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Informationen zum Autor HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA! TENZIN GYATSO! is one of the world’s best-known spiritual and political leaders. He has led his people for over fifty years as the head of the government-in-exile and spiritual leader of Tibet. In recognition of his work for peace and his concern for global environmental problems! His Holiness was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989. More recently! in 2007! he received the Congressional Gold Medal! the highest civilian honor in the United States! for his advocacy of human rights. LAURENS VAN DEN MUYZENBERG is an international management consultant who has lived and worked in the United Kingdom! Germany! France! Italy! the Netherlands! Sweden! Denmark! the United States! Chile! Bahrain! India! and Japan. He speaks seven languages. His work focuses primarily on the improvement of corporate governance and management performance. Introduction His Holiness the Dalai Lama Generally, Buddhist monks are somewhat isolated from the rest of society, often secluded in peace while praying for the welfare of all sentient beings and for our planet. Although I am one such monk, I also have responsibilities with regard to the Tibetan government-in-exile, which offers me a broader perspective in that I interact with people from all over the world. In the course of my travels I have met many different kinds of people, some of them poor, some of them rich, each of them occupying their own position in the world. People appear to trust me; therefore many have talked to me about their lives, their hopes, and their concerns about the future. In the end, I have learned that what almost everyone is seeking is a measure of happiness. Why am I writing this book now? Because I feel we all should have a sincere concern and responsibility for how the global economy operates, and an interest in the role of businesses in shaping our interconnectedness. Times have changed, and I believe that leaders of religious traditions — with their ability to take a long view of the human condition — should participate in discussions of global business and economics. Our world faces very serious problems. Those that are of particular concern to me include the overwhelming degrees of poverty in poor countries; the fact that even in prosperous countries the sense of satisfaction with life has been stagnating since 1950; the negative impact that our negligence and our ever-increasing population and rising standard of living are having on the environment; and finally, the lack of peace in so many parts of the world. Because Buddhism takes a rational and logical attitude to such problems, its approach is sometimes easier to understand for those who are not religious that for those who are. In Buddhism, there is an emphasis on human values and on how we can be taught to take a holistic approach to solving society’s problems. So if we view Buddhist teachings in terms of secular ethics and fundamental human values, then perhaps they too have something to contribute to the business world. Buddhist concepts about wealth, work, consumption, and happiness are somewhat different than their Western counterparts. Happiness is more than merely satisfying our material wishes and desires. The root of happiness is not in what we desire or what we get but somewhere altogether different. It stems from a place of inner contentment that exists no matter what we gain or achieve. Buddha recognized that self-oriented drives were very powerful. However, he came to the conclusion that the drive for satisfying the desires of the self was impossible to achieve, a never-ending cycle. People cannot be truly happy unless they have friendships and good relationships with other people. Furthermore, good relationships are reciprocal. It is impossible for people to build positive relationships with others if their only aim is to satisfy their own desires. So I believe that gov...
