- Paperback: 424 pages
- Publisher: Counterpoint; Reprint edition (2 Sep 1998)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1887178910
- ISBN-13: 978-1887178914
- Product Dimensions: 22.8 x 15.3 x 2.7 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,628,128 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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More About the Author
Product Description
Review
‘Mary Craig’s intelligent and sensitive story… suggests in how extraordinary a way this deeply religious and peaceful people on the roof of the world have become a parable for the end of the twentieth century… .This gripping book tells one of the most painful and dramatic stories of history.
‘
The Tablet
‘Mary Craig’s book offers both a vivid, human-scale view of a decisive chapter in the Tibetan story and a poignant sense of how it feels for individuals to be marginalized in a history it once seemed they were destined to make.’
The Scotsman
Product Description
Here is the story of Tibet as told by its remarkable first family--a story of reincarnation, coronation, heartbreaking exile, and finally the tenacious efforts of a holy man to save a nation and its people.. Kundun is a story of reincarnation, coronation, heartbreaking exile, and finally, the tenacious efforts of a holy man to save a nation and its people. This is the first work to focus on the Dalai Lamas family--his parents, four brothers, and two sisters. Particularly compelling are Mary Craigs portraits of the Dalai Lamas siblings, who have negotiated with China on behalf of their country, enlisted the aid of international allies to spearhead Tibetan Resistance, and worked tirelessly to help thousands of sick and starving refugee children. This remarkable book opens in 1933 with the death of the thirteenth Dalai Lama and the frantic effort among Tibetan authorities to find his reincarnation. In their search for a baby boy displaying the characteristic marks of a Dalai Lama--tiger striped legs, wide eyes, large ears, and palms bearing the pattern of a sea shell--officials were led to a tiny village in northeastern Tibet, home of Lhamo Dhondup, a smart, stubborn toddler already known for his tantrums.Responding calmly when a group of high lamas and dignitaries tested his memory of a previous life, the child easily recognized a rosary, walking stick, and drum belonging to the thirteenth Dalai Lama at the age of three, and was known from that point on as His Holiness or Kundun (the Presence), titles even his family members were obliged to use. A few years later the young Dalai Lama and his family were faced with Chinas invasion of Tibet. Living in exile since the late 1950s, they have waged a decades-long struggle for the freedom of their country.Mary Craigs intimate portrayal is the first to focus on the Dalai Lamas family--his parents, four brothers, and two sisters--all of whom have played integral roles in Tibets resistance to Chinese occupation. Particularly compelling are Craigs portraits of the Dalai Lamas siblings, who have negotiated with China on behalf of their country, enlisted the aid of international allies to spearhead Tibetan Resistance and worked tirelessly to help thousands of sick and starving refugee children. Kundun brings new warmth and insight to one of the centurys most heartrending stories, the epic of a people wrenched from their land by force and stubbornly fighting for survival.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.7 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The story of one of the greatest peace makers in modern time, 12 Nov 1999
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Kundun: A Biography of the Family of the Dalai Lama (Hardcover)
The Dalai Lama is leading the greatest David and Goliath struggle in world history and he doesn't even own a sling shot. His weapons of choice against China, the most brutal government on the planet, are words and truth. This book is worth a read as is Tears of Blood by Mary Craig. Forget trying to pit one religion against another or saying your god is better than my god. That is all foolishness. This book and Tears of Blood are stories of trying to save the human soul...And the human spirit and neither have a religion.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very detailed, but readable, recent history of Tibet, 22 Aug 1998
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Kundun: A Biography of the Family of the Dalai Lama (Hardcover)
I've read 5 books on Tibet recently, and this one was perhaps the best. It is full of factual history of life before, during and after the Chinese occupation of Tibet, but it also includes personal recollections of the Dalai Lama and his family members, and anecdotes from other key individuals. The story itself is fascinating. If you're interested in finding out what happened to the Tibetan people, you will be well-informed by reading "Kundun." By the way, it is not the same as the movie "Kundun," which was based very closely on the Dalai Lama's autobiography. Very enjoyable to read. Thanks, Mary!
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent biography, but lacking in warts!, 20 Jan 1998
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Kundun: A Biography of the Family of the Dalai Lama (Hardcover)
Mary Craig has done a wonderful job in depicting the family struggles of the present Dalai Lama. How DOES a peasant family resolve the situation of having an enlightened being born into their simple abode? In any culture this would be a great honor, but in Tibet this was honor beyond belief - a pressure which the family do not appear to have fared well from.
While Mary Craig depicts the already known information in an efficient and succinct manner, she does avoid the controversial issues surrounding the Dalai Lama's brothers and their present artificially 'elevated' positions. Craig would have done well to read the wonderful and recently published "The Autobiography of Jesus of Nazareth and the Missing Years" by Richard G. Patton. In this, she would have seen how another great writer deals with a parallel situation, yet instead of avoiding the controversies, Patton meets the bull head on and delivers! If only you had gone that extra mile Mary? It is great to see how Hollywood has finally woken up to the people's need for material beyond mere bubble-gum for the eyes. I hope all those writers keep these exceptional books coming. In the meantime, I'm off to see how they work out on screen!
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