Understanding the Dalai Lama

His Holiness The Dalai Lama, the remarkable exiled spiritual and temporal head of Tibet, is a statesman for our troubled times. This collection of 11 essays by scholars, writers, theologians, and others whose lives he has touched represents a broad spectrum of perspectives on this Nobel Peace Prize recipient who is also a living Buddha to six million followers. Included among the contributions are personal reflections by those who have been privileged to get to know His Holiness, as well as illuminating introductions to some of his core beliefs. Editor Rajiv Mehrotra, who contributes the book’s first essay, says of the Dalai Lama, “As with all truly great and inspiring leaders, his life is his message and philosophy.” The essays in this volume shed light on that fascinating life . . . painting the portrait of a tireless champion of compassion, altruism, and peace who is both deeply spiritual and disarmingly human.

Rajiv Mehrotra, a personal student of the Dalai Lama and the author/editor of several books, was educated at the University of Delhi, the University of Oxford, and Columbia University. For more than three decades he has been a familiar face on public television in India, notably as the anchor of an in-depth, one-on-one talk show. He is presently secretary/trustee of the Foundation for Universal Responsibility of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and managing trustee of the Public Service Broadcasting Trust. He is also a trustee of the Norbulingka Institute of Tibetan Culture, has functioned as a judge of the Templeton Prize for Spirituality, and has served on the governing councils of the Sri Aurobindo Society and the Film and Television Institute of India. An independent documentary filmmaker, he has won several international awards and five national awards from the president of India. He was nominated as a Global Leader for Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland, and twice invited to speak at plenary sessions.