Leh, Ladakh, India — His Holiness the Dalai Lama gave a teaching on "The Eight Verses on Training the Mind and the Four Mindfulnesses" to approximately 50,000 people in Leh, Ladakh, on Saturday. His Holiness said, "Wherever I go in the Himalayan Region I find people to be faithful and devout—dedicated to spiritual practice. Although Tibetans have faced great difficulties and Chinese restrictions have become ever tighter, the peoples of the Himalayan Region have been our friends."
His Holiness the Dalai Lama gave a teaching on "The Eight Verses on Training the Mind and the Four Mindfulnesses" to an audience of approximately 50,000 people on the Kalachakra Teaching Ground in Leh, Ladakh, India, on August 16, 2025. The Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA) and the Ladakh Gonpa Association (LGA) also offered a long-life prayer to His Holiness the Dalai Lama on August 17, 2025, at the same location.
His Holiness began his speech by recalling that he had lost his own country, Tibet, and had gone into exile in India. Since he has been living in the Himalayan region ever since, it is particularly close to his heart. "Wherever I go in the Himalayan Region I find people to be faithful and devout—dedicated to spiritual practice. Although Tibetans have faced great difficulties and Chinese restrictions have become ever tighter, the peoples of the Himalayan Region have been our friends," the spiritual leader of Tibet said.
His Holiness said, "As someone who has the blessings of Avalokitesvara and who cultivates bodhichitta and the correct view, I have been able to generate the awakening mind and insight into emptiness. This is something we all can do. We can develop these practices with enthusiasm. My main advice is to constantly remind yourselves of the awakening mind of bodhichitta and the view of emptiness. I do this myself every morning as soon as I wake up and I remain in meditation for some time on these principles. We are talking about attaining enlightenment, the word for which in Tibetan is ‘jang-chub’. It consists of two syllables. The first, ‘jang’. means overcoming all faults and shortcomings, while ‘chub’ denotes becoming replete with every excellent attribute that can be attained."
The nobel laureate declared, "People are suffering all over the world. Regardless of whether we follow a religious practice or not, everybody wants to be happy and nobody wants to suffer. The root of suffering is two-fold: having a self-centred, self-cherishing attitude and misconceiving things as being independently existent. When I wake in the morning, I generate the awakening mind, the aspiration for enlightenment and by reflecting on certain lines from Chandrakirti’s ‘Entering into the Middle Way’, I meditate on emptiness. These two principles, the awakening mind and emptiness, are the core of the Buddha’s teaching." His Holiness began to give teachings on the "Eight Verses on Training the Mind and the Four Mindfulnesses."
On the second day, August 17, 2025, the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA) and the Ladakh Gonpa Association (LGA) offered a long-life prayer to His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama at the Kalachakra teaching ground in Leh, Ladakh, India. Approximately 50,000 people gathered to receive his blessings and listen to his teachings.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama addressed the audience, stating,"My Dharma brothers and sisters, what I wish to say is that local people of Ladakh and people from elsewhere, monastics and lay-people, have gathered here, with fervent devotion to offer these prayers for my long life. Tibetans and people of the Himalayan Region who follow the Tibetan Buddhist tradition have assembled here explicitly to offer these prayers that I may live long."
"During my lifetime many people have put their faith in me directly or indirectly and I have prayed to be of benefit to them. So, I would like to greet you all with Tashi Delek," His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama added.
The spiritual leader of Tibet said, "Whatever I have been able to do in terms of mundane activities or spiritual teachings, you have gathered here to offer these prayers for my long life. Just as you have prayed that I may live long, I will also pray that your wishes may be fulfilled. I’d like to thank you all for making these prayers and offerings and I pray that your prayers may be accomplished with ease."
"Something worth noting is the growing interest in Buddhism today in mainland China, which is one of the most populous countries in the world. In the past, they used to refer to me as a reactionary and so on, but I never hold a grudge or bear malicious thoughts against anyone," His Holiness declared.
His Holiness explained, "Historically, since the time of Songtsen Gampo, we have had strong ties with China. As the Chinese people continue to take an interest in Buddhism, it will naturally spread and I will be glad to contribute to this development as much as I can."
"Of course, I make cultivating the awakening mind of bodhichitta part of my daily practice. And in order to strengthen this practice I also meditate on emptiness. As the profound and vast teachings of the Buddha spread in the world, particularly in China, I am hopeful it will lead to peace and harmony in the world at large. I also hope that people will be able to live at ease in the Himalayan Region and that there will be peace and calm on the Indo-Tibet border. I believe this can be accomplished," the spiritual leader said.
