A Tibetan mother speaks out about the Dalai Lama

No apology was ever needed from His Holiness. No apology. No explanation. No statement.

Because pure unadulterated acts of love, faith, and compassion DO NOT require any apology.

Because an “oothuk” — foreheads touching to represent pure love, respect in our culture — does not require an apology.

Because a kiss or a “po” on the lips given by elders to little children and by young children to elders is common in our culture and another sign of pure, unabashed love — until of course, you superimpose your own hyper-sexualised views/culture or negative experiences on everything and view every act of pure love through that lens; in such an instance, even the sight of a grandfather kissing his own grandson will be misconstrued as “child abuse.”

Because requesting His Holiness to “blow into the face” of a young child or an adult — words that would be horribly misconstrued in any another culture — are in our culture the very reason for hope. Hope for parents with sick children. Peace of mind for so many with a dying parent or loved one as they seek one last audience and “blow” with His Holiness before s/he passes. “Blow on my face” — words/an act so pure in the Tibetan world are so so so very different in every other world. For the word “blow” or the act of “blow-ing” represents hope and faith and peace and contentment and fulfilment and compassion and kindness… in our culture and to our people. Words/acts that would have never been seen as such to those who have not an ounce of understanding of the Tibetan way of life, nor cared to know or understand.

And likewise the words “nge che le jip” — such a common playful refrain by Tibetan elders and so innocent-sounding in Tibetan but not so when translated into English as “suck my tongue.”

So to reiterate — no apology was ever needed from His Holiness, irrespective of how sordid the minds of those who perceive a culture and a purity that their minds can never ever fathom as possible of existence in this world of tremendous hate and angst and lust and malicious intent.

Instead, the world OWES the Tibetan world and His Holiness, who is the very epicentre of that world, an apology. A deep, heartfelt apology for the unprecedented, unwarranted assault and attack on everything we hold dear. The attacks on His Holiness and the ease with which so-called ‘woke’ people have jumped to conclusions have been deeply deeply deeply hurtful for me and millions across the world. [ . . . ]