Freedom in Exile by Dalai Lama XIVMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Reading this book in Dharamsala, the home of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government in Exile, was a unique experience. I’ve heard a lot about this remarkable man from my Tibetan host family as well as from some of his frequent teachings, but this book helped me understand a lot more about his personal journey.
Getting a personal account of his flight from Tibet and the events leading up to it (including his interactions with Mao) were highly interesting. I had not previously understood India’s motivations for being so hospitable to the Tibetan refugees, but this book makes it clear that it was a tough situation at first; Nehru felt that the Dalia Lama was “asking too much” (163). In fact, India was not even one of the countries in the UN who recognized the Tibetan government in exile. Yet, despite the bumpy start, India still continues to be very generous to the incoming Tibetans. Nehru even took it upon himself personally to see that the Tibetan children received a good education in both Tibetan and English since they are the most valuable resources (164).
It makes me wonder how long it will last. This book certainly ends on a very high note—His Holiness believing that the Tibetans will return in his lifetime. He speaks very highly of Chinese people; he only disagrees with the government. He is a very kind and compassionate person, interested in maintaining happiness and spiritual awareness in a time of modernity.
One thing I guess I anticipated but found a little frustrating with this book (and with the genre of autobiography in general) is that his story is presented very persuasively. He is respectful of others to the point that there are huge sections of the book devoted to acknowledgments to certain high-up influential people. The truth is it could not be any other way though. The Dalai Lama is linked it his mission and Tibet and it is no wonder that even his autobiography is trying to inform the reader about that cause first and foremost.
If you are looking for an unbiased history about what happened in Tibet and the current situation, I recommend reading Tibet, Tibet by Patrick French, or just another source. While this autobiography is a great book for better understanding who the Dalai Lama, what he has been through, and his goals for the future, it is only one optimistic of a very important story.
View all my reviews
You know this post reminds me of the same general difficulty I have the genre as well - how do you decide a theme or purpose for a life? And then, when so many biographies end up doing exactly that, why is that the only purpose behind, are we limiting the story? Take for example the biography of Pres. Monson - To the Rescue. There's the purpose right there, to show you that Thomas S. Monson has always been rescuing people throughout his life, with perhaps an unstated but silently articulated purpose of using those stories to increase the church's confidence in their president and prophet. But it just sounds reductionist, doesn't it? If a story can be "an interval in the enchantment of living" (name that booker prize winning Nigerian author), does directing a biography to a single agenda weaken the enchantment of that life? I'm maybe a little too biased in this particular opinion, but I really think that you need a historian to do a really good biography, and a historian a few decades past their death, someone whose absolutely willing to dig through everything and willing to share, to even talk about the failings in their beliefs, their unfaithfulness, their mistakes, sorrows, heartbreaks.
ReplyDeleteI have written my peace on the subject, but I do hope you find some other interesting reads this summer.
I have with the genre*
ReplyDeletebehind it**
(blogger really must add a commenter edit button)
Chase,
ReplyDeleteI am glad you have similar feelings that I have on the genre of autobiography (and the need for Google to add a comment editor), and I appreciate your comment. I have not yet read President Monson's biography, but that thing is pretty hefty. Is it all rallied around that one theme? What ways do you think the genre can be improved? I'm starting to think that the only way to do it well is to 1, be dead, and 2, be someone not wrapped up in an important cause, which might make you a very insignificant person, which might mean no one wants to read about you...
I don't know. Interesting to think about. Have you ever considered writing an autobiography?