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

offensive by openly preaching the fundamentals of the dharma. As an ingenious manipulator, he
succeeded in employing the language, images, symbols, and gods of the local religions as a means of
transporting the Indian Buddhism he had brought with him. The tribes to whom he preached were
convinced that the dharma was nothing more than a clear interpretation of their old religious
conceptions. They did not even need to give up their deities (even if these were most cruel) if they
were to “convert” to tantric Buddhism, since Padmasambhava integrated these into his own system.
Even the Kalachakra Tantra, based on a marked and pervasive concept of the enemy, recommends
the manipulation of those of other faiths. Surprisingly, the “Time Tantra” permits the performance of
non-Buddhist rites by the tantra master. But there is an important condition here, namely that the
mystic physiology of the practicing yogi (his energy body) with which he controls the entire occult/
religious event remain stable and keep strictly and without deviation to the tantric method (upaya).
Then, it says in the time doctrine, “no form of religion from the way of one’s own or a foreign people
is corrupting for the yogis” (Grünwedel, Kalacakra II, p. 177). With this permission, the way is free
for one to externally appear tolerant and open minded towards any religious direction without
conflicting with the power-political goals of the Kalachakra Tantra and the Shambhala myth that
want to elevate Buddhism to be the sole world religion. In contrast, the feigned “religious tolerance”
becomes a powerful means of surreptitiously promoting one’s own fundamentalism.
Where does this leave the ecumenical politics of the Fourteenth Dalai Lama? Interreligious
discussions are one of the Kundun’s specialties; there is not a major world ecumenical event of
significance where his negotiating presence is not evident. He is one of the presidents of the “World’s
Parliament of Religions” in Chicago. The god-king tirelessly spreads the happy message that despite
differing philosophies all religions have the same motive, the perfection of humans. „Whatever the
differences between religions,” he explained in Madras in 1985, „all of them want man to be good.
Love and compassion form the essence of any religion and these alone can bring people together and
provide peace and happiness to humanity” (Tibetan Review, January 1985, p. 9).
Yet (he says) for the sake of quality one should not gloss over the differences between the religious
approaches. It is not at all desirable that we end up with a uniform, overarching religion; that can not
be the goal of the dialog. One should guard against a “religious cocktail”. The variety of religions is a
outright necessity for the evolution of humankind. “To form a new world religion,” the Kundun says,
“would be difficult and not particularly desirable. But since love is essential for all religions, one
could speak of a universal religion of love. Yet with regard to the methods for developing love and for
attaining salvation or permanent liberation the religions differ from one another ... The fact that there
are so many different depictions of the way is enriching” (Brück and Lai, 1997, p. 520). In general,
everyone should stick with the religion he or she was born into.
For him it is a matter of deliberate cooperation whilst maintaining autonomy, a dialog about the
humanity common to all. In 1997 the god-king proposed that groups of various religious
denominations undertake a pilgrimage to the holy places of the world together in order to learn from
one another. The religious leaders of the world ought to come together more often, as “such a meeting
is a powerful message in the eyes of millions of people” (Tibetan Review, May 1997, p. 14).
Christianity
In the meantime, exchange programs between Tibetan Buddhist and Christian orders of monks and
nuns have become institutionalized through a resolution of the Dalai Lama, with all four major lines