It’s rare these days that I get forwarded chain letters in my inbox; after ridiculing a couple of repeat offenders I have been mostly free of such things. Yesterday I recevied one from my brother-in-law’s mother (not, mind you, my mother in law, who is a different person entirely). It’s a series of .gif images (yikes! unsolicited attachments!) that purport to contain wisdom from the Dalai Lama. Of course, if you pass them on you get good fortune, etc, etc. Out of curiosity (sick, I know) I read the images.

They sound more like something out of “Life’s Little Instruction Book” than what I’ve come to expect from this religious leader, but I wonder if it’s such a bad thing to be spreading around advice like “Don’t let a little dispute injure a great relationship” under the Dalai Lama’s name. Would it make the world a better place?

On one hand, people might pay more attention to the nuggets of wisdom. On the other, most people who would believe these nuggets came from him and would pass them on are probably okay people to begin with. The woman who sent me this forward is not the type to enter the “6 items or less” express lane while carrying fifteen items. And she does not, generally, perpetrate unhappiness in her life and those her life touches. Will the world be a better place if the people who are already nice people are reminded how to be nice people?

Possibly. I’m not sure it’s the cure to society’s ills either. Unfortunately. If I thought the world could be saved with spam, I might have gotten in on it…

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