In the texts, and as His Holiness the Dalai Lama reminds us, we should check the person's behavior not when they're sitting on a big throne, but behind the scenes. How do they treat ordinary people - not the big sponsors - but just ordinary people who are of no particular importance to them.

What I like about Tibetan Buddhism is it was taken to Tibet in the 7th century and then again in the 11th. It has everything that had been collected in India up until that time. And so on all levels, it's so vast.

Different people are different.

The very best players, when they are practicing, put everything they've got into it. But then they leave it for a while. And it's the same in dharma practice.

The dharma is the most precious thing in the world and we should put it at the center of our hearts and transform our whole lives into dharma practice. Otherwise, at the time of death, we will look back and say, now what was all that about? If we truly want to benefit others and ourselves, we have to do it. No excuses.

The thing to do in this lifetime is to create more merit.

When we read history we find that in all ages people have thought, this is the dark age.