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Book Review: The Power Of Forgiveness

In a dark world--a world racked by despair and anguish, where human beings have been forced into abject poverty by the violent upheavals of nature, or by misfortune occasioned by other men--in this dark world we look for hope. "In God we trust" says the motto on American coins. Yet to many, the Creator, by whatever name, seems very far away. We may feel lost, deserted on a small planet in limitless space. Blind trust may seem to us foolish, faith in the conventional traditions a mockery. In what, or in whom, shall we trust?

So much of what we see around us is based on greed and preoccupation with material goals and possessions. The self. with its wants and needs, is often first in the thoughts of our fellow men. If we find kindness it may be short-lived; if we seek a listening ear its attention may soon be diverted. And so we harden our own hearts and become cynical.

Shall we seek out others like ourselves? There is no want of cynics and disbelievers. It is not difficult to find persons who are familiar with despair and anguish. Show us, we say, those who have triumphed over insurmountable odds, who have lost everything they held dear and yet were able to focus their attention beyond the self-on others Show us, if indeed they exist, those who had every privilege, every advantage and chose to turn their backs upon it in order to give to those in need. Are there any who can be trusted? If so, what have they to give us, the needy?

Above the crowd of humanity there are some who stand out. We recognize their names: Nelson Mandela, Mother Theresa, Victor Frankl, the Dalai Lama. These names come to mind among others whose actions showed them to be what others may yet aspire to be: true human beings.

An intimate portrait of one of them, the Dalai Llama, is given in the book The Power of Forgiveness by Victor Chan. Mr. Chan, of Chinese birth and upbringing, might be thought by some the very last to become a friend and confidante of the Nobel Laureate, the leader of the Tibetan community in exile, the revered Dalai Llama. This Tibetan has himself, along with his people, suffered untold agonies at the hands of the Chinese. Yet his answer to Victor Chan's first question: "Do you hate the Chinese?" was a firm and decisive "No."

We find that the Dalai Llama hates the Chinese Communist Party, but not the Chinese as individuals. And through Victor Chan's prolonged and in-depth experiences and interviews with him, we learn more about this extraordinary man. From what may have been a nebulous, or perhaps exalted image of this famous personage, the picture of a very special individual emerges .

We see a man who is unbelievably humble, who has an irrepressible sense of humor, who is a deeply sensitive listener and a responsive observer of human need and misery, a man who is engaged in the never-ending process of learning, A man who studies and meditates, who addresses the rich and famous, the poor and simple with equal interest and involvement, who demonstrates his deeply-felt emotions with ready tears and laughter... in the truest sense, a believer. A man, who is, in short, an example of what others might aspire to be: a developed and developing human being. One may give thanks for having this man among us here on earth. His portrait, painted in words by Victor Chan, is heart-felt and memorable.

The Wisdom of Forgiveness is published by Riverhead Books.