In the wake of the recent bloodbath that followed violent protests in Tibet, and the crushing of the rebellion by the Chinese troops, the Tibetan spiritual and political leader in exile in India, the Dalai Lama (a Nobel laureate), is back in the news. A useful Q&A on Dalai Lama and the Tibetan issue appears in The Independent…Click here…
Excerpt: “Why is Dalai Lama so well known? The Dalai Lama is the man who brought Buddhism to Hollywood. Buddhism is the fastest growing Eastern religion in the West. It is fashionable among the secularish chattering classes because it encourages enquiry rather than dogma – offering all the joys of belief without the encumbrance of having to believe anything very much. Buddhist practices such as meditation have been taken up across the whole of the New Age movement. It is the latterday astrology of the Western middle classes.
“Ironically the Dalai Lama is not in search of converts. If people find their own culture’s spiritual traditions, he says, they should look into themselves to find out why. But his charisma and tolerance have made him one of the best-known religious figures alive today.”
Meanwhile the British prime minister Gordon Brown faces a dilemma…to meet Dalai Lama or not when he comes visiting Britian in May. The Chinese, with whom Gordon is trying to build good realtions, are highly sensitive on the Dalai Lama issue. More here…
And here…
Swaraaj Chauhan describes his two-decade-long stint as a full-time journalist as eventful, purposeful, and full of joy and excitement. In 1993 he could foresee a different work culture appearing on the horizon, and decided to devote full time to teaching journalism (also, partly, with a desire to give back to the community from where he had enriched himself so much.)
Alongside, he worked for about a year in 1993 for the US State Department’s SPAN magazine, a nearly five-decade-old art and culture monthly magazine promoting US-India relations. It gave him an excellent opportunity to learn about things American, plus the pleasure of playing tennis in the lavish American embassy compound in the heart of New Delhi.
In !995 he joined WWF-India as a full-time media and environment education consultant and worked there for five years travelling a great deal, including to Husum in Germany as a part of the international team to formulate WWF’s Eco-tourism policy.
He taught journalism to honors students in a college affiliated to the University of Delhi, as also at the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication where he lectured on “Development Journalism” to mid-career journalists/Information officers from the SAARC, African, East European and Latin American countries, for eight years.
In 2004 the BBC World Service Trust (BBC WST) selected him as a Trainer/Mentor for India under a European Union project. In 2008/09 He completed another European Union-funded project for the BBC WST related to Disaster Management and media coverage in two eastern States in India — West Bengal and Orissa.
Last year, he spent a couple of months in Australia and enjoyed trekking, and also taught for a while at the University of South Australia.
Recently, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of Studies at Chitkara University in Chandigarh, a beautiful city in North India designed by the famous Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. He also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students there.
He loves trekking, especially in the hills, and never misses an opportunity to play a game of tennis. The Western and Indian classical music are always within his reach for instant relaxation.
And last, but not least, is his firm belief in the power of the positive thought to heal oneself and others.