By Tenzin Dharpo
DHARAMSHALA, Dec. 15: The Sera Monastery in Bylakuppe Tibetan Settlement, Karnataka, played host to the 30th conference of the ‘Mind and Life Institute’ beginning yesterday for yet another meet exploring interfaces between science and Buddhism.
The four day conference began with an opening remark by His Holiness the Dalai Lama who reiterated that science and Buddhism can help alleviate each other in exploring the material and matter through scientific approach with that of mind and its various elements from a Buddhist point of view.
“I thought it would be good if I were able to meet with scientists in person. And when I did, I was struck by how unbiased they were. Our subsequent discussions were mutually beneficial. I discovered that those of us who come from the Nalanda tradition were able to learn from them about matter and the material world, but that they too could learn from us about the mind”, His Holiness said.
The Tibetan leader views this initiative as a fruitful union that has pushed boundaries and has arrived to a point where it will persist to attract many new and interested people from both sides. He mentioned, “This is our 30th meeting and although some of us here today may not see the 40th, I am confident the momentum of these meetings will go on into the later 21st century without us.”
The first day’s proceedings saw presenters Richard J. Davidson, founder of the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds, Prof. Jay Garfield, Thupten Jinpa, pincipal translator to the Dalai Lama and Pawan Sinha, the man behind ‘Project Prakash’
On ‘Project Prakash’ which is an initiative to restore sight for blind children in India, its founder Pawan Sinha likened it to an ideal example of scientific means merging into humanitarian and compassionate deeds. The Dalai Lama visibly moved with the project pledged a donation for the cause and added, “In this beautiful project you saw both a scientific opportunity and an opportunity to help these children. This is what compassion is about, bringing help here and now in this life. It’s about trying to build a happier world. Compassion is about bringing enthusiasm to effecting change by relying on common sense, common experience and scientific findings,” said the Tibetan leader.
The proceedings that will go on till Thursday will see prominent personalities from both Buddhism and world of science like Matthieu Ricard, Geshe Lhakdor, Geshe Lobsang Geshe Dadul, Yangsi Rinpoche, Catherine Kerr, John Dunne, Vasudevi Reddy and Lera Boroditsky among others presenting case studies and revelations on respective themes. The conference will conclude with a closing dialogue with His Holiness the Dalai Lama along with all the presenters.
This year’s edition of the conference has been co- organized by the Mind and Life Institute and the Dalai Lama Trust.
