[The Dalai Lama] told me some years ago, "I've made every concession to China, and I've been as open and tolerant as I could, and still things get worse in Tibet." If you look at it from one point of view, as he himself says, his monastic position of forbearance and nonviolence hasn't reaped any benefits. And yet, he's thinking in terms of the long term, of centuries.

Many people would say that A Tibetan monk, even in Lhasa, may be free while the ruler of China may not be free.

Dalai Lama is taking a subtle and nuanced view of politics and he is thinking in terms of events well beyond our lifetime.

Travel spins us round in two ways at once: It shows us the sights and values and issues that we might ordinarily ignore; but it also, and more deeply, shows us all the parts of ourselves that might otherwise grow rusty.

Like the moon on the water, in a way. When you confront a Zen master, what you're really seeing are not his limitations but yours.

The Dalai Lama says don't pray for peace, don't wait for peace, don't talk about peace - do it right now.

We have more and more ways to communicate, as Thoreau noted, but less and less to say.