Video
The Return of Little Buddha
25 December 2006
0:00:01.579,0:00:05.065We thought he had vanished, but Little Buddha [sic, 1] is back.
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It is here, under this tree, that a group of police officers [sic, hunters?, note 2] discovered him.
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The fact that you found me was just sheer luck. I've been here three days and apparently some people had spotted me.
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I was in deep meditation and I didn't even notice there were people around.
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His devotees describe the 16-year-old Nepalese boy as the reincarnation of Buddha.
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His disappearance sent a shock wave through the kingdom. He apparently wandered through the woods for 10 months without eating or drinking.
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Before he vanished, more than 100,000 people came to see him meditate, some buying official CDs and photographs.
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However, every night, Little Buddha would be hidden from sight by a dark screen [sic, 3]. As a result, doubt started to come up.
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To dissipate the negative rumors that followed, the authorities ordered an investigation, but the conclusions have never been made public. [sic, report has been made public now, note 4]
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Notes
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[1] On November 8, 2005 Palden Dorje spoke quietly from behind his curtain to say he would soon address the people gathered. He stated he had not reached the level of the Buddha, but had only acquired Remedhheya (Rinpoche/teacher) energy. He asked them again not to publicize him as an incarnation of the Buddha. He indicated the Tapobana area surrounding him must be peaceful for six years. He said his meditation was to bring peace to the world.
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[2] Most reports indicate hunters first spotted him.
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[3] Palden Dorje was hidden from sight by a dark screen every night except for the days he was observed by the Nepali Government Study Team for 6 nights and by the BBC film crew for three nights and 2 weeks later for 4 nights in a row.
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[4] The BBC documentary "Boy with Divine Power" presented the government report. The report included a demand that the boy should be left undisturbed to complete his meditation and that he should not be tested scientifically. The request of scientists to monitor heart rate, blood pressure and respiratory rate was denied as it was deemed disturbing to Palden Dorje's meditation. The task force on site in December 2005 were only filming, visually observing, and making sure he was not being disturbed.
