Existing comment:
Untitled
The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso born 1935
As the spiritual leader of Tibet, the Dalai Lama has led his nation's government in exile for many years. He fled his country and arrived in northern India in 1959, after Chinese troops suppressed an uprising of the Tibetan people seeking religious and political self-determination. Four years later, he presented a draft constitution as a means to democratize the administration of the nation in exile. The administration was fully democratized in 1990, and today, Tibetans living in exile in India (and in more than thirty other countries) have elected an expanded Tibetan Assembly.
Beloved throughout the world for his universal compassion and understanding, the Dalai Lama received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 for his nonviolent opposition to the occupation of Tibet. He has declared that when he is ninety years old, he will assess whether the institution of the Dalai Lama should continue after his death.
Robert McCurdy (born 1952)
Oil on canvas, 2008
The Cumming Collection |