Behind the Smile: The Hidden Side of the Dalai Lama

Tibet appears as the land of monasteries where Buddhist monks meditate in peace and serenity amid snow-capped mountains. In reality, the truth is far more sinister. Behind the Smile is a stunning indictment of the 14th Dalai Lama and how he is portrayed by Western media as a benevolent religious leader persecuted by a ruthless socialist power. Based on his personal observations on the ground in Tibet and detailed analysis and interpretation of the Dalai Lama’s own writings, author Maxime Vivas reveals the opportunistic variations, omissions, lies, and stratagems demonstrated by the Dalai Lama in a decades’-long public relations struggle with China. From his ban on Shugden worship to his own ties with the United States Central Intelligence Agency, as well as Tibet’s tacit relationship with Hitler’s Germany, the true image of modern Tibet and the Dalai Lama is hidden behind the public persona of an untouchable spiritual leader to millions, pop culture icon, and Nobel Peace Price recipient. This unprecedented portrait of the Dalai Lama flies in the face of popular media, and represents the vanguard of a growing movement to provoke awareness in the complex agenda of the Dalai Lama and his followers in dealing with China and the West. Maxime Vivas is the author of La face cachée de reporters sans frontiers: de la CIA aux faucons du Pentagone.