Dalai Lama

One of the best-loved murals on the campus of 186th Street Elementary School in Gardena depicts some of the world's most inspirational figures -- Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King Jr. and Cesar Chavez -- underlined by a question, "Are you a peacemaker?"

The Dalai Lama, in a ringing denunciation, declared Friday that the ailing global economy is the result of "too much greed, and lies and hypocrisy." "These are some of the factors behind the global crisis," he said at a news conference at UC Santa Barbara. "Those people who feel that money is the most important thing in life, when economic crisis hits, learn that it is only one way to be happy. There is also family, friends and peace of mind."

The Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, was hospitalized here Monday after complaining of discomfort in his arm, aides said. He was released a few hours later after a series of tests. The 73-year-old leader was diagnosed with a pinched nerve caused by a slipped disc, said Tenzin Taklha, an aide, who added, "The doctors said it was nothing serious."

If it had happened elsewhere, it might have been dismissed as a teenage prank. A couple of 15-year-olds last year hung a Tibetan banner on the wall of their classroom next to portraits of Mao Tse-tung and Deng Xiaoping. They drew Xs over the faces of the former Chinese leaders and scrawled "Long Live the Dalai Lama" on the wall. But in China, the incident was taken dead seriously.

In a speech marking the 50th anniversary of the failed Tibetan uprising that forced him into exile, the Dalai Lama invoked unusually harsh rhetoric against Chinese authorities, highlighting the widening gulf between Tibetans and China. Among the Dalai Lama's comments during the speech Tuesday in Dharmsala, India, and to reporters afterward: "These 50 years have brought untold suffering to the land and people of Tibet . . .

In Hollywood, everyone takes the Dalai Lama very seriously -- except perhaps for the Dalai Lama himself. The 14th reincarnated primate of Tibetan-style Buddhism -- as well as his scattered people's political leader -- comes pretty close to being the entertainment industry's unofficial spiritual guide. Even many of those with no inclination toward Buddhism have embraced the cause of regaining independence, or, at least, autonomy, for Tibet, which remains under Chinese rule.

The California Legislature rarely balks at bloviating en masse during its frequent and normally routine passage of resolutions to honor the dead, herald the past or celebrate the most innocuous of achievements. But on Monday, the subject of the Dalai Lama was apparently too hot to handle. Assembly Democrats balked at a resolution to honor Tibet's spiritual leader and mark the 50th anniversary of his people's revolt against Chinese rule, and referred it to a committee.

The Dalai Lama is expected Monday in Taiwan for his first visit in eight years, injecting a volatile element into the political fallout from a killer typhoon. Tibet's exiled spiritual leader -- reviled as a separatist by Beijing -- was invited to Taiwan by officials in southern communities hard hit by Typhoon Morakot. Despite having staked his presidency on closer ties with the mainland, Taiwanese leader Ma Ying-jeou had little choice but to agree to the visit because of the uproar against his government for its sluggish reaction to the storm.

The Dalai Lama exhorted Taiwan to safeguard its democracy, interspersing prayers for the victims of Typhoon Morakot with a challenge to China. The Tibetan spiritual leader's call Monday appeared to contradict assurances that his five-day visit to comfort the victims of the worst storm to hit the island in 50 years would steer clear of the political -- a concern for President Ma Ying-jeou's administration, which is seeking closer ties with mainland...

Lawmakers honored the Dalai Lama with a human rights award Tuesday as President Obama faced criticism for delaying a meeting with the exiled Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader. The Dalai Lama and the president will not meet until after Obama visits Chinese President Hu Jintao in Beijing in November. China reviles the Dalai Lama as a separatist and pressures foreign governments not to meet with him. The administration, which needs Chinese support for crucial foreign policy, economic and environmental goals, wants to establish friendly ties between Hu and Obama.