David Urubshurow on Geshe Wangyal

One of the cool things about this blog is it introduces me to people I otherwise wouldn't know about. David Urubshurow is happily one of those people. We connected a few months ago after he saw the "The Escape of the Dalai Lama, Part 3". In it, a Kalmyk-Mongolian monk named Geshe Wangyal plays a part in helping the CIA translate the telecode for the radio messages between Washington DC and Tibet.

Urubshurow met and began studying with Geshe Wangyal as a young boy, and though he was like a son to him in many ways, he never knew about his work with the CIA. Not until the late '90s or so, long after his death in 1983, did anyone outside the operation begin to learn that this secret history included "Bakshi", as his students called him. (Or Geshe-la, a Tibetan way of giving respect.)

Many thanks to David for sharing his stories. I wish I had the time to include more here, but will do another video in the future that include some others. Thanks also to Joshua Cutler, who runs Geshe Wangyal's center with his wife Diana, for sharing some of the pictures.

Music by Joel Langley at Green Goose Music

The Escape of the Dalai Lama, Part 3

It was on this day in 1959 that the Dalai Lama safely arrived at India's border, after a harrowing 14-day flight from Lhasa. His dramatic escape brought international attention to the Chinese capture of Tibet, a situation that Tibetans continue to struggle with to this day.

The news of his arrival was received by the U.S. on April 2nd, sent by CIA-trained radio operators, Athar and Lhotse. CLICK HERE to download that message.

Thanks to Doma Norbu for her help with Athar's translation (her father).

Music by Green Goose Music