Understanding the Dalai Lama

"To Tibetans, the Dalai Lama is known as Yeshi Norbu, the precious Wish-Fulfilling Gem-the reincarnation of the Buddha aspect of compassion, Avalokiteshuara. To others, he is known by his Mongol title-the Dalai Lama, or Ocean of Wisdom. To the more initiated, he is quite simply ... His Holiness. He describes himself as Tenzin Gyatso, a simple Buddhist monk....

"Tenzin Gyatso evokes a range of views, analysis, and descriptions so similar and yet diverse as he impacts us in varied ways and dimensions. Each contribution in this collection represents a personal response to the charisma of a supremely integrated yet manifold-faceted personality. What holds it all together? ... It is that he is intensely human."