From the Capitol to Minneapolis City Hall, Rinpo Lama’s pilgrimage prays for Tibet — and public action
By Rhoda Fukushima
Pioneer Press
Article Last Updated: 04/26/2008 12:18:41 AM CDT
Tibetan expatriate Rinpo Lama (John Doman, Pioneer Press)
Rinpo Lama is making his way from the Capitol to Minneapolis City Hall one prayer at a time.
Lama, of Bloomington, started a prostration pilgrimage on a rainy and chilly Friday morning, also the 19th birthday of the Panchen Lama, the second-highest religious figure in Tibetan Buddhism. He wants to call attention to the Panchen Lama, who disappeared at age 6, after China rejected the Dalai Lama’s selection of the boy for Panchen Lama.
Lama also wants attention drawn to the conflicts between Tibetans and the Chinese government.
“It is a protest and prayer for a better life for people who are suffering in Tibet,” Lama said as he took a break on University Avenue near Victoria Street.
At 9 a.m., Lama left the Capitol with a goal of getting to Minneapolis City Hall by Thursday. He hopes to meet with Mayor R.T. Rybak.
On Friday, Lama made his way to University Avenue one movement at a time. Think of a burpee calisthenic exercise without the jumping:
Hands in prayer position above his head.
Hands in prayer position under his chin.
Hands in prayer position in front of his chest.
Prostration on the ground.
Three steps covering the length of his body.
Prostrations are a nonviolent, meditative way to protest what is happening in Tibet, said Miriam Cameron, a faculty member at the University of Minnesota’s Center for Spirituality and Healing who is active in the Tibetan community.
China has occupied Tibet since 1951, and the Dalai Lama
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went into exile in 1959. Last month, Tibetans and Chinese clashed in some of the largest riots in Tibet in years. The torch relay for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing also became a flashpoint for protests.
On Friday, the Chinese state-run news agency, citing “official sources,” said China will meet with the Dalai Lama’s representatives. Thousands of Tibetans in India also marched to demand release of the Panchen Lama, presumed to be in Chinese custody.
Lama, 35, was granted asylum in the United States in 1997. His wife and two children — a boy, 11, and a girl, 12 — joined him three years later. About 2,000 Tibetans live in Minnesota, Cameron said.
Lama works at Solera Restaurant setting up tables, chairs and other equipment for parties. He also is an endurance cyclist, with a Minnesota-to-Washington, D.C., trip under his belt. To prepare for the prostration pilgrimage, Lama did 25 to 50 prostrations each night.
“He has very strong convictions,” said Jeff Larson, an immigration lawyer in Minneapolis who took Lama’s asylum case pro bono. “That he takes extreme measures underscores how he perceives the extreme situations” in Tibet.
At 11:30 a.m. Friday, the skies were overcast, and the temperature was
Pedestrians walk around Tibetan expatriate Rinpo Lama, of Bloomington, as he repeats the cycle of praying and prostrating Friday morning along University Avenue in St. Paul. Lama started a traditional seven-day prostration pilgrimage Friday to call attention to Tibet’s plight. (John Doman, Pioneer Press)
44 degrees. A friend, Sang ya Dhondup, pulled up in a car near Victoria Street. In the back seat were signs that read: “No human rights in Tibet” and “Release the Panchen Lama.” Dhondup handed Lama a large cup of SuperAmerica coffee.
Lama wore a black wool cap, neon yellow rain jacket, black rain pants, knee guards and homemade wooden palm protectors strapped to his hands. His orange T-shirt adorned with peace symbols and the Tibetan flag had sayings including “Justice,” “Freedom” and “Truth is our only weapon.” Lama said he is not against the Chinese people but rather the Chinese government’s practices.
His rain pants were already soaked, his wool cap was dripping, and gritty sand and road spray clung to his shirt.
“This is nothing compared to what they’re going through,” Lama said of Tibetans.
He planned to pray and prostrate until about 4:30 or 5 p.m.
Today, he will begin where he left off.
Rhoda Fukushima can be reached at 651-228-5444.
