THUBTEN WANGCHEN Representant tibetà a l'exili i fundador de la Casa del Tibet
By Victoria Gómez
Saidus, 12 July 2018
The Tibetan monk Thubten Wangchen, during the
his visit to Chaldea last week.
To Europe hi ha 16.000 exiled Tibetans and it was the community that elected Thubten Wangchen as the representative of the Tibetan parliament in exile. A cop to Barcelona, the Dalai Lama entrusted him with the mission of spreading Tibetan culture through the House of Tibet, founded there 1994. Last week it was in Chaldea where he gave a lecture on this great country of the Himalayan mountains, from the hand of Kailash, his cabbage·worker in the Principality.
–Welcome to Andorra.
–thank you very much. I am very happy to be here, I have already been to Andorra several times and I like it very much. The mountains always remind me of Tibet.
–What it means to be the representative of the Dalai Lama?
–More than representative, I like to say that I am a disciple of the Dalai Lama; I studied in his monastery and we have a very good relationship. Despite my political role, I am a monk and I try to transmit spiritual values.
–I fa 30 years living in Barcelona.
–Yeah. When I arrived in Barcelona, the Dalai Lama advised me to stay to promote the culture of Tibet. My mission is cultural, not religious, because I know that Spain, just like Andorra, it is a catholic country and promoting buddhism could create conflicts for me. Through Tibetan culture you can talk about many things that have nothing to do with religion. It almost does 25 years ago I opened the Tibet House in the center of the city with the mission, not to convert people to Buddhism, but to teach them the philosophy of peace. And to smile a lot!
–He says that Spain and Andorra are Catholic, but Buddhism is very fashionable everywhere.
–Yeah. Spain is officially Catholic, but not in practice. Young people do not go to mass and look for alternatives that they understand better than the Bible. Even so, all religions have a common message: be good person, estimate, doing good and not harming anyone are the basis of Christianity, l’islam, Hinduism… And also Buddhism. The difference is that Buddhism is a philosophy rather than a religion.
–It is the meditation of Buddhism that hooks everyone who tries it?
–Yeah. An atheist can apply Buddhist philosophy through meditation, or the yoga that is practiced so much now, because it is psychology of the mind. Meeting yourself and getting to know yourself is very important to be happy. It's not about religion, but of spirituality. Besides, the Dalai Lama has a lot of charisma and that also sticks a lot and creates a good image of Buddhism.
–Buddhism equals peace?
–This widespread idea is thanks to the Dalai Lama. His messages are always of peace and when people hear about a Buddhist, he automatically thinks that he is a good person and peaceful. However, if he is a Muslim, everyone goes on alert. Because? Because of the image that the leaders promote. But not all Buddhists are perfect, just as not all Muslims are terrorists. Yeah, people in general have sympathy for Buddhism and when they see a monk, smile.
–What it's like to live in a Buddhist monastery?
–very nice. It is dedicating your life to study, to learn, to meditate. It is very important to know the theory in order to convey an optimal idea of Buddhism. I think that there are fewer and fewer Catholics because the chaplains say what to believe without further explanation, and this does not convince young people. Young people have existential doubts and need answers for everything. In the monasteries we try to find answers.
–Buddhism is compatible with 21st century consumerism?
–Why shouldn't it be? The Dalai Lama always says that we must be 21st century Buddhists without forgetting the essence of our teaching. Facebook and Twitter can help get our message across, so if we use it properly it can be a good support.
–He believes that people know the current situation in Tibet?
–No. What everyone knows is that there is a conflict with China, but there is no knowledge of the cause. I'm sure the 80% Andorrans know practically nothing about Buddhism or Tibetan culture. In Catalonia there are people who don't even know where Tibet is! They think it's like Andorra, a small country in the mountains, but in reality Tibet occupies an area like that of Spain, France, Germany and Italy together.
–Why is there such ignorance?
–Because of China!
–Tell us a little more about Tibet, so.
–China invaded Tibet many years ago and their intention is to make it disappear from the map. The Chinese control much of the world's media and, even, to politicians and international leaders. Without going further, Rajoy was banned from receiving the Dalai Lama when he was president. He Made in China dominates more than we think. Besides, in Tibet there are not many resources and we cannot afford to buy television channels or other communication systems.
–At the University of Andorra there is the Confucius Classroom.
–Yeah, the Confucius Institute is opening centers all over the planet and I am very much against it. This is the method used by the Chinese government to manipulate. First pay 150.000 euros as a donation to the university and then they hire a Chinese professor to give politics lessons, rather than culture or traditions. Some of these teachers are spies and the proof is the closure of several Confucius Institutes in the United States and Sweden.
–Tibetan non-violence will solve the conflict with China?
–We Tibetans will only fight against the Chinese government with the weapon of truth and non-violence. It's a decision we made many years ago. Even if it takes us more centuries, we will not spill a drop of blood.
–In the hours, the goal is still independence?
–No. He 2019 fara 60 years that we lost independence and we no longer think so much about regaining it, but what we want is to have autonomy. When Mao died, the Chinese government told us: the word «independence» does not exist and the Dalai Lama was wise and opted for peaceful coexistence with the democratic ratification of the entire Tibetan people. We want to keep our language and our freedom, but within China.
–Who will be the next Dalai Lama?
–The current Dalai Lama will leave instructions before he dies. When his soul dies, we will look for reincarnation and then the person who is born, when he is three or four years old, will show signs of being the future Dalai Lama. We rely on astrology, horoscopes and dreams.
–It could be a woman?
–Of course. If the Dalai Lama deems it appropriate, I have evening. So far the sexist system has not allowed it, but in the future she could be a woman from any country in the world, it doesn't have to be from Tibet. It could be an Andorran woman! [riu] Besides, currently, women listen and meditate more than men, therefore, it wouldn't be crazy if the next Dalai Lama was a woman.
–The Buddhist community would accept it?
–The Buddhist community accepts whatever the Dalai Lama says.
–You always come out smiling in the photos. he is happy?
–It's my way of being. I always smile, com el Dalai Lama. We all have problems, but if you smile, forgetting them is easier.
