Now, inside Tibet (pause) there is [some problem] nowadays, since the Chinese liberalized in the economic field.... It also seems that the Chinese are ignoring or deliberately [encouraging] these activities, and even some crimes. In the political field they are very firm and very watchful, but in these fields, whether they are neglecting or deliberately [supporting the social problems] I don't know.

YO:  What part of your regular responsibilities, what part of your job do you most enjoy?

His Holiness: Discussion. Dialogues, meeting, debates, seminars.... These give me the opportunity to think more -- so they are good. And then of course, I enjoy the teaching, provided the audience is very alert. I'm very happy, sometimes...[laughter]. You know, Western audiences are very, I think, alert. Everything, they write down. Now Asians, including Tibetan and some Chinese, and Indians, are very faithful, very respectful but at the same time, when I try to explain some...important thing, sometimes they [mimics sleeping....laughing].

YO: Is there any part of your job that you find useless or difficult or boring?

His Holiness: Useless? Although very rarely, we sometimes have some formality, which I find useless [laughter]. Otherwise, I don't know. Oh yes ... some sort of "sticky" politics, our own internal things. Nowadays, I give all these things to the responsibility of the parliament as well as our kashag [Tibetan government-in-exile's cabinet]. Just 2 weeks ago I told them in a meeting that -- for big issues, such as the power of the Chinese or raising interest in Tibet in the outside world due to my name -- sometimes, I can do more than ordinary Tibetans. So of course, logically, I have to carry this work. But as for the rest of the work, which everybody can do even more effectively than me, our kashag and our Parliament should carry full responsibility, and they should consider me as a dead person. I am getting older and I am not trained in these things. And it is much better that they handle it, much better. Especially, in some cases there is a, you see, a certain atmosphere. It is not sufficient to know what they say, sometimes it seems you need calculate what is behind these words, then I really don't know. Also, it seems to me a silly thing, not important. We are facing, you see here, the danger of the extinction of the Tibetan nation....that is a more serious...a serious matter.

GS:  Regarding violence, if this situation persists, do you think the world and the Tibetan people will have to use violent means against the Chinese? If the situation persists for years....

His Holiness: Yes. It is possible, yes. Even though many Tibetans presently have desperate feelings, there is still underlying some hope that a solution can be found... Under these circumstances some discipline is still possible. Once, you see, that the desperate situation becomes such that really there is no hope, no one to rely on, then you see the human emotion may become out of control. [laughter]

After the interview, which had run a little long, His Holiness stepped onto the sunny patio for a breath of fresh air, and Tenzin Geyche urged me and Gerardo to gather up the mountain of tape recorders, notebooks, cameras, and gifts quickly, as His Holiness had another appointment. We were scrambling to gather up everything, charged from the audience, and grinning from ear to ear. In a year of living near His Holiness and attending numerous public audiences, I had long ago observed that wherever he goes, the Dalai Lama inevitably leaves behind a wake of beaming faces, folks of every age, race and creed smiling as tenderly as if they've all just fallen in love.

As I hastily stuffed my recorder cord into my bag, it kept falling out, until I felt someone stuffing it in for me and looked over to see that His Holiness had come back in and was laughingly giving me a hand. As if he, too, had to help clean up so some other great man could carry on with his schedule of important appointments. How very typical of him.

All images © YoWangdu.com. All rights reserved.