Dalai Lama On Nelson Mandela

His Holiness the Dalai Lama responded to the passing away of Nelson Mandela with this short video message. Nelson Mandela died last Thursday at the age of 95 years old.

The Dalai Lama on Nelson Mandela said that he knew him as a friend and admired his stand on non-violence. He was a good father of his country like Dr. Martin Luther King. He was a very serious supporter and follower of Gandhi‘s non-violent political action.

He said that our sadness of Nelson Mandela’s passing must translate in to full enthusiastic determination to carry his spirit forward through many generations. This is our responsibility.

My own response was also a feeling of sadness at the loss of another wise leader who practiced non-violence. How he managed to forgive his enemies after being in prison for 27 years is truly amazing. His act of forgiveness is as potent and as important as the Dalai Lama’s forgiveness of the Chinese occupation of Tibet.

In the segment I saw on 60 Minutes last Sunday, I learned that he was a man who loved his family and his people. One of his daughters, Zindzi confessed that she thought her father preferred his struggle for his country over his family. My take on this is that she had a wrong perception about him. I doubt that he would admit this to anyone.

Many thought that Mandela was n0t a saint, but a normal human being. He was known to have bouts of anger, but most of the time, at least while he was in prison, he showed no emotion at all. He did not want his opponents to see his feelings.

Nelson Mandela is a man who will be sorely missed from this world. I can’t wait to see the movie when it comes out.

What is your response to the passing of Nelson Mandela? Please share.

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