The Dalai Lama

Foreword

When Tibet was free, we took our freedom for granted. We had little sense that it was something we had to prove or even defend, because we were unaware that it was under threat. We simply regarded ourselves as ’the red faced, black haired people of the Land of Snow.’ Our physical isolation lulled us into a sense of complacency that left us unprepared for the changes that were to come. Tibet’s long history has been marked by a close and creative interaction with our various neighbours. In former times Tibetans were a war-like nation whose influence spread far and wide. With the advent of Buddhism our military prowess declined, but this change in attitude ultimately spawned rich new relations with India, China and Mongolia that were cultural and religious in nature. Sadly, we failed to develop sufficient political awareness for the times. Great changes were taking place all around us. To the south India was gaining her independence and to the east China was undergoing civil war and revolution. Meanwhile, Tibet remained much the same. To our cost, we underestimated how these changes would affect us. However, I believe that since then our powerful neighbours have profoundly underestimated how the upheaval that has taken place in Tibet affects them. As a neutral state at the heart of Asia, Tibet has traditionally acted as a buffer between India and China, both now nuclear powers. A buffer that presently no longer exists. As the ’roof of the world’ and the source of several great rivers, the Tibetan plateau has also great influence on regional climate, thus environmental changes there have far-reaching effects in East and South Asia.
Finally, as a rich repository of living Buddhist culture and tradition, Tibet has a great deal to offer in the quest for inner peace and the encouragement of nonviolence and peace in the world at large. In this book, Claude Arpi, an old friend of Tibet and Tibetans, deals with many of these themes. Taking a long perspective from ancient times to the present he shows how Tibet’s interests have always been interdependent with those of her neighbours and vice versa. Consequently, resolution of the current impasse on Tibet will only be settled by dialogue that acknowledges this reality. I have proposed the establishment of Tibet as a Zone of Peace that would address the needs of our neighbours as well as our own. However, such a solution can only be achieved if all the interested parties are prepared to enter into discussions. Until now the Chinese side has resolutely avoided doing so. Claude Arpi has spent many years of his life in India and has acquired a thorough understanding of the Tibetan issue. While he expresses an admiration for the good spirited resilience of Tibetans that has inspired him in his work, I would like to state my admiration for his own down to earth and practical attitude. He is a man who assesses what needs or can be done and settles down to doing it. This same approach is reflected in this book. I believe readers will find that he casts a much clearer light on the issue of Tibet, which I hope will in turn inspire them to give support to our cause.

July 15, 1999