Press Trust of India Posted online: Monday, September 12, 2005 at 1139 hours IST Updated: Monday, September 12, 2005 at 1229 hours IST
Washington, September 12: Tibet’s spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has urged Americans to overcome any sorrow and frustration they may have felt in the wake of the September 11 attacks and more recently by hurricane Katrina.
"There is a saying in Tibetan, 'tragedy should be utilized as a source of strength'," the Dalai Lama, who is on a 20-day visit of the United States, said on US television yesterday -- the fourth anniversary of the attacks.
"I think generally, where there is challenge, we have the capacity to work on that challenge," he added. "We must keep our determination, we must overcome.”
"As a believer, (I think) that the soul of self is still there," he said on CNN. "For those people who are still alive some friends passed away. Now it is the reality, it has happened, it has already happened.”
"Even if you are frustrated, it will not solve the problem... too much anger, sorrow and frustration will never bring return... only more suffering for yourself," he counselled. "Now try to rebuild your life with self confidence, with effort."
Last week, the 70-year-old Dalai Lama pledged 100,000 dollars toward relief efforts from the hurricane that struck three states along the US Gulf coast, leaving an unknown number of dead.
He said the worldwide outpouring of sympathy after the hurricane was "a sign of human sense of compassion and concern".
The Nobel Peace prize winner fled Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule and now lives in exile in the Himalayan town of Dharamsala.
