During the course of my extensive traveling to countries across the world, rich and poor, east and west, I have seen people revelling in pleasure, and people suffering. The advancement of science and technology seems to have achieved little more than linear, numerical improvement; development often means little more than more mansions in more cities. As a result, the ecological balance--the very basis of our life on earth--has been greatly affected. On the other hand, in days gone by, the people of Tibet lived a happy life, untroubled by pollution, in natural conditions. Today, all over the world, including Tibet, ecological degradation is fast overtaking us. I am wholly convinced that, if all of us do not make a concerted effort, with a sense of universal responsibility, we will see the gradual breakdown of the fragile ecosystems that support us, resulting in an irreversible and irrevocable degradation of our planet, Earth.
These stanzas have been composed to underline my deep concern, and to call upon all concerned people to make continued efforts to reverse and remedy the degradation of our environment. The poem is being released on the occasion of the presentation of a statue of the Buddha to the people of India; and to mark the opening of the International Conference on Ecological Responsibility: A Dialogue with Buddhism. |
