A Declaration from Delhi to Canberra

Wednesday November 12th 2014

Last month In Delhi India, His Holiness the Dalai Lama convened a meeting of the leaders of nine spiritual traditions which are practiced in India.  A written note by the Dalai Lama was given to each spiritual leader and their followers, the note expressing ‘The Delhi Declaration’, what the Dalai Lama hoped would be achieved for further discussion in our contemporary world.

“Followers of all spiritual traditions try in their own ways to overcome the suffering that afflicts beings in the world and to bring about their happiness. However, it would be better if we worked together to fulfill such aspirations.”

On the agenda of the two day meeting, where spiritual leaders worked together with ‘a congregation of their flock’, were pressing issues to our contemporary world, most pressing to the International and Australian governments - counteracting violence committed in the name of religion.  We would only have to read the pages of a newspaper such as this, to consider the threat that the Islamic State poses to peace in our contemporary world. 

I feel a pertinent question that should be asked is - how could this group of ‘spiritual folk’ in a far off land like India, give hope for resolution of this conflict with Islamic State a radical branch of one world faith?

Of course it is not up to such spiritual leaders to settle political conflict, that unenviable task rests with our national political leaders, governments and our representatives in the United Nations.  However the power of prayer and religious dialogue, should neither be shunned as esoteric and being of no value to offering inspiration in the resolution of world conflicts.

What can leaders of religion offer their political representatives as hope in a time of crisis?  One delegate can give some insight to ‘The Delhi Declaration’, who thanked the Dalai Lama for entitling the conference “A Meeting of Diverse Spiritual Traditions of India” rather than “Religious” traditions.  What is the pertinence of the distinction in contemporary times between spiritual and religious traditions? 

I recall one of my Tibetan Buddhist teachers, Traleg Rinpoche giving a lecture in New York, where he addressed the topic, ‘Reading Ancient Scriptures with a Modern Mind’. 

Here Traleg Rinpoche expressed the belief that in modern times readers of ancient texts like the bible, the Buddhist dharma or other religious texts of law - should relate to the commonality of ascetic practice.  As Traleg Rinpoche alluded to, the ascetics who wrote our religious doctrine used their common spiritual experiences as inspiration for their religious oral words that came before the words of religions were written.

One should take heart in this spiritual commonality, rather than using religious doctrine as the word that sets religious radicals against the hand of the National and International laws, which are currently attempting to maintain peace on our planet.

Also present at last month’s ‘The Delhi Declaration’ was the head of the Kagyu School, the teaching lineage of Tibetan Buddhism, the Karmapa who made this relevant comment,

“We have been talking about the difference between religion and spirituality.  I think all religions began from spirituality, because those who became founders did not just have philosophical views, but they had experiences: actual, lived experiences. I think we need to pay more attention to experience.”

As a Tibetan Buddhist practitioner of twenty four years, the Karmapa’s prophetic words resonate with the flavor of Tibetan Buddhist teachings. For those of other faiths who are unfamiliar with Tibetan Buddhism, I mean to say by this, is that the Karmapa’s comment infers that in life we must concentrate on our experiences that lead us from political samskaric life, a life where people of different philosophies have conflicts which lead to war, into a unified peaceful world like that aimed for by the contributors in last month’s ‘The Delhi Declaration’.

I recall the picture of Prime Minister Tony Abbott standing on the tarmac, conveying his best wishes and intentions to our fighter pilots before they left on a tour of duty.  I honour the responsibility that our Prime Minister and our service people have with the IS epidemic in Iraq and Syria, and those of our security forces on home shores who must stop those recruited from our own citizenship to defend IS overseas.

I’m sure our international leaders are like our Catholic Prime Minister, in a quiet moment, sending prayers of their own faith for our soldiers to come home and our misguided minority of Islamic citizens from not entering foreign conflict. 

The Dalai Lama made the statement, “Some historians say that 200 million people were killed in the 20th century as a result of wars and violence. The 21st century must become the century of peace.” 

Taking this statement as the ethos of ‘The Delhi Declaration’ to Canberra, where unlike the Indian government the IS threat isn’t on their own shores, like recruited insurgents are on own shores, I have hope and sincere belief that, like the Dalai Lama says, this will be our century of peace. 

I recall an anecdote from India with an Australian story, a train ride through India in the late 1990’s, which became known as ‘The Peace Train.’  A train ride of Indian spiritual/religious leaders, in the name of the freedom of practicing faith, inspired after an Australian missionary husband and wife, were killed by Hindu extremists because they fed their Christian converts meat, an action considered against Hindu fundamentalists.  I still send prayers to the family of this couple. 

Yet in these times where troubles permeate, at still the foundation moments of our 21^st century, I believe we must consider the sentiments of ‘The Delhi Declaration’ for the future of our world, my belief inspired by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, that we are entering an age, where all world faiths will live in harmony together. 

I Imagine on ‘A Canberra Declaration’ where our spiritual leaders and people of all world faiths draw together, in the name of our free way of life, which our government is doing the best it can in International diplomatic and military partnership, to defend and protect.