My Fantasy of the Dalai Lama was Shattered & I am Sad Today

I was scrolling through my Facebook feed yesterday and noticed that a friend I respect and admire had made a casual, sarcastic, and off-putting comment about the Dalai Lama. My initial reaction was, “What the f*ck?” Anger, betrayal, and rejection of my friend, not the Dalai Lama, rose inside me. She does not typically speak harshly of people. So, I did what we did in 2023: I did a Google search on the Dalai Lama. The first eight articles were about him and his life. When I read the ninth, my heart sank, and my spine went limp for a split second. “The Dalai Lama asks a boy to suck his tongue.” I resisted opening the article. I ...