Coming on the heels of his surprise bestseller, "The Art of Happiness," the 14th Dalai Lama has struck another chord in Western readers with "Ethics for the New Millennium." Tibet's exiled leader, whose nation has suffered four decades of systematic oppression and spiritual deprivation, believes that feeling good requires being good--not exactly a common sentiment in a time of bull markets and fad diets. He pulls it off by employing the same soft-spoken, disarming wisdom that is so appreciated in his public speaking engagements. In an interview via e-mail with Amazon.com's Eastern Religion editor, Brian Bruya, His Holiness imparts more wisdom for the benefit of Amazon.com readers, explaining how the basic concerns of all people--happiness based in contentment, appeasement of suffering, and the forging of meaningful relationships--can act as a foundation for universal ethics. You can find "Ethics in the New Millennium" at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1573220256/entertainmentsit and other titles by the Dalai Lama at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/external-search/?keyword=dalai+lama&tag=entertainmentsit ****** Ethics in a Modern World: An Interview with the Dalai Lama Amazon.com: What is there in your thoughts on ethics that is absent from current notions of ethics in the West? Dalai Lama: Not having detailed knowledge of Western theories of ethics, it is hard to answer this question directly. But I believe that any approach to ethics that does not take into account others' feelings and others' equal right to happiness is bound to prove inadequate. Amazon.com: In offering your notions of ethics to the West, you are doing so as a monk steeped in the belief system of Tibetan Buddhism. To be a good person, do we need to subscribe to Tibetan Buddhism? Dalai Lama: According to my own experience, there is no doubt that Buddhist practice is an effective means of achieving the happiness that is characterized by inner peace. Here, though, the emphasis must be on the word "practice." It is not enough merely to revere deities and read sutras. Likewise, there is no doubting that each of the world's major religious traditions provides an effective means of achieving happiness through helping individuals to restrain their narrow selfish impulses on the one hand and to develop love and compassion on the other. But here too, the emphasis must again be on the practice of compassion in the context of inner discipline rather than on the externalities of religious practice. At the same time, it is also true that these ethics--of restraint and of virtue, which are the source of inner peace, of happiness, and of a meaningful life--can be developed without the individual having recourse to religious faith. What I call genuine spiritual practice, which entails disciplining our negative thoughts and emotions and developing a good heart, is, I believe, possible irrespective of a person's belief or lack of belief. Amazon.com: You say that disciplining the mind and developing inner strength are essential. Are these things that everyone can do? Is a society of saints really possible, or do we need a set of rules and punishments to maintain order in society? Dalai Lama: We all have the same potential to develop love and compassion. But this does not mean that everyone progresses at the same speed. And clearly we do need laws and regulations to facilitate good order in society. Ethical discipline is not just about rule following, however. The best, indeed the ultimate, way to guarantee a civilized society is through inner discipline rather than merely relying on external means to achieve law and order. The key is thus to perfect our inner motivation, or inspiration: that which in a sense drives our actions. Amazon.com: You talk about the inner life, about positive and negative thoughts. Why are these important when we consider a person's morals based on that person's actions rather than on his or her thoughts? Dalai Lama: Negative actions invariably arise in the context of negative thoughts and emotions. Conversely, positive actions arise in the context of positive, or wholesome, thoughts and emotions. If a seemingly positive act is in fact motivated by the desire to harm others, it remains a harmful act. Similarly, if, for example, we give with the intention of inflating the image others have of us, we are not really being generous at all. I have tried to emphasize the importance of developing our compassionate nature, which is the basis both of ethical behavior and of human happiness. Amazon.com: You say that genuine happiness for a person depends on ethical conduct. Can't happiness be found simply in the pleasures of life? Are ethical considerations ever at odds with certain pleasures, and would that make them a hindrance to happiness? Dalai Lama: The problem with such an approach to happiness is that those things, such as sensual pleasure, which we suppose to be a source of happiness, are found in the end to be further sources of suffering. Of course, temporary happiness, or temporary satisfaction, can be found in this way. But if we aspire to peace of mind, to that inner sense of tranquility that is unaffected by adverse circumstances, we find that often we need to sacrifice immediate pleasure for the joy of lasting happiness. ****** The full text of Amazon.com's interview with the Dalai Lama is at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/external-search/?keyword=dalai+lama&tag=entertainmentsit Featured in this e-mail: "Ethics for the New Millennium" by the Dalai Lama http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1573220256/entertainmentsit "The Art of Happiness" by the Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1573221112/entertainmentsit You can find other titles by the Dalai Lama at http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/external-search/?keyword=dalai+lama&tag=entertainmentsit ****** You'll find more great books, articles, excerpts, and interviews in Amazon.com's Religion & Spirituality section at Religion & Spirituality
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