Analysis of Freedom in Exile by the Dalai Lama

Analysis of Freedom in Exile by the Dalai Lama Assignment 03 Part 1 The Dalai Lama Read the following extracts from the Dalai Lamas autobiography Freedom in Exile. How does the way the Dalai Lama presents himself here relate to his reputation as discussed in AA 100 Book 1, Chapter 7? Dalai Lama describes himself as a simple monk from Tibet. I am no one special (Reading 7.2 in Waterhouse, 2008, p.224). No one had any idea that I might be anything other than an ordinary baby and certainly my family had no idea that I would be proclaimed Dalai Lama. We will be looking at the connection between the present-day Dalai Lama and his predecessors, as well as the reason why Tibetans regard him as a living Buddha. The most important Lama for the Tibetan is the Dalai Lama who has the highest religious status of its kind, and as politics and religion is combined in the Tibetan society, the Dalai Lama is also head of state. According to Tibetan tradition, it is believed the Dalai Lamas has the ability to choose their next incarnation, and even leave symbols and directions for the Panchen Lama, who is responsible for leading the search party to find the successor. Around the time when the present Dalai Lama was around three years old, the Government sent out a search party to look for the next incarnation of the previous Thirteenth Dalai Lama. One of the signs after the Thirteenth Dalai Lama had died, was that the head of his embalmed body had turned from facing south to north-east. Another sign was when Tibets Regent, a senior lama, went to Lhamoi Lhatso, a small oracle lake to seek visions to assist in the search and where he received clear visions of Tibetan letters and images. The method for identifying a reincarnated Lama is not specific. Different combination of divination is being used like interpreting dreams and omens, and consulting the Council of oracles. In the DVD-Video, (Searching for a Reincarnated Lama), we can see the Nechung Oracles medium be in a trance. This Buddhist ritual might in the western world be seen as both frightening and superstitious. However, this process is normal within Buddhist tradition and the way they con sult the Chief Oracle on important matters and finding the Dalai Lamas. The Tibetans believe Dalai Lama is a living Buddha as well as the religious figure of Bodhisattwas of compassion, whose qualities are wisdom, generosity and compassion. Free from anger, hatred and greed. Being a monk and teacher together with the combination of having the political role as the head of the Tibetan state, he has got the reputation as a god-king. (Waterhouse, 2008, p. 211) Dalai Lama won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 and has become a symbol for freedom. His gentle and charismatic way which have won him a large number of followers in the West. Among the Tibetans however, Dalai Lamas words still remains law, and he can be both severe and strict about behaviour and beliefs. The reputation of Dalai Lama in China is somehow very different. The Dalai Lama fled into exile in 1959 during a failed uprising against Chinese rule. He was granted asylum in Dharamsala in northern India which has become home to the Tibetan Government-in-exile. The Chinese embassy (in Reading 7.5), points out that the local government of Tibet headed by the Dalai representing feudal serfdom under theocracy and has long since been replaced by the democratic administration by the Tibetan people themselves and the destiny and future can no longer be decided by the Dalai Lama and his clique. (Reading 7.5 in Waterhouse, 2008, p. 228). Tibet is still under Chinese rule and the majority of people in Lhasa are Chinese, ruled by a Chinese selected Panchen Lama which of whom the Dalai Lama does not recognize as it is by tradition the Dalai Lama who is responsible for the search of the new Panchen Lama and vice versa. This fact has great implications when it comes to searching for the successor of a particular person, and if I die before Tibetans regain their freedom, they might not have use for a Dalai Lama anymore, the Dalai Lama points out. (words 658) Bibliography Dalai Lama-Searching for a reincarnated Lama, (2008) AA100 DVD Video Waterhouse, H. (2008) The Dalai Lama in Moohan, E. (ed.), Reputations (AA100 Book 1), Milton Keynes, The Open University, pp. 197-229. Part 2 the Faber Book of Beasts Compare the following poems: The Mouses Nest by John Clare and To a Mouse, On Turning her up in her Nest, With the plough, November, 1785 by Robert Burns, from The Faber Book of Beasts. In no more than 600 words compare and contrast how these poems depict mice. In John Clares poem we are having the speaker describing in detail an incident on a farm, probably a childhood memory. The speaker finds a ball of grass among the hay and wishfully hopes to find a bird, but instead of a bird, a mouse comes out with all her babies hanging at her teats. Shocked and disgusted by the look of something so odd and so grotesque (line 7) he runs away. In Burnss poem on the other hand the speaker is clearly a man, a farmer, who accidently destroys a mouses nest when ploughing the field. Feeling guilty, he assures the mouse that he will not try to kill it. The whole poem is written as a speech, as the farmer is speaking to the mouse, whilst John Clares, is more of a written observation from a memory. John Clare has written his poem in a non-conventional sonnet form. There are 14 lines within this single stanza poem and grouped into 7 rhyming couplets. The lines in this single stanza are of similar length, and with an end rhyme scheme of AABBCCDDEEFFGG, which gives the effect of strong sense of order and regularity. The rhythm is influenced hugely by the use of iambic pentameter with the combination of stressed and unstressed syllables. Although there is no formal punctuation it feels easy to read, as the phrases finish at the end of the line. Robert Burnss is a vernacular poem, and in contrast to Clares single stanza, contains 8 stanzas. Each stanza has 6 lines, of which line 4 and 6 are deliberately shorter. The rhyme scheme is AAABAB, and mainly iambic pentameter. The rhythm remains the same throughout the poem. Burns has used a combination of exclamation marks, commas, periods, colons and semicolon. The language in Clares poem is largely simple and colloquial with the use of some dialect words like proged, agen and oer. The imagery is simple and familiar, described merely as an observation. After the mouse has returned to her nest, everything goes back to normal, describing the surroundings and finishing off with; And broad old cesspools glittered in the sun (line 14). In contrast to Clare, Burns has used lots of different literary devices when writing his poem. o, what a panics in thy breastie! (line 1-2), the sentence finishes with an apostrophe, a common device used in poetry when a poet addresses something that is not able to respond. The repeated B sound in bickering brattle (line 4) is an example of alliteration to describe the angry mouses chattering. Burn does not only personify the mouse, he also personifies the pattle as a murdring pattle (line 6), though we know, the speaker would be the one to murder the mouse, not the pattle. The speaker draws a connection between himself and the mouse through analogy when he says; At me, thy poor, earth-born companion, An fellow-mortal! (line 11-12) Meaning that they both were born on earth, and are both mortal, so they should get along. The farmer speaks to the mouse as if it were a human and compares his troubles to those of the mouses. But Mousie, thou art no thy-lane (line 37, stanza 8) Pointing out that; the mouse is not alone of wanting to plan for the future, but sometimes things do not go according to plan, whether you are a mouse or man. Still, thou art blest, compard wi me! (line 43, stanza 8) Saying the mouse is better off, because the mouse lives in the present moment, whilst himself, is looking back at the past with regret, and into the future with fear. In short, both poems are depicting farm life and mice, however, Burns decided to romanticise his encounter with the mouse, whilst Clare on the other hand, wanted to show that nature is what it is, and nothing more, subsequently he saw no reason to humanise his mouse like Burns has done with his mousie. (words 659)

Identifying the Aspects of My Self-Picture Essay

Identifying The Aspects Of My Self-Picture Rachelle Spahr RX1020 Pharmacy Technician August 15, 2013 Professor Broome Identifying the Aspects of My Self-Picture Identifying the aspects of my self-picture that are not working for me wasn’t hard to  accomplish. The things that do work for me on the other hand, are a little more difficult toidentify. I am however, learning how to diminish the negative thinking, to make room for the  positive. Negativity plays havoc on your mindset. I would think things like; I am not smart enough to succeed in furthering my education and I will never amount to anything. Once I failed at something I’d stop trying, believing I can’t fail if I don’t try. Thoughts like these were crippling, keeping me from bettering myself. I have learned quite a bit from reading the Think Build Live Success books. Using the techniques; Challenging negative judgments and replacing destructive judgments, I feel I now have the power to change this self-destructive pattern. I have a lot of past failures and disappointments to learn from. Instead of destructive thinking when I do fail, I will think about what didn’t work and how I can change it for a  successful outcome the next time. In life you have to be open to change, the world changes all the time. Making adjustments in my thinking, will give me the power to make my life how I want it. My failures will strengthen me, but I will no longer allow negative thoughts play their caustic role in my life.

Factors Affecting Democratization

This time period witnessed the collapse of over 30 authoritarian regimes in Europe, Asia, and Latin America which then made the transition to democracy and were characterized mainly by one party systems. Nations that undergo the translation to a democratic form of government usually display three particular characteristics: a high level of economic development, a highly educated public, and a large middle class.The second table, below Huntington, provides the literacy rates, Gaps, and life expectancies of five imaginary countries. Of these five countries, D and E are the most likely to democratic and hey are also the most likely to consolidate democracy because they possess the three main characteristics of democratic countries. Huntington provides a chart, on page 62 of his work, In which countries are classified according to their GNP In 1 976 In relation to the type of government they possessed in 1974.It also shows whether the countries democratic or liberalized between 1974 and 1989, or whether they maintained their non-democratic regimes throughout those years. The chart below Huntington provides the literacy rate, GAP per capita, and life expectancy of five imaginary countries. The characteristics provided on the second graph are critical to understanding each Individual country potential towards becoming democracies and their ability to consolidate democracy.The first characteristic of the chart is the literacy rate of the five countries, which is an excellent indicator of the overall level of education the countries. A highly educated public is a crucial factor in the transition to democracy, and political scientist Mitchell Gilson argued that in Latin America the thresholds that made democracy possible were both a GNP of $250 and a literacy rate of over fifty percent. This demonstrates that a countries literacy rate Is almost as Important as the level of economic development of a country In demagnification.Between 1960 and 1981 many more people began attending secondary schools to improve their educations. It has been proven that highly educated people tend to develop the characteristics of trust, satisfaction, and competence which form the civic cultural attitudes necessary in a democracy (Huntington, 69). Without an educated public, it is very difficult for democracies to survive. Thus, a high literacy rate provides evidence of a highly cattle puddle, wanly Is also positively oscillate Witt democracy.In Alton, a high literacy rate also provides evidence that a particular nation possesses a large middle class, which is often a product of industrialization and economic growth. The presence of a large middle class is another one of the most important factors of demagnification. Due to the fact that democracies often rely on a system of majority rule, a middle class is necessary in order to accurately represent the wishes of the populace. In addition, it is the middle class which strives to achieve their objectives.In virtually ev ery country the most active supporters of demagnification came from the urban middle class,[l]† and it was this group which led the third wave movements for demagnification. For example, in the Philippines, the middle class, comprised of professionals and business people, encouraged and actively participated in the demonstrations in 1984 against the oppressive regime of Ferdinand Marco's. It is clear that â€Å"When tear gas meets the middle class†¦ Tear gas loses. 2]† A large middle class is crucial in the transition to democracy because they are the people who lead the demonstrations, rallies, and protests calling for an end o authoritarian regimes and the transition to a democratic form of government. The literacy rates of the five countries suggest that countries A and C most likely have a very small middle class and only a small percentage of the overall population is highly educated, country Bi's literacy rate was unavailable, and that countries D and E have both a highly educated population and a large middle class.The second characteristic of the chart is the GAP per capita of the five countries. The gross domestic product (GAP), the gross national product minus the net income earned abroad, tells us the economic development and status of each particular nation. A higher GAP per capita is found in wealthy, economically advanced countries such as Switzerland which has a per capita income of $21 ,330. Conversely, a lower GAP is found in poorer countries such as Ethiopia with a per capita income of $130 (Huntington, 60).Undoubtedly, there exists a positive relationship between economic development and demagnification. Huntington claims that the nations most likely to undergo a transition to democracy are those characterized as â€Å"middle- income† countries. The correlation between wealth and democracy implies that transitions to democracy should occur primarily in countries at the middle levels of economic development. In poor c ountries demagnification is unlikely; in rich countries it has already occurred. 3]† Thus the GAP per capita of country D shows that it is the only country out of the five which is in the middle income range which Huntington claims possesses the most potential to make the transition to democracy, while countries A, B, C, and E are in the lower income range and less likely to make the transition to democracy. The third characteristic on the chart is the life expectancy, which is another important factor because it helps determine the level of technology of a nation.Countries with high life expectancies are more technologically advanced than those with lower life expectancies due to above average health care systems, medications and vaccines, and competent doctors. Most wealthy countries tend to have higher levels of technology than poorer countries, and most wealthy countries are democracies. â€Å"Most wealthy countries are democratic and most democratic countries – In dia is the most dramatic exception – are wealthy. [4]† As such, a higher life expectancy is also associated with democracy. Entrees A, c, Ana nave ten tenure lowest Tie expectancies wanly demonstrates Tanat they are the least technologically advanced. Country D has the second highest life expectancy, but based on life expectancy alone, country B would be the most technologically advanced of all the countries because it has the highest life The literacy rate, GAP, and life expectancy are three vital statistics in expectancy. Formulating a hypothesis as to the level of education, level of economic development, and level of technology that a country possesses and help in determining the type of government of a particular country.From these characteristics it is possible to infer that the countries least likely to democratic would be countries A and C, country B has somewhat a chance of demonstrating, depending on its literacy rate, and countries D and E would be the most l ikely to democratic. Countries A and C have the lowest literacy rates, Gaps, and life expectancies of the entire group and as such lack the high level of economic development, highly educated public, and large middle class which are almost always present in countries making the transition to democracy.The lack of an educated population and large middle class shows that it loud be extremely difficult to establish a democracy in these nations because the people, for the most part, would be unable to participate or take an active role in their governments. Country B would most likely remain whatever government, most likely authoritarian, that it currently was because of its decent GAP and because it has the highest life expectancy of the group.The high life expectancy suggests that the people are living relatively well, and as such, they would most likely not attempt to undermine their current regime. However, country E would most likely emaciation, and country D is the most likely to democratic out of the entire group. The reason that countries E and D are the most likely to democratic is because they possess the highest literacy rates (68 % and 78 % respectively), highest Gaps per capita ($700 and $1600), and good life expectancies (46 and 48 years).Both countries possess the characteristics common to democracies: high levels of economic development, a highly educated public, and a large middle class which is why they are the countries which would undergo the transition from a non democratic form of government to a democratic form of government. Country D is the most probable, out of the five countries, to democratic because it is precisely in the middle income range which Huntington believes leads to the demagnification of a nation.He proves his assertion in his chart which shows that the highest percentage of countries to democratic or liberalize between 1974 and 1989 did in fact occur in countries with per capita GNP in the $1000 – $3000 range (the mi ddle income range). In fact, 76 percent of countries in the middle income range democratic or liberalized, while poorer nations with per capita GNP of $250-$1000 such as countries A, B, C, and E) experienced only a 29 percent transition rate.Therefore, countries A and C are the least likely to democratic, B is somewhat likely to democratic, and E and D have the highest probability of demonstrating. Furthermore, supposing that all five nations have experienced a transition to democracy and have established a democratic regime, countries A, B, and C would be the least likely to consolidate democracy while countries E and D would be the most likely to consolidate their newly emerged democratic regimes. Political scientistAdam Paperwork's claimed that â€Å"Democracy is consolidated when under given political Ana economic contraltos a particular system AT Institutions Decodes ten only game in town, when no one can imagine acting outside the democratic institutions, when all losers want to do is to try again within the same institutions under which they have Just lost. [5]† It could be argued that countries A, B, and C have such low literacy rates, and Gaps that their situation could only get better; however, they do not have the resources (both economically and population-wise) to maintain or strengthen their new found democracies.Out of the five nations, countries E and D are the most economically developed which means they are the least likely to experience an economic crisis which could potentially undermine their regimes. The fact that they are the least likely to experience an economic crisis is extremely important, because economic crises were one of the main reasons that countries converted from non-democratic governments to democratic forms of government in the third wave of demagnification. In the third wave, the combination of substantial levels of economic development and short-term economic rises or failure was the economic formula most favorabl e to the transition from authoritarian to democratic government. [6]† Country E and Ad's educated middle class will actively work to maintain, improve, and strengthen the democratic system which gives them their freedoms and opportunities.Those two countries have the most potential and the most resources available at their disposal to maintain and strengthen their democracies. Therefore, due to their superior economic development, abundant resources, and the existence of an educated, middle class, countries E and D are by far the most likely to consolidate democracy. The third wave of demagnification witnessed the transition of over 30 countries to democratic forms of government, predominantly due to the economies of those countries.The countries most likely to establish a democratic regime are those which display a high level of economic development, a highly educated public, and a large middle class. These factors are crucial to demagnification. Countries A, B, and C are the least likely to democratic and consolidate demagnification because of their low literacy rates and lack of abundant resources. As time progresses and their literacy rates and Gaps increase, they may eventually enter the â€Å"middle income† range which is so conducive to democracy.

The Social Gerontology Textbook Was Great Supplemental Tool

The book Tuesdays with Morrie and how it relates to the Social Gerontology textbook was great supplemental tool. Tuesdays with Morrie also was enlightening to read during our group service learning project at the Amistad Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. The two sources and the group service learning project were educational, emotional, and experiencing. Gerontology, the study of the biological, psychological, and social aspects of aging (Hooyman Kiyak, 2011). Aging is a process of life that those of us that are young are not educated enough to understand what are grandparents emotionally and physically are going through in life. When a person talks about getting old or referring to an old person, we immediately assume a person in their 50’s to 60’s. It is interesting to learn the differences in ages â€Å"young-old (ages 65-74), the â€Å"old-old† (ages 75-84), and the â€Å"oldest-old† (age 85 and over) (Hooyman Kiyak, 2011). The life expectancy of people is much longer today than before, according to the Census Bureau, it is expected to increase to 82.6 in 2050 (Hooyman Kiyak, 2011). In my opinion, people today have more resources to a better quality of life such as staying active also living a healthier life. Most elderly people continue to remain active live a longer life. Such as Morrie in the book Tuesdays with Morrie, he remained active dancing after retiring as a professor until he was diagnosed with ALS. Morrie experienced a compression of morbidity in his