and besides that, the return of Tibet to Tibetans is one of my "causes."
I am fortunate to be so deeply rooted in San Marcos and Texas
and to be so aware of my hometown and home state, but the Tibetan Buddhists
who were forced to flee Tibet after the Communist invasion
will never have that sense of security and -- well, "home-ness."
During the invasion of Tibet, the Chinese army performed unspeakable acts of torture
on Tibetans, including the Buddhist monks and nuns who dwelled in the monasteries there.
Some Tibetans tried to fight the invading army, but as Buddhism teaches nonviolence as one of its most important tenets, those who fought were going against their faith;
those who did not fight were tortured, killed or exiled.
The Dalai Lama is in exile in Dharmsala, India,
and many of the ancient Tibetan monasteries had to be re-established in India.
The monks pictured at this site are from the Drepung Loseling Monastery in India,
which also has a seat in the United States in Atlanta, Ga.
The monks were in San Antonio a few years ago, making a sand mandala at the
San Antonio Museum of Art. Their visit concluded with a ceremony at which
the sand mandala was dismantled and the sand was poured into the San Antonio River.
To learn more about Drepung Loseling and find out how you can help
the exiled Tibetan Buddhist monks, visit www.drepung.org.
www.studentsforafreetibet.org
www.savetibet.org
www.rfa.org
www.tibet.com