News
Students inspired by Dalai Lama at Syracuse University
By Jack Cartwright '15
October 18, 2012
Seeing His Holiness the Dalai Lama speak is an experience many people would envy. That is exactly what several Hamilton College students did last week at Syracuse University in the Carrier Dome. The purpose of his visit was to speak on solving global conflicts using a global consciousness, in addition to participating in a series of panel discussions. The general theme of the conference was “Common Ground through Peace.”
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama has been a vocal advocate for peace and non-violence throughout his life. In 1989 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in the non-violent movement for a free Tibet. He also has been acknowledged for his worry about environmental issues. According to his website, Dalai Lamas are seen as “enlightened beings who have postponed their own nirvana and chosen to take rebirth in order to serve humanity.”
The event was packed with celebrity speakers to help facilitate discussions, including Ann Curry of NBC News and Martin Luther King III. Additionally, the University hosted the “One World Concert” following the discussions with performers such as Dave Matthews, Natasha Bedingfield and Nelly Furtado.
The night before the first event, Reverend Jeff McArn sent a campus-wide email to inform students that four tickets surfaced to see the Dalai Lama speak on the rise of democracy in the Middle East.
McArn said Dean of Faculty Patrick Reynolds received four tickets for the talk and originally offered them to the faculty of Hamilton’s Middle East and Islamic World Program. Due to an apparent lack of interest, McArn was able to secure the tickets later in the week and offer them to students.
“I was asking around for interested students on an informal basis over the weekend, but it became clear that a broad email message was required,” he said. Since there was such high demand for the tickets, McArn himself did not attend the event.
The four tickets for the talk on Democracy in the Middle East were distributed to the students who replied to the email first, but they were not the only students who were able to go to the event. The takeaway from this event for many of the students related to the broad theme of the event—a search for peace.
Nathan Livingston ’14 was one of the four students who was able to take advantage of those tickets. He attended the Dalai Lama’s panel discussion on Monday, describing it as “pretty amazing.” In the discussion attended by Livingston, the Dalai Lama addressed unity of mankind. He spoke on how if only the world acted as children act, “unaware of color, sex, or wealth,” the world might be a more peaceful place.
Several other students, including Kelsey Wise ’14, Emily Richey ’14 and Leah Kramer ’14 were also able to go to the event on their own the following day.
Wise was invited to see the Dalai Lama speak because she has a sister who is a freshman at Syracuse. She said the Dalai Lama talked about peace, calling for those in the audience to “act as a global citizen with global responsibility” with an emphasis on the “oneness of humanity.” Furthermore he spoke on the need to not “consider forgiveness and tolerance as a sign of weakness.”
Richey talked about the pieces of the Dalai Lama’s vision for this global peace. The Dalai Lama did not “lecture us on what governments should be doing to avoid war, he gave us a simple message to live the happiest lives we can,” she said. He advised the audience that by trying to stay positive and appreciating the little things, “we can improve as a society.” Kramer pointed out how he said that we all could make a difference in this century by advancing peace and community. “While his generation has missed their chance, he said the younger generations have the opportunity to make the 21st century much better than the 20th.”
Ultimately, the experience was worthy of envy. Wise, Richey, Kramer and Livingston all thoroughly enjoyed the event. Besides being able to relate the Dalai Lama’s talk to some of her classes, Wise called it an “inspiring experience.”
That sentiment was echoed by many of the other students who went. Kramer was especially happy she was able to take advantage of such a rare opportunity.
Additionally, Richey and Kramer added that it did not hurt that they were able to see performers like Dave Matthews afterwards.