DHARAMSHALA, September 24: Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama said that the ultimate source of happiness is within ourselves and stressed on the need to develop inner peace.
He was speaking to a large number of Indians gathered in his exile hometown of Dharamshala to listen to Morari Bapu, a renowned Indian religious teacher and exponent of the Ram Charit Manas, Saturday.
Calling Bapu a “spiritual friend,” the Dalai Lama spoke highly of his practice of interacting with the people, while expressed faith that his spiritual guidance gives definite help to people’s mind in developing peace.
Bapu has been doing Ram Kathas for over fifty years and traveled all over the world spreading the Katha’s ethos of “universal peace, truth, love and compassion.”
In the over 700 Kathas done to date, Bapu has been known for drawing upon examples from other religions and inviting people from all faiths to attend Kathas.
The Dalai Lama noted that India is a “living example” where all the major religious traditions co-exist and thrive alongside each other. He called the common aim of the religions of promoting compassion, nonviolence, and truth as “India’s treasure.”
“I usually describe myself as a messenger of India wherever I go and talk about ahimsa and religious harmony, which are India’s message,” the Tibetan spiritual leader said.
He added that India can make “significant contribution” to the world in brining inner peace with its message of ahimsa, honesty, and truthfulness.
The 77-year-old Nobel peace laureate urged the gathered people to listen carefully to Bapu’s teachings over the next nine days and implement them in day-to-day life with “constant effort and enthusiasm.”
“Although material development is important but the ultimate source of happiness is within ourselves. Learn how to develop inner peace,” the Dalai Lama beseeched.
“It is always possible to change. Please listen seriously to the teachings and think that this is the starting of my new meaningful life.”
Earlier in the day, Morari Bapu visited the Tsug-la Khang, the main temple, to briefly attend a religious ceremony presided over by the Dalai Lama.
