History to Histories: Buddhism in Tibet

We have been taught since elementary school that the United States is a “melting pot.”  It is filled with millions of people, various cultures, different religious beliefs, and a multitude of races, among other things.  Thinking about it now, I’m sure nobody has the same exact historical background.  The United States history is a shared history among us citizens, but the individual histories “overlap and influence each other” (Martin & Nakayama, 2013).  Recognizing that the United States doesn’t just have one history to celebrate and acknowledge, but instead is built on a plethora of histories, is important.  With this acknowledgment, we will be able to better understand each other, and realize what the “melting pot” is truly about: a variety of mixed, shared, and different histories. 

In the 8^th century, Buddhism migrated to Tibet.  Currently, Buddhism is practiced by the majority of Tibetan people.  The head of the dominant school of Tibetan Buddhism is called the Dalai Lama (Religion Facts 2013).  He acted as the spiritual leader of Tibet, and had ruled since the fourteenth century. 

Then, the Chinese sparked some changes to the peacefully practiced religion in Tibet.  Since the early 1950’s, Chinese forces have ruled Tibet.  The religion was suppressed by the communist Chinese government.  This, in turn, led to the exile of the Dalai Lama.  China felt that the Dalai Lama teachings that advocate Tibetan self-rule (BBC News 2013).  This led to much tension between Tibetans and the Chinese, more than there already had been.  The Tibetans attempted to strike back after their ruler was forced to leave the country.  However, they were vastly outnumbered and, after just two days, there were 87,000 Tibetans that had been killed (Szczepanski 2012).

Currently, China is still in control of Tibet.  Tibetans are now a minority in their own country (Szczepanski 2012).  Tibetans are still attempting to protest the Chinese rule.  One famous picture that came from this is that of the Tibetan Buddhist monk who set fire to himself as a protest (BBC News 2013).  There have been over one hundred people that have attempted to protest  by setting themselves on fire since 2011.

This is a perfect example of the “history to histories” connection.  A complete Tibetan history of religions went in a completely different direction when Chinese rulers took over the country.  Their ruler was taken away from them, and many have been killed or had to flee their own country.  This event has even sparked a national interest, and various examples of intercultural communication.  For example, my class in high school analyzed and discussed the photography of the protesting Tibetan monk.  Many might remember the pictures of former President George W. Bush conversing with the then exiled Dalai Lama, too.  

The Buddhist ruler has spent time in the United States in the past.  CNN found that 56 percent of Americans hold a favorable view towards the Dalai Lama (Ravitz, 2010).  This percentage, and these examples, show how the Buddhist history has changed overtime, and how its been affected, and is affecting, other countries as well. 

BBC News.  (2013). Tibet profile.  BBC News Asia.  Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-16689779

Martin, J.N., & Nakayama, T.K. (2013). Intercultural communication in contexts (6th ed.) New York, NY: McGraw Hill.

Ravitz, J. (2010).  Why Americans love the Dalai Lama.  CNN. Retrieved from         http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/02/22/americans.love.dalai.la ma/index.html

Religion Facts. (2013).  The Dalai Lama.  Tibetan Buddhism. Retrieved from          http://www.religionfacts.com/buddhism/sects/tibetan.htm

Szczepanski, K.  (2012).  Tibetan uprising of 1959.  About Asian History.  Retrieved from          http://asianhistory.about.com/od/colonialisminasia/a/1959tibetupr_2.htm