Spiritual Leader Dalai Lama Unknown Facts, Quotes

The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso turns 86 today. The birthday celebrations of the Dalai Lama had always been one of the grandest events of Tibetan community. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the celebrations are not going to take place this year.

Here are some unknown facts about spiritual leader, Dalai Lama...

The current Dalai Lama was born in 1935 in the small village of Taktser in north-eastern Tibet. The present Dalai Lama is the most powerful and longest-reigning of all his predecessors. He has stated multiple times that unless something changes, he may be the last of his family to be identified. He hinted in 2011 that he would retire at the age of 90. The family of the 14th Dalai Lama did not speak the Tibetan language. They actually spoke a modified version of a Chinese dialect from China's western provinces. The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the 14th Dalai Lama in 1989.

In 2007, he was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honour bestowed by the United States Congress. The 14th Dalai Lama opposes nuclear weapons and is a member of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation's advisory board. Since the Dalai Lama's childhood, he has been fascinated by science. The Dalai Lama claimed that he was not raised as a monk and would have decided to be an engineer. When the Dalai Lama was young, he used to spend his free time repairing watches and even cars. While speaking in Tennessee in 2009, he said that he calls himself a feminist and fights for the rights of women.

Dalai Lama Quotes:

Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible. If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito. Silence is sometimes the best answer.

Happiness is the highest form of health. Give the ones you love wings to fly, roots to come back, and reasons to stay. Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions. Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Let us try to recognize the precious nature of each day. Every day, think as you wake up: Today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. The goal is not to be better than the other man, but your previous self. Consider carefully: what prevents you from living the way you want to live your life? As you breathe in, cherish yourself. As you breathe out, cherish all beings. Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can’t help them, at least don’t hurt them. Peace does not mean an absence of conflicts; differences will always be there. Peace means solving these differences through peaceful means; through dialogue, education, knowledge; and through humane ways. The whole purpose of religion is to facilitate love and compassion, patience, tolerance, humility, and forgiveness. Only the development of compassion and understanding for others can bring us the tranquility and happiness we all seek.

Here are few tweets made by celebs on Dalai Lama's birthday.