As you report, a foundation from Hong Kong that is believed to have China’s backing has shown interest in investing some three-billion dollars in Lumbini, a village in Nepal in which the Buddha was born (“At Buddha’s Birthplace,” August 20, 2011). With transportation links, hotels, and a Buddhist University, the project is supposed to make a “Mecca for Buddhists.” The news caused uproar in Nepal. India considers Nepal as part of its sphere of influence, and it hardly welcomes the project. In your interpretation, this “bizarre” undertaking has to do with China’s attempt to expand its economic influence across its Tibet border. A much more plausible interpretation is that China is doing its best to move the center of Buddhist institutions from Tibet to Nepal. Much of that shift has already taken place over the years due to the systematic repression of Tibetan Buddhism in Tibet itself. With a little bit of help, and a dollop of money, the move from Lhasa to Lumbini could be made to stick. Or so would China hope.