Your life is a gift to the world

The first time I heard of the Dalai Lama and Buddhism was in the 60's with the "Hippie" movement. These wonderful educated "Hippies" had began traveling the world, being schooled in other cultures, exposed to other religions, and dared to bring some of the practices back here to buck the heavy puritan religion of the good old USA.

Among the new discoveries that were shared with a new generation against the Vietnam War, were Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and other "isms" from the Eastern side of the planet.   The ways of non-materialism and liberation, inner peace, renunciation, and harmlessness, was just the remedy for this confusing time in America.  Meditation, finding inner peace within self, not based on having more, more, more, things!  Helped to relieve some feeling of powerlessness the youth of America were feeling as their brothers and sisters were being sacrificed in Vietnam.

At the time I was living in what some would call, a commune.  It was a farm connected with a new ministry that my family thought was a "cult."  Although I was studying the KJV Bible, I heard of "Buddhism" and the leader of it, the 14th Dalai Lama.  I read some of the Buddhist beliefs and found them to be very much like the teachings of Jesus.

I thought back then in 1975, 'I'd like to see the Dalai Lama in person and hear him speak to see if he is the real deal,' but I never really thought I'd see him in person, after all I was in the South of USA and he was living in India.

Years later in 2009 I was among the people who bought a ticket to see the Dalai Lama in person at the Palace Theater, Albany, NY. I had now been studying Buddhism for 6 years, and I can say, he is the real deal.  The daily meditation I learned through my studies of Buddhism has helped me with my clinical depression more than any drug.  Three things he said that resonated with me that day. 1) I am human, if I were not I would not have had a bladder operation last year to remove it! (he chuckles, he has a great sense of humor)  2) news reporters need to find another honorable profession because the lies told in the media is hurting people (he pointed to news reporters standing around the perimeter of the theater) and the most meaningful to me he said, 3) My life is a gift to the world.  

You know we are all one, we are connected by the same blood and air.  I thought he really knows his life is a gift to the world, he teaches his truth, he lives his truth, he knows his purpose.  He is no different in value on this earth than any of us.  If this is true, then "My life is a gift to the world," just like Jesus knew his life was a gift to the world.  "Your Life Is A Gift To The World."

A realization to meditate on daily.