The Dalai Lama - Lessons from the Past

By Kristin Silvia

"I jokingly telling people, if we really want peaceful world, no longer any problem, then either human species disappears or our brain change."

This joke, told by the 14th Dalai Lama to his audience at the University of Arkansas last May, was met with laughter. At the beginning of the keynote presentation, he kicked off his shoes and sat cross-legged on the couch before addressing the crowd. The above picture depicts the Dalai Lama in a pink visor and sunglasses, worn at the same presentation. Just because he is traveling the country, addressing scholars and anyone else interested in his message, he does not feel pressured to be formal - at least in the United States. Later on in the keynote presentation at the University of Arkansas, he answered that his favorite thing about traveling was the freedom and the informality of American culture. He has a small frame and is soft spoken, but he doesn't need to raise his voice to get his audience's attention. People want to hear what he has to say.

The message that followed his joke was that although humans are the cause of a lot of today's world problems "Because of human intelligence we only human being, only human being, can develop infinite love, infinite altruism, not animal. Biologically, difficult, but as a seed of compassion from biological factor, then use human intelligence. Through that way, we can develop infinite love and compassion. So, I think inside some trouble, the world has to survive."

To view the transcripts of the Dalai Lama’s visit with the University of Arkansas, click here.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama will speak on Oct. 18 and 19 at Western Connecticut State University, and the public is invited to a free showing (video simulcast) in the Ives Concert Hall, 181 White St. To help promote this opportunity, WCSU students in the Writing and Linguistics Department's Advertising, Copywriting and Promotions class created a Twitter page. and they are writing this blog daily.