Modi From India Welcomes Dalai Lama On Birthday In Rare Phone Call | News from the Dalai Lama

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has let the world know that he has called Tibet’s spiritual leader the Dalai Lama to wish him a happy 86th birthday, regardless of any potential disapproval from China.

Beijing considers the Dalai Lama, who has lived in exile in northern India for more than six decades, as a dangerous “splittist” or separatist, and disapproves of any engagement with him.

Indian leaders have generally been wary of public contacts to avoid upsetting Beijing, but with India’s own relations with China at an all-time low, Modi said in a tweet that he had personally conveyed his best wishes.

“I spoke on the phone to His Holiness the @DalaiLama to send him greetings on his 86th birthday. We wish him a long and healthy life, ”said Modi.

Several Indian state leaders went on to salute the Dalai Lama, saying that his values, teachings and way of life were an inspiration to humanity.

The Dalai Lama thanked his supporters and expressed his appreciation for India, where he has lived since he fled his homeland in 1959.

“I want to express my deep gratitude to all my friends who have truly shown me love, respect and trust,” the Dalai Lama said in a video message.

He reiterated his mission to serve humanity and urged his followers to be compassionate.

“Since I became a refugee and have now settled in India, I have fully enjoyed India’s freedom and religious harmony,” he said.

He added that he had great respect for secular India values ​​such as “honesty, karuna (compassion) and ahimsa (non-violence)”.

Chinese troops seized Tibet in 1950 in what Beijing calls “peaceful liberation,” and the Dalai Lama fled into exile and made the city of Dharamshala his headquarters after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959.

On Tuesday, a small celebration attended by most of the government officials was held at the Tibetan Central Administration. On a projected screen, the Dalai Lama’s video message was broadcast and followed by a cultural performance by the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts.

Usually, the spiritual leader’s birthday is a pretty elaborate affair in the city, open to members of the public who flock to the Tsuglagkhang Temple where the performances are held. Sometimes the leader would also make an appearance.

This year, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the celebrations have been muted and behind closed doors. But a banner marking his birthday hung in the town square, and Tibetan monks distributed sweets and juice to passers-by outside the closed temple.

“A lot of people really show that they love me. And a lot of people love my smile, ”the Dalai Lama said with a smile at the start of the video. “Despite my old age, my face is quite beautiful,” he said with a laugh.

The Dalai Lama, left, and Muslim scholar Maulana Wahiduddin Khan at a 2013 conference in New Delhi [File: Mohd Zakir/Hindustan Times via Getty Images]

New Delhi recognizes Tibet as an autonomous region of China, but has several territorial disputes with Beijing elsewhere over their 3,500 km (2,173 mile) Himalayan border.

Relations deteriorated in June last year after the most serious clash in decades, when Chinese troops attacked an Indian border patrol with stones and batons, killing 20 people. China later said it lost four soldiers in the clash.

Tens of thousands of soldiers remain nearby at several points in the western Himalayas, on the border with Indian Ladakh, an area sometimes called Little Tibet because of its Tibetan culture and predominantly Buddhist religion.

In 2019, as Modi continued to relax with Chinese President Xi Jinping, his government asked Tibetans in India not to hold a rally to mark the 60th anniversary of the uprising.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen also wished the Dalai Lama a happy birthday, tweeting, “Thank you for teaching us the importance of coming together to help each other during this pandemic. “



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