The Meaning of Life in Dharamsala

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Nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, Dharamsala is the seat of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, as well as home to His Holiness the Dalai Lama. I felt like I had arrived in another country, and in a sense I had. With the Chinese efforts to wipe out Tibetan culture in its homeland, a traveller today can experience more Tibetan culture in Dharamsala than they could in the Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. Dharamsala itself is a city of about 50,000, but the Tibetans and travellers are focused mainly in its upper districts, centered on the village of Macleodganj. Thousands come here from all over the world to study Buddhism, get involved in various Tibetan movements, catch a glimpse of His Holiness the Dalai Lama when he is in town, or just enjoy the tranquility and beauty of the surrounding mountains. Streets are lined with restaurants, hotels, clothing stalls, internet cafes, offices of various Tibetan institutions, and too many westerners wrapped in blankets when they could just wear their jackets. I spent a few days trying to understand how this all came to be, taking walks beneath the temple, watching hail fall in the afternoon from coffee shops, engaging spirited discourse with local activists, students and travellers. I discovered it’s a difficult situation to explain, but I’m an idiot, so that never stopped me before.

Like the Middle East, Northern Ireland and the former Yugoslavia, Tibet’s problems arise from the unfortunate collision between the overly ambitious 48-wheel truck of politics, and the one-track heavy steam train of religion. China invaded Tibet in 1949, claiming sovereignty, in that Tibet had historically fallen within its borders. Much like Greece could justify an invasion of Egypt citing Alexander the Great. At the time, Tibet was a backward, feudal and forgotten corner of South Asia, having isolated itself from western allies by insisting on neutrality during World War II, and paying little attention to its status as a nation-state. The Tibetan army was crushed in days and even though they appealed to the international community, nobody was ready to get their hands dirty over a small mountainous region in Asia, particularly one that had done them no favours in the past. India felt that peace between China and Tibet could be brokered outside of the international community, and a form of negotiation took place. The Tibetans were forced (physically, as it turns out) into signing a handover treaty, and as far as the world was concerned, that was that. China saw Tibetan culture and Buddhism (like all religion) as a threat to its communist unity and set about dismantling it. After an unsuccessful uprising, the Tibetan spiritual and political ruler, the Dalai Lama, and hundreds of thousands of others were forced to flee into exile. For the past 40 years, China has pumped billions into a Tibetan infrastructure, offering subsidies to Chinese to settle in the region, and millions have done. Cleverly, Beijing’s investment ensures their claim to the area, as it is no longer just a piece of land that can be given back. Today, many people feel that Tibetans are now a minority in Tibet. Thus it is no longer a question of “Free Tibet”, but rather, “Save Tibet”.

“The demographic has changed so dramatically, we are focused on preserving Tibetan identity as opposed to independence,” says Tenzin Lekshay, who works at the Department of Information within the Central Tibetan Authority. I was trying to organize a camera permit to the temple, and learnt much more in the process. Despite many Tibetans in-exile demanding independence, the Dalai Lama has recognized that this is simply unrealistic given the past few decades of Chinese rule. Instead he favours autonomy within China, with the freedom to govern its own domestic affairs and most importantly, the freedom of religion. Within Tibet, it is illegal to keep a portrait of the Dalai Lama. Thousands of monks and political prisoners have been jailed as “agitators”, monasteries continue to operate under the authority of Chinese administrators, and the young Panchen Lama, second only to the Dalai Lama himself, was kidnapped in Tibet ten years ago and his whereabouts remain unknown. China may have fulfilled its aim of incorporating and cajoling a religious-free Tibet into the mainland had it not miscalculated on several key issues. The most important being, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.

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