Check out this short interview with Tendzin Choegyal, HHDL’s youngest brother, via Tokyomango via BoingBoing. He seems like a pretty cool guy, “a rebellious soul who dropped out of college, spent a couple of years as a paratrooper in the Tibetan contingency of the Indian army, survived alcoholism,and found peace through a blend of Buddhism, lithium, and reading the news on the Internet.” Sounds a lot like people I know. Except for the whole paratrooper thing, and the alcoholism. And the lithium. So, just reading the news online, and, sometimes, Buddhism.
Anyway. Here’s my favorite part of the interview. Should sound kind of familiar after a semester of making fun of Steven Seagal and going to culture class…
GR: Have you met a lot of the celebrities who stop through Dharamsala to meet the Dalai Lama?
TC: Celebrities? They’re all human beings, what’s the big deal? You sit down with them, you start talking, and it’s the same thing. Richard Gere is a wonderful person—very simple, modest, and natural with whomever he meets. He’s done a lot for the Tibetan community. And then, on the other side of the scale, there’s Steven Seagal. Oh my god. I met him when he came here. He was wearing a funny coat, a Chinese brocade, funny trousers, and funny shoes with that ponytail. I asked him, “Why do you dress in such a peculiar manner?” He didn’t say anything. He’s arrogant, and pretends to be a Tibetan reincarnate. But why? He’s a strange man.
GR: What do you think about the preservation of Tibetan culture in Dharamsala?
TC: I think we’re losing it. Culture is not about dancing; it’s not about the songs you sing. I think we are starting to go mainstream here—people are wearing baseball caps and baggy pants. Human culture keeps on changing—it’s constantly being modified. There’s no such thing as the “original culture”—we are always in a state of flux. So it depends on how you look at it. But no matter how you dress or what kind of song you sing, as long as you can relate with other people, I think it’s okay. Any trend that is based on the mistaken view that freedom under democracy is a license to do anything is dangerous. You’ll destroy yourself, your family, and your community, because it’s based on selfishness. Say somebody is very angry, and he just can’t listen to reason. That person’s reason for not restraining himself is, I’m free.I can to whatever I want. The restraining factor is becoming smaller and smaller. We are becoming noble savages.
Elizabeth, you will also probably appreciate this advice about how to How to Cure Constipation with the Push of a Finger, also via Tokyomango. Apparently it has something to do with a pressure point between the thumb and index finger of your right hand.
