Dalai Lama, A Forbidden Name In Nepal
By Sayanee, Gaea News NetworkTuesday, July 6, 2010
KATHMANDU, NEPAL (GaeaTimes.com)- The Dalai Lama turns 75 today, an occasion which otherwise should have been a happy day for the spiritual leader is unfortunately not entirely so. While his homeland Tibet is not allowed to take part in the celebrations, his position in Nepal also remains unchanged, irrespective of the fact that he has contributed a lot to the establishment of peace in the country.
It is an irony of sorts that the Dalai Lama, the most famous disciple of Buddhism, is a forbidden name in the birthplace of Lord Buddha himself. According to reports, more than 350 Tibetans living in Nepal who had tried to pay homage to their leader in the form of a prayer meeting on this auspicious occasion, were held by the local police authorities. The Nepal police also made arrangements for special security policies to be adopted on the Dalai Lama’s birthday which will forbid any follower of the leader in Nepal to visit Boudhanath, Swayambhunath, Pharping or any other holy place of Buddhism in the country. The members of the Nepal Parliament were also barred from attending the ceremony held at the Jawalakhel Tibetan refugee camp in Lalitpur district to mark the Dalai Lama’s 75th birthday.
This step has been taken out of fear of the fact that Nepal will lose the support of their neighboring country China if they indulge in any festivity which shows respect to the leader. This in spite of the fact that it was the Dalai Lama who helped Nepal see an end to its guerrilla warfare and also helped to restore peace in the country after the mishap involving its royal family in the year 2001.
