Washington D.C., USA -- The Dalai Lama made remarks in both English and Tibetan on the opening day of the Kalachakra. Even though I don’t speak the language, I found myself equally engaged when he spoke Tibetan. As I watched him, I recalled seeing His Holiness link arms with George Bush a few years ago when he received the Congressional Gold Medal.

People often ask, "Is Zen a form of Buddhism?" The answer to this question is both yes and no. The answer should be "Yes" because, historically speaking, Zen is a form of Buddhism which was founded by Bodhidharma in China in the sixth century. It developed in China and Japan, later taking the form of the 'Zen sect', with its own particular temples, rituals, priesthoods, and religious orders. In this sense, Zen should be called a form of Buddhism which stands side by side with other forms of Buddhism, such as the T'ien-t'ai sect, the Hua-yen sect, the Chen-yen sect, and the Ching-t'u sect, i.e., Pure Land Buddhism. Further, not only in terms of temples, rituals, priesthood, and religious orders, but also in terms of teaching, thought, and practice, Zen, in the course of its long history, has come to have its own particular forms comparable to the other schools of Buddhism. This may be called the 'traditional Zen sect'.

One of the Buddhist teaching is to be「merciful」. 《Da Zhi Du Lun》Chapter 27 explained :「Great mercy gives everybody happiness, whereas the great sympathy aims to take away their pain.」This compassionate and sympathetic behavior should be offered to everybody in need, irrespective of whether you know him or not. Everybody is treated equally, their pain looked upon as if your own with no discrimination. Eventually it is extended to all creatures with feeling, so that you always treat them with pity and love. I would like to take this opportunity to discuss with you my title「Buddhist Charity and Community Work」.