The Buddha's Birthday

Taipei, Taiwan (Chiang Ying-ying /AP/May 9, 2010) Thousands of Taiwanese hold candles during the Taiwan National Buddha's Birthday celebration in front of the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. Vesak (celebrated on or near the full moon day on the Indian calendar's lunar month of Vesakha) is the historical Buddha's birthday, enlightenment day, and passing into nirvana day. It is celebrated worldwide roughly in May on the Gregorian calendar.

Taiwan: no politics for Dalai Lama's visit

TAIPEI– Taiwanese officials said Sunday they hope the Dalai Lama will stay clear of politics to avoid angering China during his visit to comfort victims of Typhoon Morakot, the island's worst storm in 50 years. Although the Tibetan spiritual leader has traveled to Taiwan before, many fear his arrival late Sunday could hurt the island's improving relations with rival China — the signature issue in the 15-month-old administration of Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou. More>>

• Slideshow: Dalai Lama
• Video: China opposes Dalai Lama visit
• Video: Taiwan approves visit by Dalai Lama

FACTBOX: Dalai Lama, China, Taiwan

TAIPEI, Aug. 28, 2009 (Reuters) -- The Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader reviled by China as a separatist, is set to visit Taiwan next week. Following are key facts about the Dalai Lama, China, and Taiwan:

• Tibetan Buddhism holds that the soul of a high monk or a "living Buddha [Bodhisattva]" is reincarnated after his death and the resulting "soul boy" can be found through the interpretation of arcane signs.
• After the death of the 13th Dalai Lama in 1934, Tibetan officials asked local authorities to look out for remarkable baby boys with characteristics including large ears, tiger-striped legs, and palms bearing the pattern of a sea-shell.
• In 1937, the 14th Dalai Lama was discovered as a two-year old named Lhamo Dhondup, in Taktser village, in eastern Qinghai province, a region called Amdo by Tibetans.
• The Dalai Lama has lived in exile in India since fleeing a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959, and has suggested his reincarnation may be found outside China. Chinese leaders maintain that the next Dalai Lama will be approved by them.
• A visit to Taiwan by the Dalai Lama brings together two of China's most sensitive territorial claims -- over Tibet and self-ruled Taiwan, and thus strikes a raw nerve in Beijing.
• China brands him a dangerous "splittist," or separatist, and is furious with his popularity in the West. Angry at his trip to Europe last year, especially his meeting with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, China called off a summit with the European Union. The Dalai Lama says he is merely seeking greater autonomy for Tibet. More>>

PHOTO: Soldiers exercise during a training session at a beach on the Xisha islands, Hainan province August 26, 2009. China on Thursday urged the United States to "remove obstacles" to military ties, demanding the United States respect China's core interests so as to create conditions for further military cooperation, Xinhua News Agency reported (Reuters/China Daily). More photos

"Free Tibet" marathon concert

Taiwan News (7/12/09)

TAIPEI, Taiwan - Thousands of Tibet supporters gathered yesterday for a marathon concert organized by local civic groups as part of a series of activities to commemorate the 1959 uprising in Tibet. Staged by Guts United, Taiwan, the Taiwan Indie Music Association, and Taiwan Friends of Tibet, the "50th Spring: Free Tibet" concert featured ten independent bands and singers who took turns entertaining attendants.

The event reached its high point when Dawa Tsering, chairman of the Tibet Religious Foundation of the Dalai Lama, Tashi Tsering, chairman of the Taiwan chapter of the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress, and Freddy Lim, founder of Guts United, Taiwan, led the participants in signing the letter "T" for Tibet and chanting "Free Tibet."

Lim said the concert was aimed at voicing Taiwan's support of freedom, democracy and justice, and commemorating the 50th anniversary of the failed Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule that began on March 10, 1959.

Yilan Rain Festival
President Ma Ying-jeou presided yesterday over the opening of the 2009 Yilan International Rain Festival in Suao, lauding it as a festival that features the best of the northern Taiwan county's natural beauty and performances.

The festival attracted over 890,000 visitors and generated NT$1.3 billion (US$39.6 million) in revenues last year, when it took the place of the Yilan International Children's Folklore and Folkgame Festival. Source

World Buddhist Forum 2009

Arrival of monastics for closing of The World Buddhist Forum, Taiwan; below, nuns listen inside (AP/Wally Santana).

Buddhist nuns and monks arrive for the closing ceremonies of the second part of "The World Buddhist Forum," in Taipei, Taiwan, Wednesday, April 1, 2009.

A peripatetic Buddhist conclave backed by the Chinese government wrapped up Wednesday in Taiwan amid support from the ruling Nationalist Party and identification with Beijing's aims for both the island of Taiwan and the region formerly known as Tibet.

The first half of the forum, which opened in the eastern Chinese city of Wuxi on Saturday, is the latest example of rapidly improving relations between China and Taiwan.