Your Holiness, Ladies and Gentlemen:

You will not need me to reassure you that your welcome here tonight is joyful and warm. But I want also to welcome those of you who are in the audience, a total of some twelve thousand people who have come here tonight to hear the Dalai Lama. This is surely an indication of your deep sense of admiration for our speaker. But it is also, I think, a reflection of the interest and the eagerness with which the people of this community are reaching out in an effort towards greater world understanding.

Earlier today His Holiness referred to Mahatma Gandhi as a person whose teachings had influenced him during his career. Mahatma Gandhi was once asked what he thought of Western civilisation. He replied, quietly, "I think it would be a very good idea." We welcome the opportunity tonight to learn from an ancient and benevolent civilisation the precious things it has to offer us.

His Holiness is here under the auspices of the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies at Cornell and the Bartells' Fellowship Program in World Affairs. This fellowship program is designed to bring members of the Cornell community into contact with world leaders. And not only with leaders handling political events, but also those whose dedication and inspiration shape the feelings and views and values that we bring to world affairs.

The Dalai Lama was born in eastern Tibet, and at the age of two was identified by a group of senior lamas as the fourteenth Dalai Lama. Two years later he travelled to Lhasa, the capital city, and was anointed in a ceremony which began the long tutelage represented in his predecessors over the centuries by which he has been educated for the responsibilities of office.

Few would have guessed, on that fateful day, how severely his leadership skills were to be tested. For he was formally inaugurated in 1950, at age fifteen, shortly after the Chinese had invaded his country. The invasion was described as a "modernisation" of Tibet. And to begin with, the Dalai Lama accepted it as that, and attempted to work peacefully and cooperatively with the Chinese. But rising tensions and rising oppression meant that by 1959 he had to move into exile. And with what later became an exodus of 100,000-plus followers, he moved into northern India, where he now resides.

In the 40 years that separate us from that event, one sixth of the people of Tibet have died at the hands of that modernisation program, and more than a hundred thousand have been forced into exile. But through it all, the fourteenth Dalai Lama has shown a grace and generosity of spirit that have made him the inspiration not only of his own people, but also of others across the world.

In the face of hardship and suffering, he has stood resolutely for the settling of human differences by discussion and peaceful persuasion. In the face of oppression, he has called for sharing both the burdens and the benefits that we hold together across the world. In the face of the grossest kind of deforestation and exploitation of the landscape, he has talked of the need for living in harmony with nature, and of establishing worldwide a basic set of human rights, on which misunderstandings could be settled. He has not only kept alive the flame of his own religion and culture, but has lighted a universal flame that has enlightened and illumined the rest of the world.

It was this inspiration that was recognised in 1989 by the award of the Nobel Prize for Peace. With characteristic modesty, His Holiness accepted the Prize not for himself, but on behalf of the people of Tibet, and added in words that are prophetic of his larger sense of vocation: "We share this tiny planet Earth together, and we must live in harmony and peace with each other and with nature."

In the day and a half that the Dalai Lama has spent on the campus of Cornell University, he has graced us by that larger vision of his own humanity. It is on this topic, "Overcoming Differences," that he is to speak to us tonight. I am proud to present to you His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

(The Dalai Lama begins speaking here)

Brothers, sisters, I am very happy to be here with you. I would like to thank those hundreds of people without whose effort this opportunity would not be realised. I very much appreciate it.

The theme on which I will talk is "Overcoming Differences." I come from the East, from Tibet, from what people call "The Roof of the World." My own culture is different, and due to this different culture, even my way of thinking may be somewhat different from yours. However, we are here tonight because of larger interests. We are here in the name of humanity. As human beings, we are all the same. On the human level, despite our different cultures or faiths or professions, we are the same: human. As humans, we are not different as we meet here tonight.

Always, whenever we find differences, there are also things which unify. For unity, our thoughts, our mental attitude, is the key factor. Every human being by nature wants happiness and joy. We do not want suffering. I believe the purpose of our life is happiness. And for happiness, the basic and most important factor is our mental attitude. For happiness, for calmness, the most effective factor is within ourselves. It is very important to realise that we already have it: the question is whether we utilise it properly or effectively. Compassion is the key factor. With compassion, we can develop a realisation of the oneness of all humanity, and from this a sense of universal responsibility.

In today's world, I believe we need this sense of responsibility, this outlook, because the world's structure today is such that the modern economy is beyond national boundaries; and also in ecological problems, one or two individual nations cannot help. Unless all humanity, worldwide, makes an effort, these problems cannot be solved. Therefore, I think the world itself is now telling us that humanity has to work together on the basis of what I call a sense of universal responsibility.

For that, I consider the most important thing to be a good heart, or human affection. If you have affection, love, and compassion, then that will create the inner strength and self-confidence to remove fear. This is very important for our daily life. If we have human will and determination, then we can properly utilise our intelligence; we can combine human intelligence, human determination, and human will. If we can do this, then our future will definitely be better, and brighter. So the prime mover for positive interaction is a good heart.

We should not think of love, compassion and forgiveness as religious subjects. I believe when we are born we are free from any religion, ideology or faith; but we are not free from compassion and love. So even to the non-believer, compassion and love are essential. There are more than five billion souls in the world today. There are less than one billion religious believers. The remaining four billion are nonbelievers. But still they are human beings, and even more, they are the majority of human beings. So it is very, very important to consider compassion and love as basic human good qualities rather than as a religious subject. The different religions simply strengthen or increase these natural human qualities.

I think everyone would agree that compassion and love are good. But then the question is, can we really cultivate these things; can we really increase them? Of course it will not be easy, but I think it could happen. We can increase them; we can develop them. But the human mind is difficult to change.

When I was young, I was quite short-tempered. I had a good excuse, because I was born in the northeastern part of Tibet. Tibetans consider people from that area a bit short-tempered. But when I realized the negativeness of my anger and the positive things about compassion and love, I was able to change. So in my own experience, it is possible for us to change for the better.

I think that anger, hatred and jealousy are part of the human mind, but I also believe the dominant force of the human mind is love and compassion, or human affection. If we look closely at human nature, we will find that compassion or affection is the major rule. Anger occasionally comes, but is not the major rule.

Even before birth, while the child still remains within the mother's womb, the mother's mental attitude or mental tranquility is a crucial factor for the health or proper development of the unborn child. Then, after birth, according to modern doctors and scientists, the next few weeks are the crucial period for the development or enlargement of the brain. During that period the mother's physical touch is the most important factor for the child's development. This indicates that the human body needs the affection of others.

Lessons you receive from persons towards whom you feel very close go deeply into our brains. Lessons learned from teachers who do not show any concern or feeling toward you are usually forgotten. This also is an indicator of human nature. These experiences show how much we need others' affection. Therefore I believe that our basic human nature is gentleness or compassion.

Some people argue with the idea that the basic nature of humans is an aggressive nature. Sometimes I jokingly argue with my friends that if we look at our human physical structure instead of our mental nature, it might seem as if we belong to the animal species who are more gentle. Look at our nails and our teeth. If we examine our bodies, we are more like deer, or rabbits, or geese -- beautiful, gentle animals -- than like tigers or lions.

Or again in our physical structure: if you use your arms to push [extending arms straight out] then the result is that you will be lonely, you will be alone; but if you use your arms this way [drawing arms in as in embrace] you will get more friends, right?

I feel the human basic nature is more positive than negative. And as I mentioned earlier, by nature we want happiness; we do not want suffering. Love, compassion, and a good heart generally bring us fortune, joy and happiness. And a good heart brings us more genuine friends -- with genuine smiles.

I think a beautiful, genuine smile is very important in our life. When someone shows you genuine human feeling, with a genuine smile, it acts like a medicine; it really helps to remove our negative moods or uncomfortable feelings. For humans the genuine smile of a friend is something very essential.

After all, we human beings are social animals. Whether we like it or not, we have to live together. We should look at our human context in nature. If we examine certain animals, such as bees, we find that they have a very good sense of responsiblity. They have no religion; they have no constitution, they have no police. But due to their nature, they have a sense of responsibility, and a sense of coordination or cooperation. We human beings are the same kind of social animal, and more than that, we have religion, we have constitutions, we have many things -- but somehow, in certain ways, we are more stupid than those bees.

How do we make a genuine friend? Through anger or money or force it is impossible to make a genuine friend. Genuine friends can be made only with a genuine good heart. Wealthy people, or people with power, may seem to have have more smiles, more friends. But I often tell people that these are not genuine friends. These friends are actually the friends of wealth, of money. So long as you have money, force, and power, these friends will come and they will remain. But as soon as your fortune disappears or goes into a decline, these friends also disappear.

A genuine friend must come on the basis of your own good heart. It is human nature that if you help others, if you share others' suffering, ultimately that will bring you more joy. But if we forget about others and think only of ourselves, then eventually we will be the losers. So I say that if we are truly selfish, a selfish wisdom is much better than a foolish selfishness.

My conclusion is that a good heart is the ultimate source of strength and happiness. With a good heart, and strength and happiness, the future will be brighter, whether we are rich or poor, educated or uneducated, or follow this or that religion. As human beings we have the potential for goodness. But whether we realize this potential is up to the individual.

About this happiness . . . What makes us happy? Many things can: friends are one source of happiness; wealth also is a source of happiness; and fame, a good name -- all of these things. But then, if we look at these, even if all of these are sources of happiness, these sources are not one hundred percent guaranteed. Having these things alone will not guarantee mental happiness -- this is not sure. Even wealthy people are sometimes, mentally very worried, right? So these sources are generally sources of happiness, but not definite. The only definite source of happiness is calmness of mind. That is the real source of happiness or joy.

Analyzing our thoughts is essential: we must try to increase the positive things, and try to decrease the negative things. If we do this individually, we will get more calmness, more restfulness. We will be happier. We can create genuine peace, a genuine friendly atmosphere within our family. Think of it: you yourself will benefit, and your family members will also benefit. In this way, eventually, a friendly or positive atmosphere can develop in societies. But above all, the initiative for positive leadership must come from the individual.

We often talk about world peace. And world peace is important. But how can we attain world peace? World peace will not come from the sky, nor from the earth. World peace must come through mental peace. Genuine peace is not just the absence of war. Peace is more than that. Peace means genuine tranquility, I think peace must come from individual transformation. So, whether at the level of family members, or at the national level, I believe a good heart is the foundation. In my opinion, whether politicians are believers or non-believers doesn't really matter; that's their business -- "politician" means you are involved in public work, so therefore a good heart is essential.

There is nothing wrong with politics itself. We often speak of "dirty politics" -- not because there is something wrong with politics itself, but because people involved in politics lack this good human quality. That's why people sometimes think of political behavior as "dirty politics." A similar thing would happen if people like myself, who are involved in religion, were lacking this good heart — then religion would become "dirty religion." So therefore, in every human activity, whether that activity becomes positive or negative ultimately depends on our own heart.

So, thank you very much.