Dalai Lama Implies That Bin Laden Killing Is Justified At USC

LOS ANGELES — The Dalai Lama seems to suggest the United States was justified in killing Osama bin Laden.

Speaking Tuesday to about 3,000 students at the University of Southern California, the 75-year-old Tibetan leader says bin Laden, as a human being, may have deserved compassion and even forgiveness.

But the Los Angeles Times says the Dalai Lama added: "Forgiveness doesn't mean forget what happened."

He says it is sometimes necessary to take counter-measures.

It's the Dalai Lama's first U.S. visit since stepping down recently as the day-to-day political leader of Tibet's government in exile.

He skipped earlier Southern California appearances this week because he fell ill with a sore throat. He has stops scheduled Wednesday in Long Beach and Irvine.

Comments

[hershykershy]

09:19 AM on 06/29/2011

I did not hear any implied attempt at a justification for Obama and the seal team to assassinate anyone. Nice headline grabber thou.

[kwijibo]

01:40 PM on 05/18/2011

I have great respect for HHtDL and will consider his words and wisdom with care.

[mjr289]

02:24 AM on 05/17/2011

It takes alot of twisting to turn the words he used into approval for murder. I guess this proves the old adage that listening happens in the brain of the listener, not in the words of the speaker!

[Dhammaflame]

12:57 PM on 05/11/2011

Most of us have been conditioned to regard military combat as exciting and glamorous - an opportunity for men to prove their competence and courage. Since armies are legal, we feel that war is acceptable; in general, nobody feels that war is criminal or that accepting it is criminal attitude. In fact, we have been brainwashed. War is neither glamorous nor attractive. It is monstrous. Its very nature is one of tragedy and suffering.

"I want to make it clear, however, that although I am deeply opposed to war, I am not advocating appeasement. It is often necessary to take a strong stand to counter unjust aggression."

http://www.dalailama.com/messages/world-peace/the-reality-of-war

Dalai Lama

[Dhammaflame]

12:49 PM on 05/11/2011

Dhammapada 129-32

In wars to gain land, the dead fill the plains; in wars to gain cities, the dead fill the cities. This is known as showing the land the way to devour human flesh. Death is too light a punishment for such men [who wage war]. Hence those skilled in war should suffer the most severe punishments.

[JayMonaco]

10:48 AM on 05/11/2011

I pretty much agree with Lhamo Dondrub on this one.

[Onethought]

10:21 AM on 05/11/2011

The question of whether a man that is preparing to kill innocent people should be killed has no easy answer, not even for a Buddhist monk. Buddhism is built on compassion but also on reason. I'm a Buddhist (of sorts) and I think killing OBL was justified. He was preparing to organize more attacks to kill innocent civilians in the US and Europe.
My compassion is with the people that didn't die because he is gone. It is with the mothers that don't have to receive the news that their songs and daughters were blown to pieces on their buss to school.
It's not an easy question but I find his death justifiable.

[spilkus]

09:38 AM on 05/10/2011

I noticed there were 666 comments on this post about the DL. I had to comment as quickly as I could to get the post out of its demonic possession. Hopefully the mod will let this stand.

[arrgh]

12:32 PM on 05/11/2011

Close one. Good save.

[iLdoRight]

01:37 AM on 05/10/2011

A thought that keeps popping up in my head when I see each story on bin Laden is a Song title from the 60's, "It Takes People Like You To Make People Like Me". We often read of how a bullied person becomes a bully, and what is terrorism but a form of bullying. How many different foms of bullying are there, verbal, physical, loud audio music, monetary. Was Hitler bullied into being Hitler, was bin Laden bullied into being bin Laden? When are the bullies going to stop bullying others into being a bin Laden or a Hitler, if that is the case?

[JayMonaco]

10:55 AM on 05/11/2011

"Bullying" is a terribly overused word. Nobody seems to be able to properly define it, either. When does "use of force" become "bullying"? Is it every instance in which the aggressor is more powerful, however slightly? What about "teasing"? When does that cross the line? How about criticism?

It's just a silly word that expresses nothing. It's certainly not a good way to describe Hitler, the conqueror of Europe, or Bin Laden, the leader of a subversive and usually violent alternative world movement. Let's call things what they actually are, instead of using overly simplistic terms that sound like they belong in early childhood education courses.

[mjr289]

02:20 AM on 05/17/2011

This sounds like a grand bullying effort to me! Ridicule, sarcasm (comes from root "to tear flesh) and put downs. How did it feel when Dad (or was it Mom) used those tactics on you? Hope it heals. :-)

[Dhammaflame]

01:25 PM on 05/08/2011

But the Los Angeles Times says the Dalai Lama added: "Forgiveness doesn't mean forget what happened."
He says," it is sometimes necessary to take counter-measures." This does not say Dalai Lama condones assassination or murder! This article is trash.

Forgiveness has everything to do with "wise compassion," Bodhicitta. We do not cling to the past through hatred and anger. Forgiveness is part of letting go of what is now gone, in the past and not ruminating over the future, which had not happened yet, so we can deal with what is happening right now mindfully.. Understanding all sentient beings suffer and want to be happy. Compassion coupled with wisdom is as hard as a diamond nothing can penetrate wise compassion, soft as silk when dealing with difficult dangerous or stress filled issues, as sharp as a knife cutting through ignorance. Compassion and wisdom are like 2 wings of a bird, you need both to fly.http://www.bodhicitta.net/

Dali Lama and all Buddhist follow sila a code of conduct that leaves no room for killing. My teacher told me he would rather die then kill a sentient being.

[dewachen81]

11:46 AM on 05/10/2011

This is all just a bunch of rhetoric, wise compassion, clinging, and all that. Why is it that everyone no matter what the faith has to throw around the rhetoric of whatever their faith may be? “Compassion coupled with wisdom is hard as a diamond.” How do you know, is it because someone with a title in a robe told you so? It may also be that those who have a title and wear a robe have their position and title to cling to, while all the politics that surrounds it are all subject to lies. All sentient beings are also clouded with bias; therefore it is imperative they do their own work and not borrow buzz words they don’t understand and profess it to everyone else as if they did. Buddhism has a tremendous amount of depth and wisdom, but it is also subject to degradation which is precisely what is happening now under the Dalai Lama and those under him. This degradation did not simply start under the Dalai Lama; it has been going on for a very long time.

[Dhammaflame]

12:23 PM on 05/10/2011

welcome to kaliyuga

[JayMonaco]

10:59 AM on 05/11/2011

He's a benevolent theocratic leader (yes, there is such a thing), and it's best to see him in this light instead of some kind of magical philosopher. I'm not sure theocracy itself is a very Buddha-like concept, so there's some early degredation right there.

[Dhammaflame]

01:08 PM on 05/08/2011

"He says it is sometimes necessary to take counter-measures." where is the word killing?

[John Thiel]

11:16 AM on 05/10/2011

What sort of counter-measures do you think he meant? Tickling Osama Bin Laden until he apologized? Whether the Dalai Llama meant killing or torture is irrelevant; he was wrong.

He is only human, but should know better than to make a statement like that which goes against everything he allegedly stands for.

[Dhammaflame]

11:32 AM on 05/10/2011

There are 48,000 counter measures that are non violent. Don't put words in the teachers mouth! This man us a monk. Buddhist monks do not condone murder. All you have to do to understand this simple fact is read the Dalai Lamas body of work. This article is gossip and a piece of trash.

[JayMonaco]

11:01 AM on 05/11/2011

Exactly--and he's a very intelligent dude as well. He understands how people perceive things, and if that's not what he meant, he would have chosen different words.

Not all buddhists are strict pacifists who don't believe in killing.

[Joe Mastromauro]

11:32 AM on 05/08/2011

Getting "may have implied" from those two quotes is rubbish. Must have had the feeds mixed up with the Drudge Report.

Now don't et me wrong, the only reason I do not dance in the street is from memories of wanting a Fuel Air Explosive going off over the tens of thousands dancing in the street when the towers fell. What would make me better than them?

Do not put words in his Holinesses' mouth.

[cabrobst]

08:22 AM on 05/08/2011

Yay Dolly!

[mmm611]

12:16 AM on 05/07/2011

All hateful clerics should be targets of the Navy Seals. We should have a hit list and take them out one at a time.

[Brutus76]

01:56 AM on 05/08/2011

#1) Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church.

[CeiThor]

09:01 AM on 05/11/2011

I second that!

[Hellas32]

11:32 PM on 05/06/2011

In my studies I have found only one situation in which killing is considered acceptable in Buddhism. If you kill the person to prevent them from incurring even more Karmic debt. From that perspective, I could see how the Dali Lama might consider the killing of someone like OBL justified. It was certainly without doubt that the man would continue to incur far greater Karmic debt if left to continue his life. From this perspective, killing him then becomes an act of compassion. You are taking Karma on yourself to reduce his suffering in the next life.

[kooldalai]

12:05 PM on 05/07/2011

That was so well put. As a Buddhist I thank you.

[Joe Mastromauro]

08:49 AM on 05/08/2011

The first Practie is Sila, and in that practice it is learned that ALL living entities are equal. Therefore if OBL is a justified killing, than you and I are also wortthy of killing.

The first of the 5 precepts is "Thous shall not kill".

The article is tripe.