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The Tibetans portrayed here are not represented as downtrodden victims, but as a courageous people waiting for an opportunity to show their worth. ”Don’t Say No to a Tibetan” is not a slogan. The title sends a message to the Chinese that the karmic retribution for treading on an innocent people will be great.

The book makes a distinction between the brutal “no!” of the aggressor and the well thought out “No” of the person open to dialogue. Tibetans have a perfect right to say No to their colonizers. To learn to fight back as an organized movement is now a necessity.

Review of the Original French Edition (2003)

“The questions which Bertrand Odelys puts to the Dalai Lama and to Ordinary Tibetans in exile are questions we also have to answer. When things don’t work out during the day, what helps us? What do we hang on to in order to find our centre again? What aspects of Buddhism guide us best in the Moment?

The Response to these questions provide a rare insight into the day – to – day existence of those who live far away from their country, people who have chosen to answer the madness of their aggressors with lucidity, compassion and non-violence.

The fragility of the human being is infinite – and to reach some perfection though this fragility is the essence of the teachings Bertrand Odelys found in Dharamsala. Our enemy, inside and out, is our best teacher. Faced with tribulations, what we must fear is not so much to lose our freedom but to lose our compassion. Isn’t it because of that compassion that we deserve the name of human beings?

This fascinating book combines anecdote with philosophical insight.
These rich chronicles about real life experiences should concern us all.”
--- Professor Jean – Yves Leloup