“Religion is like medicine, and there is no single medicine that suits all,” the 14th Dalai Lama said on Dec. 17.

The Dalai Lama was speaking at the Techfest organised by the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay on Friday.

“Fundamentally, all religions preach the same things. I never said Buddhism is the best religion for inner peace, it is up to an individual what will work for them.”

He said that India has been secular for thousands of years and it can be an example of harmony and world peace. “India has a history of 3,000 years of religious harmony. This country is capable of combining modern education of science and technology with the ancient knowledge of inner peace, and can be a significant contributor to world peace,” the Dalai Lama said.

He said that for over three decades he has interacted with the best scientists in neurosciences, cosmology, psychology, and most of them now believe their is a consciousnesses that guides the human mind. “Modern psychology is at kindergarten-level in front of the ancient Indian knowledge of psychology. Modern science is trying to study the ancient knowledge of meditation and controlling the emotions of a human mind to acquire inner peace,” the Dalai Lama said.

Emphasising the need for education he said, “Education is very important. With the help of education people can control their emotions better.” The Nobel laureate said that a calm mind is necessary for excelling in life. “It’s only with a calm that mind we can think clearly, too many emotions hampers decision making, when we have inner peace only then is the mind neutral and capable of intelligent investigation.”

The 20th century saw world wars and civil wars, a time of destruction and violence, he said. “The 21st century should be one of peace and happiness. If this generation is educated with a combination of science and technology and inner values, then the world will see peace,” he said.

The Dalai Lama said that one’s action should be Ahimsa (non-violence) and reaction should be Karuna (compassion). “A mind without consciousness is useless, one must learn to reduce anger through training,” he said.

On being asked if the world will see a women as a Dalai Lama he said, “If a woman has all the senses of the lineage that the tradition demands then why not. Also, in the 21st century, it is possible to change the 14th Dalai Lama into a female.”

(tibet.net)