Buddhists reflect on life and death

CHENGDU - Living Buddha Dadrak said he is in awe of life.

"For thousands of years, Buddhists have been seeking complete insight into life," said Dadrak, who is from the Aba Tibetan and Qiang Ethnic prefecture of Southwest China's Sichuan province.

Dadrak is attending a seminar that opened in the provincial capital of Chengdu on Wednesday. The seminar has gathered nearly 40 Chinese high monks and scholars from different schools of Buddhism to discuss the topic of life.

"Life is the biggest issue concerning each individual, each family and society as a whole," said Dadrak.

"As we gather here to talk about what kind of attitude to take towards life, we hope to set out on a journey toward happiness," he said.

Dadrak said people can benefit from the Buddha's thoughts.

After awakening under a banyan tree, the Sakyamuni Buddha found that the nature of Buddhism is inherent in all people, Dadrak said.

"This means all human beings are equal," Dadrak interpreted.

Dadrak said life is precious. "But unfortunately, when we look back at the world's history, war and killing have never ceased."

Some young Tibetans have set themselves on fire in recent months in China's western provinces of Qinghai, Gansu and Sichuan.

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