Dharamsala, June 4 (IANS) Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Thursday wrote to D.K. Shivakumar to congratulate him on being elected as the new Chief Minister of Karnataka.

“Karnataka is home to more than 30,000 Tibetans in exile,” the Dalai Lama wrote, adding: “the largest concentration of the Tibetan diaspora in India. We are deeply grateful to the state and its people for their enduring friendship and generous support. It is a source of great pride that our principal centres of learning, rooted in the Nalanda tradition of ancient Indian wisdom, have found their home in Karnataka.”

“I take this opportunity to convey our heartfelt appreciation to the state government and people of Karnataka for the warmth and hospitality they have extended to the Tibetan community settled there.”

“I wish you (D.K. Shivakumar) every success in meeting the challenges that may lie ahead, and in honouring the hopes and aspirations of the people of Karnataka, particularly in making a real difference to the lives of its most vulnerable citizens,” the Tibetan spiritual leader added.

The Dalai Lama concluded his letter by offering his prayers and good wishes.

The 14th Dalai Lama, author of book “The Voice for the Voiceless”, aims to live for decades more.

Ahead of his 90th birthday in July last year, the Nobel Peace laureate had also confirmed that he will have a successor, putting to rest speculation over whether the 600-year-old institution will end when he dies.

The pontiff lives in exile in McLeodganj, a small and quaint hill station on the suburbs of Dharamsala in the northern Indian Himalayas.

He considers himself a son of India.

“All particles in my mind contain thoughts from Nalanda. And it’s Indian ‘dal’ and ‘chapati’ that has built this body. I am mentally and physically a son of India,” the Dalai Lama in his addresses is often quoted as saying.

“India and Tibet share a relationship of ‘guru’ (teacher) and ‘chela’ (disciple). When I see some part of my ‘guru’ being corrupt, as a ‘chela’ I feel ashamed.”

Time and again, a demand from Indian Parliamentarians and the followers of Dalai Lama is being raised that India should confer its highest civilian award — Bharat Ratna — on him in recognition of his services to humanity.

The 14th Dalai Lama was born on July 6, 1935, in a small village in the remote Amdo region of Tibet.

The Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet in March 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule, believes in a ‘middle-way’ approach, meaning greater autonomy for Tibet rather than outright Independence.

–IANS

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