Dalai Lama returns to Himachal Pradesh after knee surgery, accorded warm welcome
Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama returned to Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday after a successful knee replacement surgery in New York.
Amid controversy over ‘attractive female’ successor statement, Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Tuesday said he meant no offence with his statement and he is deeply sorry that people have been hurt by what he said and offers his sincere apologies
Dalai Lama had made these remarks during an interview with international media house which ‘have caused disquiet’ and he felt it was important to address the issue. In a statement issued at Dalai Lama’s office, ‘Firstly, in response to a question about whether his own reincarnation could be a woman and suggesting that if she were she should be attractive’, he meant no offence.
He emphasises the need for people to connect with each other on a deeper human level, rather than getting caught up in preconceptions on superficial appearances.
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Dalai Lama, a monk now in his mid-eighties, has a keen sense of the contradictions between the materialistic, globalised world he encounters on his travels and the complex, more esoteric ideas about reincarnation that are at the heart of Tibetan Buddhist tradition.
However, it sometimes happens that off the cuff remarks which might be amusing in one cultural context, lose their humour in translation when brought into another. He regrets any offence that may have been given, the statement reads.
He has opposed the objectification of women, has supported women and their rights and celebrated the growing international consensus in support of gender equality and respect for women.
Under his leadership, Tibetan nuns in exile have earned Geshema degrees, indicating a high level of scholarship previously reserved only for male monks. He has frequently suggested that if we had more women leaders, the world would be a more peaceful place.
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