Smoking Monks and Tired Aphorisms — Bad apples in the Tibetan Buddhist Facebook Group
I’ve been following the goings on in the Tibetan Buddhist group. The Dalai Lama was the gateway. In a world of “inspirational” quotes tacked onto colour saturated seascapes like a scraggy tail on a tired donkey, the Dalai Lama actually has some wisdom of value to share. I don’t know if it’s actually him posting, in a way it doesn’t matter, but his sage words combined with an existing interest in Buddhist thought inspired me to cast my Facebook net wider with a few suggested page follows. Here’s an example quote:
“Cultivating an appreciation of the oneness of humanity makes me feel comfortable because it helps me feel that wherever I go, whoever I meet is another human being like me. As human beings we are all brothers and sisters. Thinking of the oneness of all the human beings on this planet brings peace of mind because there is no place for fear or mistrust.”
It’s a simple thought in a way, but the simplicity is its strength. Everyone can understand this concept, but few follow it. We have ever decreasing circles of compassion for those we are related to familiarly, our friends, acquaintances, townsfolk, countryfolk, those who share a language or culture, stretching out finally to sometimes the bare minimum of concern for other people in far-off lands. Anyway, I’m not writing this article to hypocritically lecture my reader(s?) about what they already know. I’m writing to tell you about the smoking monks.
At first glance, the Tibetan Buddhist Facebook group is a community of Buddhists sharing information with new members and each other. But seemingly among the Dharma, some quite cruddy aphorisms have been pasted on top of images of Buddha statues. The group members generally, because of their beliefs I suppose, try not to get annoyed, but reason with the philosophical vandals and point out the quotes are invalid, contemporary fabrications. Others do get irritated. And as well as these rubbish “Live, Laugh, Love” type quotes which are entirely inappropriate for this type of sincere group, the feed is tainted by a plethora of photographs of various anonymous monks smoking cigarettes, as if this activity/addiction undermines the whole philosophy. Once or twice for amusement is one thing, but these intrusions are daily and unwelcome to the vast majority of group members. I have even heard it suggested that the group has been infiltrated by Chinese individuals who are trying to destroy it. I don’t know if this is true, and I don’t know how to find out. This isn’t the Cook Report. What it is is a shame, that a gentle and well-meaning group of people is being torn apart, whether by trolls or secret agents, who knows?
