I cover my head with a towel to get some small relief from the scorching sun. Cameras strung around my neck and lenses stuffed in pockets, I jockey for position at the front rail in an area that has been set aside for members of the media covering the Dalai Lama’s Kalachakra for World Peace event in Washington, DC. Today will be His Holiness’ only public appearance and the crowds have arrived early, filling the west lawn of the Capitol building to capacity. No bags are searched and no metal detectors have been set up and the lack of security is somewhat alarming, considering that the media has been subject to an hour-long security screening including metal detectors, bag searches and bomb-sniffing dogs on each of the previous days of the event before being allowed into the Verizon Center. I wondered how members of the press could pose more of a threat to the Dalai Lama than thousands of people arriving with backpacks and suitcases.

By the time the sun rises, huge crowds have already gathered on the Capitol west lawn to hear the Dalai Lama speak

Our nation’s capital is a strange choice for a conference on world peace. In one restaurant, I grabbed the only available seat at a table where diners were comparing generals who insist on salutes and ‘sirs’ to those who are more casual. Snatches of political conversations fade in and out as I walk the streets. One whole afternoon was wasted trying to gain entrance to a press conference where the Dalai Lama explained his decision to step down as the political leader of Tibet to Nancy Pelosi and Speaker John Boehner.

Consecration of mandala platform at Earth Ritual Dance during Kalachakra for World Peace, 2011

In between, I take refuge in the Verizon Center, attending prayers and the elaborate Earth Ritual Dance, where Tibetan monks in exquisitely ornamented silk robes consecrate the venue and prepare the platform upon which the Kalachakra mandala will be painted in sand. The stadium overflows with love and compassion. I want to carry this inner peace with me but within minutes of leaving I am thrust back into the real world, once again dealing with traffic, crowds, angry people, unhappy people, power struggles. Monks have it easy, I think. Continue reading →