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10 May 2012| last updated at 10:29AM

Dalai Lama to receive US$1.8m spiritual prize



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LONDON: The Dalai Lama will receive the 2012 Templeton Prize, one of the world’s biggest monetary awards, in a ceremony at Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London on May 14, organisers said Wednesday.

 

The exiled Tibetan spiritual leader will receive the £1.1 million ($1.8  million, 1.4 million euro) prize for his work in encouraging scientific  research and harmony among religions.
 
“The ceremony will celebrate his long-standing engagement with multiple  dimensions of science and with people far beyond his own religious traditions,  which made him an incomparable global voice for universal ethics, non-violence  and harmony among world religions,” organisers said.
 
The event will be attended by thousands and broadcast on the Internet. The  Dalai Lama will announce where the money will go at the ceremony. It will be  the first time the Buddhist monk has visited the cathedral.
 
The Templeton Prize honours a living person who has made an exceptional  contribution to “affirming life’s spiritual dimension, whether through insight,  discovery, or practical works”.    
 
Established in 1972, it is one of the world’s largest annual monetary  awards given to an individual.
 
Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, will receive the prize from John M. Templeton, son of the prize’s founder.
 
“This is another sign of recognition about my little service to humanity,  mainly non-violence and unity around different religious traditions,” the  76-year-old said.
 
“I totally dedicated my life to bring a more close understanding among  these different religious traditions.
 
“We must use our common sense from our past experience. Whenever we face a  problem we have to find a non-violent way to solve that problem.” AFP
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