Dalai Lama Facts

His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, serves as the 14th Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of the people of Tibet. Check out some amazing facts about this man!

• Dalai Lama was born on 6 July 1935, on Taktser, Tibet.

• At age five, his Holiness was taken to a monastery in Kumbum, Tibet to begin his monastic training.

• In Mongolian Dalai means ocean and b-Lama (b is silent)  means teacher.
  

  “When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways–either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find our inner strength.” -Dalai Lama

• Dalai Lama is an outspoken international advocate for a variety of issues, a major one being environmental concern.

• He believes the world’s religions should have harmonious relationships with each other.

• In 1973, His Holiness met Pope Paul VI in Vatican City. Since then, he visited Pope John Paul II on numerous occasions.

• Dalai Lama thinks that the purpose of life is to be happy.

• The Dalai Lama’s take on abortion is not a very rigid one.

• His Holiness’s hobbies include meditating, gardening, and repairing watches.

• On the economic front, His Holiness has firm belief in true Marxist policy and not those practiced by certain countries.

• The Dalai Lama has conducted numerous teaching activities across various institutions in the US.

• The great monk has plenty of celebrity admirers, including Richard Gere, Steven Seagal and Carmen Electra.

• His Holiness the Dalai Lama is the proud recipient of the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award.

• His Holiness won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 for his work.