 
                                    
                                 
                            The Dalai Lama's Gift (2025)
                                    The extraordinary time in 1981 when one determined monk brought His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and Buddhism, to America
                                    2025-02-22
                                    United States of America
                                    76 Min.
                                    PG-13
                                
                                Overview
In 1981, a Buddhist monk teaching at the University of Madison, Wisconsin, made the bold request of the Dalai Lama to come and perform a rare ritual, never before done outside of India or Tibet: the Kalachakra, among the highest of the Buddhist tantric teachings. In just a few months, with a team of dedicated students, and cameras rolling, they constructed a temple and organized an event for over a thousand spiritual seekers, in a cornfield outside Madison. The incredible footage was tucked away in the Smithsonian vaults, until now. What unfolds is the story of a powerful ritual, its impact on the people that made it happen, and the meaning behind this ancient initiation.
 
                    
 
                                     
                                     
                                     
                                     
                                     
                                     
                                     
                                     
                                    