Dalai Lama turns 90 tomorrow: Tibetan struggle enters its most uncertain chapter

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The 14th Dalai Lama has clearly said that his reincarnation should be decided by Tibetans and Buddhists, and no one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter read more
The exiled spiritual leader, the 14th Dalai Lama, has announced that his office, the Gaden Phodrang Trust, has sole authority to recognise the next Dalai Lama. On Wednesday, four days ahead of his 90th birthday (July 6), he posted a statement to X discussing the future of the Tibetan spiritual leadership, particularly his succession plans. He said that his reincarnation should be decided by Tibetans and Buddhists, and no one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter. The Dalai Lama has indicated that his successor may be found in India.
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Beijing was quick to reject it, saying that the Dalai Lama's succession plan breaks tradition. China has warned against separatism ahead of the Dalai Lama's expected succession decree. Beijing has said that the succession of the Dalai Lama should be in accordance with tradition and Chinese law. 'The Dalai Lama's reincarnation must follow the principles of domestic recognition, the 'golden urn' process, and approval by the central government, in line with religious traditions and laws,' Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.
Historically, the Dalai Lama is believed to be the tulku (incarnation) of a series of spiritual leaders dating back more than 600 years. Following Tibetan tradition, upon his death, aides and senior lamas identify his successor through rituals and signs. In the late 18th century, the Qianlong emperor of the Qing dynasty introduced a lot-drawing 'golden urn' system to select reincarnations. Since then, reincarnations of all Dalai Lamas and Panchen Lamas (the second-highest figure in Tibetan Buddhism) were recognised, approved, and enthroned with the consent of both local and central governments, except for three cases: the 9th, 13th, and 14th Dalai Lamas. The 14th Dalai Lama was recognised following traditional rituals, and his recognition was granted directly by the then central government, exempting him from the golden urn process.
The 14th Dalai Lama
The 14th Dalai Lama was born on July 6, 1935. His full spiritual name is Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso. He is the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. A belief central to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition as well as the institution of the Dalai Lama is that the reincarnated person is a living Bodhisattva. The Mongolic word 'Dalai' means ocean. The 14th Dalai Lama is also known to Tibetans as Gyalwa Rinpoche (The Precious Jewel-like Buddha-Master).
Born to a farming family in Taktser (Hongya village), he was selected as the tulku of the 13th Dalai Lama in 1937 and formally recognised as the 14th Dalai Lama in 1939. As with the recognition process for his predecessor, the Golden Urn selection process was waived and approved by the Central Government of the Republic of China. His enthronement ceremony was held in Lhasa on February 22, 1940. Hereon, the Dalai Lama's childhood was spent between the Potala Palace and Norbulingka, his summer residence, both of which are now Unesco World Heritage Sites.
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As Chinese forces re-entered and annexed Central Tibet, Ganden Phodrang invested the Dalai Lama with temporal duties on 17 November 1950 (at 15 years of age) until his exile in 1959. China had forced the Dalai Lama to sign and later ratify the one-sided 'Seventeen Point Agreement' on May 23, 1951. The agreement recognised Chinese sovereignty over Tibet, but China allowed the Dalai Lama to continue to rule Tibet internally. The agreement actively supported the People's Liberation Army in Tibet in consolidating national defence, driving out imperialist influences from Tibet, and safeguarding the unification of the territory and the sovereignty of the motherland.
In 1956, on a trip to India to celebrate the Buddha's birthday, the Dalai Lama asked then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru if he would allow him political asylum should he choose to stay. Nehru discouraged this as a provocation against peace and reminded him of the Indian government's non-interventionist stance agreed upon in its 1954 treaty with China.
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In 1959, at the age of 23, he took his final examination at Lhasa's Jokhang Temple during the annual Monlam Prayer Festival. He passed with honours and was awarded the Lharampa degree, the highest-level geshe degree, roughly equivalent to a doctorate in Buddhist philosophy.
At the outset of the 1959 Tibetan uprising, fearing for his life, the Dalai Lama and his retinue fled Tibet with the help of the CIA's Special Activities Division, crossing into India on 30 March 1959, reaching Tezpur in Assam on 18 April. On 29 April 1959, the Dalai Lama established the independent Tibetan government in exile in the north Indian hill station of Mussoorie, which then moved in May 1960 to Dharamshala, where he resides, and which is often referred to as 'Little Lhasa'.
He created a Tibetan educational system in order to teach the Tibetan children the language, history, religion, and culture. The Dalai Lama appealed to the United Nations on the rights of Tibetans. This appeal resulted in three resolutions adopted by the General Assembly in 1959, 1961, and 1965, all before the People's Republic was allowed representation at the United Nations. In 1970, he opened the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives in Dharamshala, which houses over 80,000 manuscripts and important knowledge resources related to Tibetan history, politics, and culture.
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His devotees, as well as much of the Western world, often call him His Holiness the Dalai Lama. He served as the resident spiritual and temporal leader of Tibet before 1959 and subsequently led the Tibetan government in exile represented by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) in Dharamsala. The Dalai Lama stepped down as his people's political 'Head of the Tibetan Administration for Tibetans-in-exile' in 2011, an appointment he held since 1991, and passed the baton of secular power to a government chosen democratically by 130,000 Tibetans around the world.
Dalai Lama the Person
Until reaching his mid-80s, the Dalai Lama travelled worldwide to give Tibetan Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism teachings, and his Kalachakra teachings and initiations were international events. He also attended conferences on a wide range of subjects, including the relationship between religion and science, and met with other world leaders, religious leaders, philosophers, and scientists online and in person. His growing wish to develop meaningful scientific dialogue to explore the Buddhism and science interface led to invitations for him to attend relevant conferences on his visits to the West. He has said that had he not been brought up as a monk, he would probably have been an engineer.
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The Dalai Lama refers to himself as a follower of the Nalanda master. In fact, he often asserts that 'Tibetan Buddhism' is based on the Buddhist tradition of Nalanda monastery in ancient India and the texts written by the 17 Nalanda pandits (masters). These texts were brought to Tibet and translated into Tibetan when Buddhism was first established there and have remained central to the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism ever since. Since 2018, he has continued to teach on a reduced schedule, limiting his travel to within India only, and occasionally addressing international audiences via live webcasts. His work includes a focus on the environment, economics, women's rights, nonviolence, interfaith dialogue, physics, astronomy, cognitive neuroscience, and others.
The Dalai Lama uses various meditation techniques, including analytic meditation and emptiness meditation. He has said that the aim of meditation is 'to maintain a very full state of alertness and mindfulness, and then try to see the natural state of your consciousness'. 'All human beings have an innate desire to overcome suffering, to find happiness. Training the mind to think differently, through meditation, is one important way to avoid suffering and be happy.'
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The Dalai Lama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989. Time magazine named the Dalai Lama Gandhi's spiritual heir to nonviolence. The 12th General Assembly of the Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace in New Delhi unanimously recognised the Dalai Lama's contributions to global peace and his lifelong efforts in uniting Buddhist communities worldwide and bestowed upon him the title of 'Universal Supreme Leader of the Buddhist World'; they also designated July 6, his birthday, as the Universal Day of Compassion. The Dalai Lama is the author of numerous books on Buddhism.
Dalai Lama's Succession Approach and Interpretation
The Dalai Lama advocates for the welfare of Tibetans and since the early 1970s has called for the 'Middle Way Approach' with China to peacefully resolve the issue of Tibet. This policy was adopted democratically by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) and the Tibetan people. The middle ground is a practical approach and mutually beneficial to both Tibetans and Chinese. The Tibetans can preserve their culture and religion and uphold their identity and China's assertion of sovereignty over Tibet. Despite initially advocating for Tibetan independence from 1961 to 1974, the Dalai Lama no longer supports it.
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In September 2011, the Dalai Lama issued the following statement concerning his succession and reincarnation: 'When I am about ninety I will consult the high Lamas of the Tibetan Buddhist traditions, the Tibetan public, and other concerned people who follow Tibetan Buddhism, and re-evaluate whether the institution of the Dalai Lama should continue or not. On that basis we will take a decision. If it is decided that the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama should continue and there is a need for the 15th Dalai Lama to be recognised, responsibility for doing so will primarily rest on the concerned officers of the Dalai Lama's Gaden Phodrang Trust. They should consult the various heads of the Tibetan Buddhist traditions and the reliable oath-bound Dharma Protectors who are linked inseparably to the lineage of the Dalai Lamas. They should seek advice and direction from these concerned beings and carry out the procedures of search and recognition in accordance with past tradition. I shall leave clear written instructions about this. Bear in mind that, apart from the reincarnation recognised through such legitimate methods, no recognition or acceptance should be given to a candidate chosen for political ends by anyone, including those in the People's Republic of China.'
In October 2011, the Dalai Lama repeated his statement in an interview with Canadian CTV News. He added that Chinese laws banning the selection of successors based on reincarnation will not impact his decisions. 'Naturally my next life is entirely up to me. No one else. And also this is not a political matter,' he said in the interview. The Dalai Lama also added that he has not decided on whether he will reincarnate or be the last Dalai Lama.
In an interview with the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, published on September 7, 2014, the Dalai Lama stated, 'The institution of the Dalai Lama has served its purpose,' and that 'We had a Dalai Lama for almost five centuries. The 14th Dalai Lama now is very popular. Let us then finish with a popular Dalai Lama.' In response, the Chinese government said the title of Dalai Lama has been conferred by the central government for hundreds of years and the 14th Dalai Lama has ulterior motives. Gyatso has also expressed fear that the Chinese government would manipulate any reincarnation selection in order to choose a successor that would go along with their political goals.
The Chinese Government's Position
The Chinese government is clear that the reincarnation was not just an 'internal religious matter' but also a matter of 'national sovereignty, government authority, religious principles, and the sentiments of lay followers'. In 2007, the traditional ceremony was incorporated into China's official regulations, along with a clause explicitly banning interference by overseas individuals and parties. Tibetan Buddhism in communist China has been forcefully integrated with Chinese characteristics and is a part of the oft-spoken sinicisation. China views the 14th Dalai Lama as a separatist and accuses him of inciting unrest, particularly in the 1980s and during the 2008 protests in Tibet.
After the death of the 10th Panchen Lama in 1989, Beijing and the Dalai Lama recognised two separate boys as his successor, with the Dalai Lama's choice disappearing from public view for decades since. In a rare public comment on the issue, Zhao Lijian, then spokesman for China's foreign ministry, told a press conference in May 2020 that the Dalai Lama-nominated boy, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, was a working adult and that he and his family preferred to live a private life.
Beijing is worried about possible social instability in case the Dalai Lama announces a successor. The Chinese-appointed Panchen Lama has been in the Tibetan regional capital, Lhasa, of late, carrying out duties such as office work, social research, and religious activities, according to local media. The Panchen Lama met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on June 6, when Xi told him to 'carry on the glorious tradition of Tibetan Buddhism of loving the country and religion and resolutely safeguard national and ethnic unity'. According to tradition, the next Dalai Lama will be recognised by the 11th Panchen Lama, but the current Panchen Lama is not recognised by the current Dalai Lama. Lhasa has traditionally been a power base of every Dalai Lama and the centre of unrest in 1959, the 1980s, and 2008.
Indian Government's Stand
India is estimated to be home to tens of thousands of Tibetan Buddhists who are free to study and work here. Many Indians revere the Dalai Lama, and international relations experts say his presence in India gives New Delhi a measure of leverage with China. Amid the recent row over the Dalai Lama's succession plan, the government on Friday said that India does not take a position on matters concerning religious belief or practice.
Kiren Rijiju, India's minister of parliamentary and minority affairs and a practicing Buddhist, made a statement on the matter on Thursday, ahead of visiting the Dalai Lama's base at Dharamshala for the religious leader's 90th birthday on Sunday. 'No one has the right to interfere or decide who the successor of His Holiness the Dalai Lama will be,' he reportedly said. 'Only he or his institution has the authority to make that decision. His followers believe that deeply. It's important for disciples across the world that he decides his succession.' India's foreign ministry did not respond to a request for comment on the Dalai Lama's succession plan.
Global Support
The Dalai Lama has tried to mobilise international support for Tibetan activities. The Dalai Lama has been successful in gaining Western support for himself and the cause of greater Tibetan autonomy, including vocal support from numerous Hollywood celebrities, most notably the actors Richard Gere and Steven Seagal, as well as lawmakers from several major countries.
The United States has historically supported greater Tibetan autonomy and passed legislation to counter Beijing's role in the succession process and its framing of Tibetan history. In 1967, the Dalai Lama was out of India for the first time since he resided here from 1959. The Japanese government granted him a visa on the condition he would not attack the People's Republic of China (PRC) while in Japan.
However, with the rising of China, recent US policy has been ambivalent. The US and Indian support for Tibetan separatism has ebbed for various reasons. While there will almost certainly be discordant contestation between the Chinese government and the exiles after the Dalai Lama's passing, at least part of the Tibetan diaspora may opt for reconciliation, which China is likely to welcome.
To Summarise
The Dalai Lama maintains close ties with India. In 2008, the Dalai Lama said that Arunachal Pradesh, partially claimed by China, is part of India, citing the disputed 1914 Simla Accord. In 2010 at the International Buddhist Conference in Gujarat, he described himself as a 'son of India' and 'Tibetan in appearance but an Indian in spirituality'. Chinese Buddhists could also be deemed 'Indian in spirituality', because both Tibetan and Chinese Buddhism originated from India.
The Dalai Lama says that he is active in spreading India's message of nonviolence and religious harmony throughout the world. 'I am the messenger of India's ancient thoughts the world over.' He has said that democracy has deep roots in India. He says he considers India the master and Tibet its disciple, as great scholars went from India to Tibet to teach Buddhism.
The Nobel Peace Prize-winning monk's 90th birthday celebrations are expected to be a huge event. He has been encouraging people to plan for an eventual future without him and with another Dalai Lama. Many exiled Tibetans fear China will name a successor to bolster control over a territory it poured troops into in 1950.
The 14th Dalai Lama has reaffirmed that he will be reincarnated and that the process of identifying his successor should follow traditional Tibetan Buddhist practices. In a message shared during a prayer ceremony and posted on social media, the Dalai Lama stated that only his non-profit institution, Gaden Phodrang Foundation, has the legitimate authority to oversee the selection of his reincarnation. He emphasised that the identification of the 15th Dalai Lama should involve consultation with senior leaders of Tibetan Buddhist schools and with spiritual entities known as oath-bound Dharma Protectors, following established historical customs. The Dalai Lama reaffirmed that his reincarnation will occur outside China.
The Chinese government rejected the Dalai Lama's position. Officials in Beijing stated that the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, as well as other high-ranking Tibetan Buddhist figures such as the Panchen Lama, must be approved by the central government. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the government holds ultimate authority in confirming the identity of reincarnated Tibetan spiritual leaders. All eyes are towards Dharamshala. The Dalai Lama's stand will matter. India's foreign policy establishment will have to walk the tightrope.
The writer is former Director General, Centre for Air Power Studies. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost's views.