Western Shugden Society

Khen Rinpoche Jangchup Choeden, the current abbot of Ganden Shartse, is well known for bowing easily to pressures from the CTA and maintaining their unfair policies against Shugden practitioners. This has led to compromising the practice of Dorje Shugden throughout the monastery

Very few have discussed the plight of Shugden practitioners in Western Shugden Society. I will delve into some of the issues faced by some of our eastern brothers in Tibet.

The Tibetan exile government put the Dalai Lama’s wishes into practice directly in India, and in the same way the Dalai Lama’s official representative in each country throughout the world has directly and practically followed the orders of the exile government.

These representatives have organized vigilante groups in their respective regions and directly prevailed upon such groups to defame, threaten, and sometimes physically harm Shugden practitioners.

In this way many Shugden temples have been closed and shrines destroyed, individual Shugden practitioners’ houses have been burned down, practitioners have been brutally beaten, and children have been banned from their schools. Tibetan Shugden practitioners are repeatedly accused unjustly of being ‘the Tibetan national enemy’ and ostracized from their communities.

This inhumane treatment directly violates basic human rights and principles of democratic law, but nevertheless pervades almost every Tibetan community today, whether in the East or West. For example, in Tibet itself where the Chinese now give basic equal rights to everyone, all Shugden practitioners still suffer from a lack of religious freedom caused by other Tibetans who continue to work within Tibet to fulfill the Dalai Lama’s wishes there.

And in Switzerland, a democratic country which hosts a large Tibetan exile community, Shugden practitioners suffer from a lack of religious freedom caused by the unjust and discriminatory actions of groups organised by the Office of the Dalai Lama’s Representative, which acts directly against democratic law in continually working to fulfill the Dalai Lama’s wishes. It is the same in all other countries.

The Dalai Lama himself, the Tibetan exile government, the present and former abbots of the main monasteries of the Gelug Tradition, and the Dalai Lama’s official representatives in each country throughout the world, have all broken international law and are abusing basic human rights. They are criminals wearing spiritual masks.

Stop Religious Persecutions

The source of all these problems is just one single person – the Dalai Lama himself. It is very clear that the Dalai Lama’s people are acting against Shugden practitioners simply out of blind faith, and only to fulfil his wishes.

Since the Dalai Lama first created this international problem in 1996, the world’s media, including the BBC in the UK, have continually received information about it. In many countries in 1996 and in 2008 they directly witnessed thousands of Shugden practitioners engaging in international public demonstrations against the Dalai Lama, protesting ‘Dalai Lama, give religious freedom!’ and ‘Dalai Lama, stop lying!’

There is no doubt that, for example, the BBC understands this international problem, including the inhumanity of the situation; the violation of basic human rights; the fact that it is entirely caused by the Dalai Lama, who acts like a 21st century dictator; and the fact that the suffering is experienced by millions of innocent people throughout the world. However, the BBC does not broadcast any true information about this international problem, but instead always supports the 21st century dictator, the Dalai Lama. Why is this?

From the very beginning until now, the Dalai Lama and his exile Government have striven to hide this international problem that the Dalai Lama himself has created. Whenever a journalist asks the Dalai Lama ‘Why have you banned Shugden worship and caused so many problems?’ he replies saying that it is not true that there is a ban, it is merely rumor; there is no problem.

Following this lie, when journalists ask the same question of the Dalai Lama’s representatives in each country, they again receive the same bland reply ‘This is not true, it is just a rumor; there is no problem’. If you were to telephone the Dalai Lama right now and ask him ‘Why have you banned Shugden worship and caused so many problems?’ He would still reply saying ‘This is not true, it is rumor; there is no problem.’

There is no greater liar or a person more powerfully deceptive than this in the world today. So far the international community has had no opportunity to receive clear and true information about Tibetan ruling lamas in general, nor about this present Dalai Lama in particular, who keeps the name of Avalokiteshvara, the Buddha of Compassion, whilst harming people’s spiritual life and causing suffering to millions of innocent people.