel doubly grateful is that Tibetans are at the forefront of this great wave of change, shaping our own future, influencing the course of world history.
In the shadow of the highly publicized Arab Spring, a quieter but equally significant revolution is sweeping Tibet. From Lhasa to Kardze to Chamdo to Ngaba, we are seeing acts of nonviolent resistance multiply across the plateau. Amid China's pitch-black oppression, Tibetans are using the most creative tactics including political protests, economic noncooperation, civil disobedience, cultural revival, and social innovation.
While we have been devastated by this year's string of Tibetan self-immolations, we have also been inspired by the unparalleled courage and sacrifice that motivated these acts. The self-immolations, the protests, the boycotts, the vigils, the direct actions, all reflect a turning point -- Tibetans have conquered fear of the Chinese government, and thus sealed its fate well before its death. As we know all too well from the history of other countries, when the oppressed becomes fearless, the oppressor becomes powerless.
The fate of Tibet is intertwined with that of the world. Freedom for Tibet will promote peace and nonviolence around the world. There is no greater argument for nonviolence than the victory of a nonviolent struggle over the largest dictatorship of the century.
I ask you to grant my wish by donating to Students for a Free Tibet -- the organization that is helping to change the course of Tibetan history with its innovative campaigns, dramatic actions, unstoppable activists, all working toward a common vision. Read some highlights of SFT's achievements in 2011. We are working to mobilize the forces of change for Tibet so that the uprisings we've seen in 2011 become a prelude to the revolutions that may come in 2012.
In the shadow of the highly publicized Arab Spring, a quieter but equally significant revolution is sweeping Tibet. From Lhasa to Kardze to Chamdo to Ngaba, we are seeing acts of nonviolent resistance multiply across the plateau. Amid China's pitch-black oppression, Tibetans are using the most creative tactics including political protests, economic noncooperation, civil disobedience, cultural revival, and social innovation.
While we have been devastated by this year's string of Tibetan self-immolations, we have also been inspired by the unparalleled courage and sacrifice that motivated these acts. The self-immolations, the protests, the boycotts, the vigils, the direct actions, all reflect a turning point -- Tibetans have conquered fear of the Chinese government, and thus sealed its fate well before its death. As we know all too well from the history of other countries, when the oppressed becomes fearless, the oppressor becomes powerless.
The fate of Tibet is intertwined with that of the world. Freedom for Tibet will promote peace and nonviolence around the world. There is no greater argument for nonviolence than the victory of a nonviolent struggle over the largest dictatorship of the century.
I ask you to grant my wish by donating to Students for a Free Tibet -- the organization that is helping to change the course of Tibetan history with its innovative campaigns, dramatic actions, unstoppable activists, all working toward a common vision. Read some highlights of SFT's achievements in 2011. We are working to mobilize the forces of change for Tibet so that the uprisings we've seen in 2011 become a prelude to the revolutions that may come in 2012.
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Like Sands in a Mandala
A new Tibetan song I wrote a while ago... below is the English translation of part of the lyrics:
When the mind is at peace
And the body is at ease
And you are with me
All the sorrows of samsara
Fall away like sands in a mandala.
Disillusioned by samsara
I went to seek nirvana
In a retreat in the mountains.
But the mountaintop was barren
In the depth of samsara, I found nirvana.
There is life after death, they say
But it means little to me either way.
To share with you the sorrows of this life,
I will part with the joys
Of a thousand lifetimes.
When the mind is at peace
And the body is at ease
And you are with me
All the sorrows of samsara
Fall away like sands in a mandala.
Disillusioned by samsara
I went to seek nirvana
In a retreat in the mountains.
But the mountaintop was barren
In the depth of samsara, I found nirvana.
There is life after death, they say
But it means little to me either way.
To share with you the sorrows of this life,
I will part with the joys
Of a thousand lifetimes.
Saturday, December 24, 2011
In An Endless Dream
In an endless dream
I was wide awake
guarding you from myself
while wishing the dawn
would never break
In an endless dream
you were fast asleep
or that's how it seemed
until I let my hand
run through your hair
In an endless dream
you opened your eyes
smiling away your surprise
your eyelashes swept through
the floors of my temple
In an endless dream
we walked side by side
not toward any place
but merely into
each other's embrace
In an endless dream
I thought no more
of the future or the past
I just prayed for
the present to last
I was wide awake
guarding you from myself
while wishing the dawn
would never break
In an endless dream
you were fast asleep
or that's how it seemed
until I let my hand
run through your hair
In an endless dream
you opened your eyes
smiling away your surprise
your eyelashes swept through
the floors of my temple
In an endless dream
we walked side by side
not toward any place
but merely into
each other's embrace
In an endless dream
I thought no more
of the future or the past
I just prayed for
the present to last
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