Thousands due to greet Dalai Lama

Jun 22 2012

Thousands of people are expected to turn out to see the Dalai Lama as he continues his visit to Scotland.

His visit comes as part of a nine-day tour of the UK, which has already seen him visit Leeds, Manchester and London, where he gave an address at Westminster Abbey.

The 76-year-old will begin the day with a private viewing of archive material about Tibet at the National Library of Scotland before delivering a talk at the Usher Hall with the theme Beyond Religion: Ethics For A Whole World.

He will then visit Dundee, where he will give the Margaret Harris Lecture on religion at the city's Caird Hall.

Tibet's spiritual leader will address the audience on Education Of The Heart: A New World Order Of Compassion.

Tickets for the event sold out within a few hours of going on sale earlier this year.

University chaplain the Rev Fiona Douglas said: "It is an immense pleasure for me to welcome the Dalai Lama to Dundee. This is a historic occasion for the city, and it has created a great deal of excitement in and around Dundee.

"From the moment the visit was announced, we were inundated with inquiries from people of all ages, backgrounds, faiths and nationalities desperate to attend. I'm sure His Holiness will love the welcome he receives here, and that Dundee will do itself proud."

The Dalai Lama, one of the world's most revered leaders, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 and was awarded the £1.1 million Templeton Prize last month at St Paul's Cathedral in London for his engagement with science and people beyond his religious traditions. He has lived in exile in Dharamsala in northern India since 1959. He passed the political leadership of exiled Tibetans on to an elected prime minister last year but remains the spiritual leader of the Tibetan community.

On Saturday, the Dalai Lama will visit Inverness and give a public talk at Eden Court Theatre with the theme Be The Change.