The Dalai Lama’s entire being is about peace and harmony, forgiveness and self-discipline. Those are qualities to be admired. I am really looking forward to meeting His Holiness.

In this statement, Joe Nichols frames the Dalai Lama less as a political figure than as a moral exemplar. By listing “peace and harmony, forgiveness and self-discipline,” he highlights virtues associated with Buddhist ethical practice and presents them as universally admirable traits rather than sectarian ideals. The second sentence shifts from appraisal to personal anticipation, suggesting that the value of such virtues is not merely abstract: Nichols implies that encountering a person who embodies them could be personally meaningful or instructive. The quote functions as a public endorsement of nonviolence and inner discipline, and it also signals respect for spiritual authority grounded in character rather than power.