Dalai Lama Discloses How Unenlightened He Is

The Dalai Lama — a nominal voice for platitudes of “peace and compassion,” and whom many regard as a kind of messiah — just recently revealed how unenlightened he actually is, telling a group of Chinese students at the University of Minnesota, that he, the Dalai Lama, is, (and I quote) “a Marxist” — though, he hastened to add, “not a Leninist.”

This, understand, is coming not from a Barack Obama type, who preaches Marxism all while enjoying the benefits and comforts and wealth that capitalism brings, but rather from a man who has experienced firsthand the atrocities of Marxism. It is, when you stop and think about it, an amazing thing. From journalist Tsering Namgyal:

Last week, when the Dalai Lama was in Minneapolis, I had a chance to go to a conference attended by nearly 150 Chinese students. Luckily, I ended up being privy to a fascinating meeting. I sat at the back of the slightly-overheated and jam-packed conference hall of a hotel in downtown Minneapolis, and the Dalai Lama engaged with the students on topics ranging from Mao to Marxism to China-Tibet relations.

… Midway through the conversation, His Holiness, much to their surprise, told them “as far as socio-political beliefs are concerned, I consider myself a Marxist.” “But not a Leninist,” he clarified.

During the question and answer session, a student said that the Marxists these days criticize consumerism because they do not understand the difference between “consumption” and “consumerism.” He also asked about the contradiction inherent in the Dalai Lama’s economic philosophy and Marx’s critique of religion. The Tibetan leader answered that the Marx was not against religion or religious philosophy per se but against religious institutions that were allied, during Marx’s time, with the European ruling class. He also provided an interesting anecdote about his experience with Mao. He said that Mao had felt that the Dalai Lama’s mind was very logical, implying that Buddhist education and training help sharpens the mind. He said he met with Mao several times, and that once, during a meeting in Beijing, the Chinese leader called him in and announced: “Your mind is scientific!”—an assessment that was followed by the famous line, ”religion is poison.”

…Marxism, purported to be the guiding philosophy of the Chinese Community Party, has been replaced by American style capitalism in China. But the author of Das Kapital must be laughing in his grave for gaining new converts in the West, particularly in the academia, following the global financial crisis.

(Link)