Meet the Dalai Lama

“But Tenzin suddenly stopped beside a grand presence in floor-length maroon robes. I glanced up. Oh, God, it was him! The Dalai Lama stood beaming at us in welcome. It was HIM! In the flesh! [...] My consciousness felt like a silvery feather carried on a swollen, rushing river. The water sparkled—shimmering like crystal, like diamonds, catching reflections from every direction. It was luminous and powerful, yet utterly light. I felt my shoulders drop, my face sigh and come to a sweet place of repose, felt my mind let go and give in to the tide. I heard the words without anxiety; their meaning was of me and natural to me like the roar of the current.”

“There have been very few times in my life when I experienced a moment of razor-sharp clarity. I could count them on one hand: the birth of my first daughter, the moment my lover proposed, an entire afternoon spent drinking tea with a Tibetan refugee in the back of his tiny shop (that’s a story for another day). The moment I took the Dalai Lama’s hand everything became still and silent and achingly, beautifully clear. I was suspended in space and time and nothing existed but the feel of his smooth, warm palm, his strong fingers wrapped gently around mine. It lasted only a split second; he released my hand and greeted the rest of our group, and then was quickly shepherded to his room where he would soon retreat into his evening meditation.”