Greetings from Russell's Remnant:

Richard Gere, the actor, Buddhist and Tibetan advocate appeared on the Charlie Rose television talk show in the U.S. on August 23, 1996. He began to practice Buddhism twenty-two years ago, when he was twenty-four. He talked about his career, his films, his marriage, the Tibetans and his relationship with the Dalai Lama. The following are some ideas and comments he made on that show:

You go to an authority figure for help, and a power struggle usually ensues. (He found it interesting that people go to doctors, counselors and lawyers for advice and often end up in some kind of ego struggle pitting their old beliefs against the advice of the one they came to for help.)

When the Tibetans say "mind," they point to their heart. It is where your mind is. As you clean your mind, more positive, more deeper and more compassionate layers emerge. You become aware of these layers, and they intoxicate you and intoxicate all the other layers of your being.

Gere has visited with the Dalai Lama in India several times, but he has only been allowed into Tibet one time. The Chinese are afraid of Gere because he talks about Tibet and what the Chinese have done there, and also because he tells the truth. The Chinese have killed over 1,200,000 Tibetans. They are forcing abortions and using enforced sterilization.

When asked why he stands up for Tibet he stated that it is more than the plight of a people for Gere - on a deep primal level he is saving himself. There is something innate in the Tibetan culture that we cannot survive without on this planet or maybe even the universe. It is a different way of seeing things. It is not about power. It is not about control. It is about altruism and generosity and compassion, and these things are institutionalized in that culture. The Gross National Product of Tibet is spiritual development. They had huge monasteries, the hugest in the world, generating these positive thoughts - generating positive emotions. The loss of the Tibetan point of view would be disastrous for the planet.

When asked about his daily spiritual exercises, Gere stated that he gets up very early every morning and does his own special practice. This strong practice consists of an hour or two of meditation and recitations.

Power and dominance is what we are "stuck in" here. Power and dominance flow from egocentric points of view, and our basic ignorance is the belief that "I" exist as a solid entity. That is the basic ignorance and everything flows from that. If you just say, "I do not exist," there is nothing to protect anymore. There is no sense of power because you do not have any power over anything. Things do not exist that way. They exist, but only in a relative way.

Gere stated that in a marriage or partnerships both people have to be after the same thing. If both are not willing, it is not going to work. If the vision or goal is not the same, there is no way it is going to work. If we pick each other up when we stumble, it is a deeply spiritual thing. This becomes your teacher, your mate.

Richard related that he had taken people to see the Dalai Lama. Some have been transformed, and some have been anxious. You have to give up control to do it. That is the prerequisite. You have got to "just be there." You cannot be saying, "I do not want to sit here, why can't we do it now, why do I have to wait three days to meet him?" You have just got to come and give up control - just be there. On the deepest level you just have to give yourself to it, and trust that the best part of you is going to be fine - no matter where you are. You are in the company of the "ultimate safe person" when you are with the Dalai Lama. You are so safe, you can ultimately let it go. He is egoless. He wants nothing but your happiness. That is his reason for being - to make your happy. This is a bodhisattva. He teaches an exercise where you try take in all the negative things, all the suffering from another being - from all beings, right into your heart; and transform it into love and give that love back out. You constantly clean the universe. Each student can try or is encouraged to do this. Some of the older, more powerful monks can really clean up the universe.