Kritik am Buch „The Shadow Of The Dalai Lama ... - Neues von Shi De

State and religion, ritual and politics are inseparable for him.
What, however, distinguishes a “politics of symbols” from “realpolitik”? Both are concerned with
power, but the methods for achieving and maintaining power differ. In realpolitik we are dealing with
facts that are both caused and manipulated by people. Here the protagonists are politicians, generals,
CEOs, leaders of opinion, cultural luminaries, etc. The methods through which power is exercised
include force, war, revolution, legal systems, money, rhetoric, propaganda, public discussions, and
bribery.
In the symbolic political world, however, we encounter “supernatural” energy fields, the “gods” and
“demons”. The secular protagonists in events are still human beings such as ecclesiastical dignitaries,
priests, magicians, gurus, yogis, and shamans. But they all see themselves as servants of some type of
superior divine will, or, transcending their humanity they themselves become “gods”, as in the case of
the Dalai Lama. His exercise of power thus not only involves worldly techniques but also the
manipulation of symbols in rituals and magic. For him, symbolic images and ritual acts are not simply
signs or aesthetic acts but rather instruments with which to activate the gods and to influence people’s
awareness. His political reality is determined by a “metaphysical detour” via the mysteries. [6]
This interweaving of historical and symbolic events leads to the seemingly fantastic metapolitics of
the Tibetans. Lamaism believes it can influence the course of history not just in Tibet but for the
entire planet through its system of rituals and invocations, through magic practices and concentration
exercises. The result is an atavistic mix of magic and politics. Rather than being determined by
parliament and the Tibetan government in exile, political decisions are made by oracles and the
supernatural beings acting through them. It is no longer parties with differing programs and leaders
who face off in the political arena, but rather distinct and antagonistic oracle gods.
Above all it is in the individual of the Dalai Lama that the entire wordly and spiritual/magic potential
of the Tibetan world view is concentrated. According to tradition he is a sacred king. All his deeds,
however much they are perceived in terms of practical politics by his surroundings, are thus
profoundly linked to the Tibetan mysteries.
The latter have always been shrouded in secrecy. The uninitiated have no right to participate or learn
about them. Nevertheless, in recent years much information about the Tibetan cults (recorded in the
so-called tantra texts and their commentaries) has been published and translated into European
languages. The world that opens itself here to Western awareness appears equally fantastic and
fascinating. This world is a combination of theatrical pomp, medieval magic, sacred sexuality,
relentless asceticism, supreme deification and the basest abuse of women, murderous crimes,
maximum ethical demands, the appearance of gods and demons, mystical ecstasy, and cold hard logic
all in one powerful, paradoxical performance.
Note on the cited literature:
The original documents which we cite are without exception European-language translations from
Sanskrit, Tibetan or Chinese, or are drawn from Western sources. By now, so many relevant texts
have been translated that they provide an adequate scholarly basis for a culturally critical examination
of Tibetan Buddhism without the need to refer to documents in the original language. For our study ,
the Kalachakra Tantra is central. This has not been translated in its entirety, aside from an extremely
problematical handwritten manuscript by the German Tibetoligist, Albert Grünwedel, which can be