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Miami University students took part Friday in a prayer service led by Geshe Kalsang Damdul, a colleague to the Dalai Lama, that commemorated the newfound relationship between Miami University and the College of Higher Tibetan Studies in Dharamsala, India.
Damdul, assistant director at the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics, led the traditional Buddhist flag ceremony, complete with incense and monks reciting prayers. Colorful flags boasted spiritual scripture and were hung around the hub. When the wind blows through the flags, the prayers are carried to the surrounding people. This service is said to create harmony and spread well-being, according to the introduction given by Deborah Akers, professor of anthropology.
Akers said an affiliation between the College of Higher Tibetan Studies in India and Miami was signed Jan. 1, expanding the existing summer exchange into a semester-long study abroad opportunity.
Akers said she was on the initial 2004 trip when the relationship was born.
"The Secretary of Education in India is a wonderful monk, and it was actually him who put us in touch with each other," Akers said.
This relationship resulted in the summer program occurring each year since 2005.
Damdul said he is excited about the growing relationship.
"As an individual I think we will be able to learn and share so many things with each other," Damdul said. "Our goal is to produce more responsible, more educated, more kind leaders and educationists in the community and in the world at large."
According to Provost Jeffrey Herbst, the fall semester program offers a range of courses in the areas of Buddhist philosophy, Tibetan medicine and meditation and intensive language courses, taught by a combination of Miami faculty and Tibetan scholars. Herbst said faculty are also encouraged to visit for research purposes.
This agreement is part of the initiative to increase the percentage of students studying abroad. The Provost has set a long-term goal to have 50 percent of all undergraduates study abroad for credit before graduating. According to the "Global Miami Plan," Miami hopes by diversifying study abroad options and offering non-Western alternatives, students will be able to find an option most suitable for their particular course of study.
"I look forward to the new study abroad alternatives," said Nancy Arthur, director of communication for the college of arts and sciences. "These new options will help Miami to become more visible nationally and internationally, positively affecting undergraduate admissions and faculty inquiries."
Damdul said he considers his greatest accomplishment educating younger Tibetans, not only in a traditional classroom setting but also spiritually and in modern forums. He said he looks forward to sharing his wealth of knowledge and Buddhist ideals with Miami students.
Junior Jennie Lowe said she is planning on studying through Miami's Tibetan Studies semester program in Dharamsala, India, during the 2009 fall semester.
"This is such an amazing opportunity that I am willing to give up my entire senior year because I was already planning on participating in The Washington Center Internship Program in the spring," Lowe said. "I know it will be a life changing experience, one that I couldn't pass up."
Damdul said he particularly wants to share Tibetan medicine and convey to the Western world that herb-related medicine has been successful in some cases.
Damdul said he will continue his work through the six-week Amethyst Program based in Columbus before returning home to India. The Amethyst Program focuses on helping women with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Damdul left Miami with an uplifting message.
"Keep up hope and see that every one of us has basic potential," Damdul said. "If we are able to harness this potential, whether it's education or whether it's social or whether it's spiritual, we will all be able to have success."
