Is there a justification for the hope that Tibet would regain its freedom?

By NS Venkataraman*
On 2584th Birth Anniversary of Gautama Buddha on 16th May,2022 ( Buddha Purnima day), I was all the time introspecting about Buddhist philosophy and inevitably started thinking about the great Buddhist country Tibet , which is now undergoing a stressful time.
When thinking about Buddhist philosophy, I could not but think about respected the Dalai Lama, who is the greatest Buddhist philosopher today in the world and who loves everyone and who does not hate anyone including those leaders in the Chinese government who have done the greatest harm to him and to Tibet. Now, respected the Dalai Lama remains as a standing monument of Tibetan spirit, which reflects love, peace and unbending struggle for truth and harmony not only in Tibet but all over the world
I realized that while China can physically occupy Tibet region, China cannot destroy the spirit of Tibet, which is reflected by the mindset of Tibetans who are hoping against hope that a day would come when Tibet would become an independent country as it was before the Chinese occupation and re emerge as great centre for Buddhist thought as it was before Chinese occupation.
Tibetans are now spread in many parts of the world as refugees or citizens of some other countries but, their mindset is Tibetan in spirit and philosophy. They derive their inspiration from the presence of the respected the Dalai Lama , who symbolizes the spirit of Tibet with all it’s glory and greatness.`This spirit of Tibetans will certainly lead to the regaining of Tibet’s freedom in future. As spirit of Tibet lives, Tibet cannot be lost.
TIbet has been under China’s occupation for over 60 years now. Most of the Tibetans who suffered due to the brutality of Chinese army when China occupied Tibet may have passed away. The next generation of Tibetans living abroad have not stepped on the holy soil of Tibet and are unfortunate not to have seen Tibet at all in person. However, the spirit of Tibet would be there deep in their subconscious mind. Such conditions in the mind of next generation Tibetans are inevitable , as the spirit of Tibet is so strong, noble, borderless and not time related.
Tibetans know that they cannot defeat China in war to get back the Tibetan region. Of course, the respected the Dalai Lama never advocated violence to oppose China and Tibetans only sacrificed their lives and time in a variety of ways including self immolation , to awaken the conscience of the citizens of China, people in the rest of the world as well as the leaders in the Chinese government.
Certainly, Tibetans in true Tibet spirit do not hate the Chinese as community, as the Tibetans know that they are not responsible for the aggression against Tibet by China but only the leaders in the Chinese government, which is not a representative government of the people of China elected in a true democratic process, are responsible.
The ground reality today is that Tibetans virtually stand alone with their Tibetan friends across the world, while some countries pay lip sympathy to Tibet’s cause and with most countries ignoring the injustice done to Tibet by China. The Tibetans also know that even some of the Buddhists living in other countries like Sri Lanka , do not seem to be particularly concerned that Tibet should regain it’s freedom. The sad fact is that even countries like Sri Lanka with predominant Buddhist population denied visa to the respected the Dalai Lama for visiting Sri Lanka at the behest of China.
Then, what is the justification for the hope that Tibet would regain its freedom in future?
The hope is due to the faith that truth will ultimately prevail and justice will be done . The faith in Lord Buddha will ensure this.
History has repeatedly proved that truthful mental spirit is always more powerful than physical valour. Physique of one person can be beaten and destroyed by the stronger physique of another person. But, the mental spirit and craving for freedom , love and harmony can never be destroyed even by those who inflicted the wound.
In the life of a nation, 60 to 70 years is not a long period, though it is so in the life of a human. But, the human spirit is timeless. Tibetans and their friends should be conscious of this. The spirit of Tibet would win one day to restore the glorious holy land of Tibet to Tibetans in future , even if it may not happen in the lifetime of the present generation of Tibetans. It will happen.
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*Trustee, Nandini Voice for the Deprived, Chennai