The Dalai Lama was silent for a moment longer while he considered the issue, then began. “Now, the sense of self and the attachment to one’s existence is of course a very natural trait. And I think that this sense of Us is simply an extension of this sense of self—it becomes extended so others get included in it, especially your immediate kin. You expand your horizon of identification, of personal identity, to include others, those to whom you look for support. So, as this expands, first it extends to your family, then your cultural group, then your nation, wherever it takes.
