The , the spiritual leader of Tibet’s Buddhists, on Monday gave his strongest indication yet that the centuries-old institution could continue after his death.
Speaking at prayer celebrations ahead of his 90th birthday on July 6, Tenzin Gyatso told followers that “there will be some kind of a framework within which we can talk about its continuation.”
Tibetan Buddhists believe that the Dalai Lama can choose the body into which he is reincarnated, as has happened on 14 occasions since the creation of the institution in 1587. But the current Dalai Lama has suggested in the past that he could potentially be the last.
“The institution of the Dalai Lama, and whether it should continue or not, is up to the Tibetan people,” he told Time magazine in 2004. “If they feel it is not relevant, then it will cease and there will be no 15th Dalai Lama.”
Gyatso, who was born in 1935 and became the 14th reincarnation of the Dalai Lama in 1940, has been living in exile in since Chinese troops crushed an uprising in the Tibetan capital Lhasa in 1959.
‘I have time left’
For , the Dalai Lama is a Tibetan separatist who doesn’t recognize Chinese sovereignty over Tibet and whose loyalties lies with the Tibetan government in exile.
Gyatso himself has called on followers to reject any successor proposed by Beijing. He said the next reincarnation of the Dalai Lama could also be found in India, and could be either a boy or a girl.
“My life is outside Tibet, therefore my reincarnation will logically be found outside,” he said in his 2004 interview with Time magazine. “But then, the next question: Will the Chinese accept this or not?”
While the question of his succession is becoming more and more relevant, the Dalai Lama insisted he is not finished yet.
“Though I am 90 years old, physically I am very healthy,” he said on Monday, before tasting a slice of Tibetan-style birthday cake, an elaborately decorated tower made from roasted barley and butter.
“In the time I have left, I will continue to dedicate myself to the well-being of others as much as possible,” he said.
Edited by: Zac Crellin
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