The Dalai Lama Influence On The Buddhist Community

The Buddhist religion consists of a set of rules that are to be followed by all Buddhist adherents. These rules guide Buddhists onto the path of enlightenment and they tell adherents how to follow the teachings seen through sacred texts and how to act in the Buddhist community. There are various branches of Buddhism that teach similar beliefs to each other, however many Buddhists look to the same significant people in the Buddhist religion, such as the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama spreads teachings throughout the Buddhist community and sets an example of what Buddhist adherents must do to reach Nirvana, which is the ultimate goal of all Buddhist's. It is believed that for Nirvana to be reached, one must practice for a long time and must truly detach

The Buddhist community believe that the Dalai Lama has reached the Nirvana state, therefore he is looked up to by adherents. This allows for the belief that Nirvana can only be reached, not produced and it is only attainable through special insight affected by strong effort. It is believed by the Buddhist people that the Dalai Lama has been reincarnated many times and through each life he continues to work towards improving aspects of the world and Buddhism. The Dalai Lama has had a major influence on the teachings of Buddhism through many implementations to religious practices, such as translating the Tibetan Book of the Dead. Through doing this, the Dalai Lama has allowed for a wider range of Buddhist adherents to further understand aspects of the Buddhist religion that was not obtainable due to language barriers (BBC News. 2016. BBC - Religions - Buddhism: Dalai Lama. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/people/dalailama_1.shtml. [Accessed 01 June 2016]). The Dalai Lama also acts as a role model for millions of Buddhist adherents, modelling what is good and