The Dalai Lama meeting fans and faithful after arriving in Rotterdam on 14 September 2018. AFP/Getty Images
AFP
ON THE WEB, 16 September 2018
The Dalai Lama said Saturday that he has known about sexual abuse by Buddhist teachers since the 1990s and that such allegations are “nothing new”.
The Tibetan spiritual leader, revered by millions of Buddhists around the world, made the admission during a four-day visit to the Netherlands, where he met on Friday with victims of sexual abuse allegedly committed by Buddhist teachers.
He was responding to a call from a dozen of the victims who had launched a petition asking to meet him during his trip, part of a tour of Europe.
“We found refuge in Buddhism with an open mind and heart, until we were raped in its name,” the victims said in their petition.
“I already did know these things, nothing new,” the Dalai Lama said in response on Dutch public television NOS late Saturday.
“Twenty-five years ago… someone mentioned about a problem of sexual allegations” at a conference for western Buddhist teachers in Dharamshala, a hill town in northern India, he added.
The Dalai Lama, 83, lives in exile in Dharamshala.
People who commit sexual abuse “don’t care about the Buddha’s teaching. So now that everything has been made public, people may concern about their shame,” he said, speaking in English.
Tseten Samdup Chhoekyapa, a representative of the Tibetan spiritual leader in Europe, said Friday that the Dalai Lama “has consistently denounced such irresponsible and unethical behaviour”.
Tibetan spiritual leaders are due to meet in Dharamshala in November.
“At that time they should talk about it,” the Dalai Lama said in his televised comments Saturday. “I think the religious leaders should pay more attention.”
I really hate Tibetan people who live in western countries, because I have a Buddhist centre in the United States. So Tibetan some people wanted to join my centre. They never do the practice just come and start talk gossip about all lamas. Since then I announced not allowed one Tibetan people come my centre. I have Western students, chines, Nepalese and Bhutanese and Indian people. I’m Tibetan but I don’t wanted join political. They blame other Tibetans and politiacal things. So, Tibetan lamas are good but those lay people are stupid.. they are not nice Buddhist .. there only mind political thing. Use religion. They respect Buddhist rinpoche ..
First of all, looking at your English, it is anybody’s guess whether you really live in the States or not. Just using this platform to speak ill against the Tibetans, I suppose. Tibetans are not born super human. Now that many are born in an environment where all kind of people abounds, it is natural for some to pick up not so finer qualities of righteous human being. Painting all the Tibetans with the same brush depicts nothing but malicious intentions. And it is not a big surprise to see lay person committing mistakes unworthy of a righteous man but using a position of a Lama to commit sinful acts is absolutely unacceptable.
Kusho Dhundhen back into dalai lama trust. After corruption, and sex scandal.
Trustees:
Jamphel Lhundup, The Private Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Tenzin Taklha, The Private Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Yodon Thonden, The Isdell Foundation
Lobsang Nyandak, The Tibet Fund
Kaydor Aukatsang, Trustee
Ven. Tenzin Dhonden- Trustee
His Holiness knows for sure the said story of sexual exploits of monks and lamas. We don’t have to dig history. His Holiness should remove Lama Tenzin Dhonden from the confines of Gaden Phodrang if he really cares what he heard in Netherland.
We hear Lama Tenzin Dhonden has not only been taken back into the Dalai Lama Trust, but restored his post as the chair of the charity silently. The Tibetan community is left in the dark.
This is what happens in the world of commercialization of religion. Nowadays a lama is not judged by the knowledge he possesses but by the number of followers, magnificence of his palace and size of his car. In a way, the followers are also to blame as we take pride in calling ourselves a disciple of a lama who excel in magnificence of materialism around him. If a lama is down to earth confined to a dilapidated house, will anyone follow him except when one needs to seek prediction of our future through a ‘mo’. Once I went to attend a teaching by a high lama, I was pained to see all pious Tibetan disciples sitting far and wide on stones and bare ground while so called rich ‘jindaks’ of the monasteries surround the lama. I felt, teachings will soon be forbidden thing for the poor. You go to a monastery requesting for a prayer and like a menu in the restaurant, they have rates for each and every prayer – some so expensive for a poor to even think of. This is degeneration of Buddhism. What will happen to our religion, when His Holiness the Dalai Lama is no more. I feel sorry for him that he has to answer such questions which are not his doing. Long live HH the Dalai Lama, the only saviour of our religion and nation.
Organisers of his trips mustn b allowed to misuse hh for their purposes…
Lama Tenzin Dhundhen, ex emissary of Dalai lama Trust, had sexually exploited a vulnerable mature woman called Sarah Bronfmann. Lama dhundhen had jumped on the Buddhist woman in a bathroom in the hotel. And this is where it all went out of control.
She had connections with a Dorjee Shugden-like cult group called NIXIIM or somethig, and I heard the monk was emasculated by the cult members. That was before he was disgraced from Dalai Lama Trust on other grounds – ie. extorsion.