The14th Dalai Lama[b] (bornLhamo Thondup;[c] 6 July 1935; full spiritual name:Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened asTenzin Gyatso)[d] is the incumbentDalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head ofTibetan Buddhism. He served as the resident spiritual and temporal leader of Tibet before 1959 and subsequently led the Tibetan government in exile represented by theCentral Tibetan Administration inDharamsala, India.[2][3]
A belief central to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition as well as the institution of the Dalai Lama is that the reincarnated person is a livingBodhisattva, specifically an emanation ofAvalokiteśvara (in Sanskrit) or Chenrezig (in Tibetan), the Bodhisattva of Compassion.[4] TheMongolic worddalai meansocean.[5][e] The 14th Dalai Lama is also known to Tibetans asGyalwa Rinpoche ("The Precious Jewel-like Buddha-Master"),Kundun ("The Presence"), andYizhin Norbu ("The Wish-Fulfilling Gem"). His devotees, as well as much of the Western world, often call himHis Holiness the Dalai Lama. He is the leader and a monk of the newestGelug school of Tibetan Buddhism.[7]
The 14th Dalai Lama was born to a farming family inTaktser (Hongya village), in the traditional Tibetan region ofAmdo, at the time a Chinese frontier district.[8][9][10][11] He was selected as thetulku of the 13th Dalai Lama in 1937, andformally recognised as the 14th Dalai Lama in 1939.[12] As with the recognition process for his predecessor, aGolden Urn selection process was waived and approved by theNationalist government ofChina.[13][14][15] His enthronement ceremony was held inLhasa on 22 February 1940.[12] Following theBattle of Chamdo, in which PRC forcesannexed Central Tibet, the Tibetan government, the Ganden Phodrang, invested the Dalai Lama with temporal duties on 17 November 1950 (at 15 years of age), which he held until his exile in 1959.[16][17]
During the1959 Tibetan uprising, the Dalai Lama escaped to India, where he continues to live. On 29 April 1959, the Dalai Lama established the independent Tibetan government in exile in the north Indian hill station ofMussoorie, which then moved in May 1960 toDharamshala, where he resides. He retired as political head in 2011 to make way for ademocratic government, theCentral Tibetan Administration.[18][19][20][21] The Dalai Lama advocates for the welfare of Tibetans and since the early 1970s has called for theMiddle Way Approach with China to peacefully resolve the issue of Tibet.[22] This policy, adopted democratically by the Central Tibetan Administration and the Tibetan people through long discussions, seeks to find a middle ground, "a practical approach and mutually beneficial to both Tibetans and Chinese, in which Tibetans can preserve their culture and religion and uphold their identity," and China's assertion of sovereignty over Tibet, aiming to address the interests of both parties through dialogue and communication and for Tibet to remain a part of China.[23][24][25] He criticised theCIA Tibetan program, saying that its sudden end in 1972 proved it was primarily aimed at serving American interests.[26]
Until reaching his mid-80s, the Dalai Lama travelled worldwide to give TibetanMahayana andVajrayana Buddhism teachings, and hisKalachakra teachings and initiations were international events. He also attended conferences on a wide range of subjects, including the relationship between religion and science, met with other world leaders, religious leaders, philosophers, and scientists, online and in-person. Since 2018, he has continued to teach on a reduced schedule, limiting his travel to within India only, and occasionally addressing international audiences via livewebcasts. His work includes focus on theenvironment, economics,women's rights,nonviolence,interfaith dialogue,physics,astronomy,Buddhism and science,cognitive neuroscience,[27][28]reproductive health andsexuality.
The Dalai Lama was awarded theNobel Peace Prize in 1989.Time magazine named the Dalai LamaGandhi's spiritual heir to nonviolence.[29][30] The 12th General Assembly of the Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace in New Delhi unanimously recognised the Dalai Lama's contributions to global peace, 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 6 July, his birthday, as theUniversal Day of Compassion.[31][32]
After the demise of the 13th Dalai Lama, in 1935, the Ordinance of Lama Temple Management[g][46][47] was published by the Central Government. In 1936, the Method of Reincarnation of Lamas[h][48][49] was published by theMongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission of the Central Government. Article 3 states that death of lamas, including the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama, should be reported to the commission,soul boys should be located and checked by the commission, and a lot-drawing ceremony with the Golden Urn system should be held. Article 6 states that local governments should invite officials from the Central Government to take care of thesitting-in-the-bed ceremony. Article 7 states that soul boys should not be sought from current lama families. This article echoes what theQianlong Emperor described inThe Discourse of Lama to eliminate greedy families with multiple reincarnated rinpoches, lamas.[50] Based on custom and regulation, the regent was actively involved in the search for the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama.
Following reported signs and visions, three search teams were sent out to the north-east, the east, and the south-east to locate the newincarnation when the boy who was to become the 14th Dalai Lama was about two years old.[51]Sir Basil Gould, British delegate to Lhasa in 1936, related his account of the north-eastern team to SirCharles Alfred Bell, former British resident in Lhasa and friend of the 13th Dalai Lama. Among other omens, the head of the embalmed body of the13th Dalai Lama, at first facing south-east, had turned to face the north-east, indicating, it was interpreted, the direction in which his successor would be found. TheRegent,Reting Rinpoche, shortly afterwards had avision at thesacred lake ofLhamo La-tso which he interpreted as Amdo being the region to search. This vision was also interpreted to refer to a large monastery with a gilded roof and turquoise tiles, and a twisting path from there to a hill to the east, opposite which stood a small house with distinctive eaves. The team, led by KewtsangRinpoche, went first to meet thePanchen Lama, who had been stuck inJyekundo, in northern Kham.[51]
The Panchen Lama had been investigating births of unusual children in the area ever since the death of the 13th Dalai Lama.[52] He gave Kewtsang the names of three boys whom he had discovered and identified as candidates. Within a year the Panchen Lama had died. Two of his three candidates were crossed off the list but the third, a "fearless" child, the most promising, was from Taktser village, which, as in the vision, was on a hill, at the end of a trail leading to Taktser from the greatKumbum Monastery with its gilded, turquoise roof. There they found a house, as interpreted from the vision—the house where Lhamo Dhondup lived.[51][52]
The 14th Dalai Lama claims that at the time, the village ofTaktser stood right on the "real border" between the region ofAmdo and China.[53] According to the search lore, when the team visited, posing as pilgrims, its leader, a Sera Lama, pretended to be the servant and sat separately in the kitchen. He held an oldmala that had belonged to the 13th Dalai Lama, and the boy Lhamo Dhondup, aged two, approached and asked for it. The monk said, "If you know who I am, you can have it." The child said, "Sera Lama, Sera Lama," and spoke with him in a Lhasa accent, in a dialect the boy's mother could not understand. The next time the party returned to the house, they revealed their real purpose and asked permission to subject the boy to certain tests. One test consisted of showing him various pairs of objects, one of which had belonged to the 13th Dalai Lama and one which had not. In every case, he chose the Dalai Lama's own objects and rejected the others.[54]
House where the 14th Dalai Lama was born inTaktser,Amdo
From 1936 the Hui "Ma clique" Muslim warlordMa Bufang ruledQinghai as its governor under the nominal authority of the Republic of China central government.[55] According to an interview with the 14th Dalai Lama, in the 1930s, Ma Bufang hadseized this north-east corner of Amdo in the name ofChiang Kai-shek's weak government and incorporated it into the Chinese province ofQinghai.[56] Before going to Taktser, Kewtsang had gone to Ma Bufang to pay his respects.[52] When Ma Bufang heard a candidate had been found in Taktser, he had the family brought to him in Xining.[57] He first demanded proof that the boy was the Dalai Lama, but the Lhasa government, though informed by Kewtsang that this was the one, told Kewtsang to say he had to go to Lhasa for further tests with other candidates. They knew that if he was declared to be the Dalai Lama, the Chinese government would insist on sending a large army escort with him, which would then stay in Lhasa and refuse to budge.[58]
Ma Bufang, together withKumbum Monastery, then refused to allow him to depart unless he was declared to be the Dalai Lama, but withdrew this demand in return for 100,000 Chinese dollars ransom in silver to be shared among them, to let them go to Lhasa.[58][59] Kewtsang managed to raise this, but the family was only allowed to move from Xining to Kumbum when a further demand was made for another 330,000 dollars ransom: 100,000 each for government officials, the commander-in-chief, and the Kumbum Monastery; 20,000 for the escort; and only 10,000 for Ma Bufang himself, he said.[60]
Two years of diplomatic wrangling followed before it was accepted by Lhasa that the ransom had to be paid to avoid the Chinese getting involved and escorting him to Lhasa with a large army.[61] Meanwhile, the boy was kept at Kumbum where two of his brothers were already studying as monks and recognised incarnate lamas.[62] The payment of 300,000 silver dollars was then advanced by Muslim traders en route to Mecca in a large caravan via Lhasa. They paid Ma Bufang on behalf of the Tibetan government against promissory notes to be redeemed, with interest, in Lhasa.[62][63] The 20,000-dollar fee for an escort was dropped, since the Muslim merchants invited them to join their caravan for protection; Ma Bufang sent 20 of his soldiers with them and was paid from both sides since the Chinese government granted him another 50,000 dollars for the expenses of the journey. Furthermore, the Indian government helped the Tibetans raise the ransom funds by affording them import concessions.[63]
Released from Kumbum, on 21 July 1939 the party travelled across Tibet on a journey to Lhasa in the large Muslim caravan with Lhamo Dhondup, now four years old, riding with his brother Lobsang in a special palanquin carried by two mules, two years after being discovered. As soon as they were out of Ma Bufang's area, he was officially declared to be the 14th Dalai Lama by theKashag, and after ten weeks of travel he arrived in Lhasa on 8 October 1939.[67] The ordination (pabbajja) and giving of the monastic name of Tenzin Gyatso were arranged byReting Rinpoche and according to the Dalai Lama "I received my ordination fromKyabjé Ling Rinpoché in the Jokhang in Lhasa."[68] There was very limited Chinese involvement at this time.[69] The family of the 14th Dalai Lama was elevated to the highest stratum of the Tibetan aristocracy and acquired land andserf holdings, as with the families of previous Dalai Lamas.[70]
According to the Dalai Lama, he had a succession of tutors in Tibet includingReting Rinpoche, Tathag Rinpoche,Ling Rinpoche and lastlyTrijang Rinpoche, who became junior tutor when he was 19.[75] At the age of 11 he met the Austrian mountaineerHeinrich Harrer, who became hisvideographer and tutor about the world outsideLhasa. The two remained friends until Harrer's death in 2006.[76]
Historically the Dalai Lamas or theirregents held political and religious leadership overTibet fromLhasa with varying degrees of influence depending on the regions of Tibet and periods of history. This began with the5th Dalai Lama's rule in 1642 and lasted until the 1950s (except for 1705–1750), during which period the Dalai Lamas headed the Tibetan government orGanden Phodrang. Until 1912 however, when the 13th Dalai Lama declared the complete independence ofTibet, their rule was generally subject topatronage and protection of firstly Mongol kings (1642–1720) and then theManchu-ledQing dynasty (1720–1912).[77]
During the Dalai Lama's recognition process, the cultural anthropologistMelvyn Goldstein writes that "everything the Tibetans did during the selection process was designed to prevent China from playing any role."[78][79]
Afterwards in 1939, at the age of four, the Dalai Lama was taken in a procession of lamas to Lhasa. Former British officials stationed inIndia and Tibet recalled that envoys from Britain and China were present at the Dalai Lama's enthronement in February 1940. According toBasil Gould, the Chinese representative Wu Chunghsin was reportedly unhappy about the position he had during the ceremony. Afterward an article appeared in the Chinese press falsely claiming that Wu personally announced the installation of the Dalai Lama, who supposedly prostrated himself to Wu in gratitude.[80][81]
Territorial extent of Tibet and approximate line of theChinese Communist advance in 1950
After his enthronement, the Dalai Lama's childhood was then spent between the Potala Palace andNorbulingka, his summer residence, both of which are nowUNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Chiang Kai Shek ordered Ma Bufang to put his Muslim soldiers on alert for an invasion of Tibet in 1942.[82] Ma Bufang complied, and moved several thousand troops to the border with Tibet.[83] Chiang also threatened the Tibetans with aerial bombardment if they worked with the Japanese. Ma Bufang attacked the Tibetan Buddhist Tsang monastery in 1941.[84] He also constantly attacked theLabrang monastery.[85]
In October 1950 the army of thePeople's Republic of China marched to the edge of the Dalai Lama's territory and sent a delegation after defeating a legion of the Tibetan army inwarlord-controlledKham. On 17 November 1950, at the age of 15, the 14th Dalai Lama assumed full temporal (political) power as ruler of Tibet.[12]
Cooperation and conflicts with the People's Republic of China
The Dalai Lama's formal rule as head of the government in Tibet was brief although he was enthroned as spiritual leader on 22 February 1940. When Chinese cadres entered Tibet in 1950, with a crisis looming, the Dalai Lama was asked to assume the role of head of state at the age of 15, which he did on 17 November 1950. Customarily the Dalai Lama would typically assume control at about the age of 20.[86]
He sent a delegation to Beijing, which signed theSeventeen Point Agreement.[87] The Dalai Lama believes the draft agreement was written by China. Tibetan representatives were not allowed to suggest any alterations and China did not allow the Tibetan representatives to communicate with the Tibetan government in Lhasa. The Tibetan delegation was not authorised by Lhasa to sign, but ultimately submitted to pressure from the Chinese to sign anyway, using seals specifically made for the purpose.[88] The Seventeen Point Agreement recognised Chinese sovereignty over Tibet, but China allowed the Dalai Lama to continue to rule Tibet internally, and it allowed thesystem of feudal peasantry to persist.[89] In September 1951, following a lengthy discussion with the returning delegates, the National Assembly recommended that the Dalai Lama accept the Seventeen Point Agreement. He telegraphed his confirmation to ChairmanMao Zedong on 24 October.[87]
ScholarRobert Barnett wrote of the serfdom controversy: "So even if it were agreed that serfdom and feudalism existed in Tibet, this would be little different other than in technicalities from conditions in any other 'premodern' peasant society, including most of China at that time. The power of the Chinese argument therefore lies in its implication that serfdom, and with it feudalism, is inseparable from extreme abuse. Evidence to support this linkage has not been found by scholars other than those close to Chinese governmental circles. Goldstein, for example, notes that although the system was based on serfdom, it was not necessarily feudal, and he refutes any automatic link with extreme abuse."[90]
The 19-year-old Dalai Lama toured China for almost a year from 1954 to 1955, meeting many of the revolutionary leaders and the top echelon of the Chinese communist leadership who created modern China. He learned Chinese and socialist ideals, as explained by his Chinese hosts, on a tour of China showcasing the benefits of socialism and the effective governance provided to turn the large, impoverished nation into a modern and egalitarian society, which impressed him.[91] In September 1954, he went to the Chinese capital to meet Chairman Mao Zedong with the10th Panchen Lama and attend the first session of theNational People's Congress as a delegate, primarily discussingChina's constitution.[92][93] On 27 September 1954, the Dalai Lama was selected as aVice-chairman of theStanding Committee of the National People's Congress,[94][95] a post he officially held until 1964.[96][97]
Mao Zedong, who, "according to the Tibetan leader, treated him as a 'father would treat a son'", "also showed Tibet’s political leader and its foremost spiritual master its ambivalence to Tibetan Buddhism. The Dalai Lama recounts this episode in his autobiography,My Land and My People,
'A few days later I had a message from Mao Tse-tung to say that he was coming to see me in an hour’s time. When he arrived he said he had merely come to call. Then something made him say that Buddhism was quite a good religion, and Lord Buddha, although he was a prince, had given a good deal of thought to the question of improving the conditions of the people. He also observed that the Goddess Tara was a kind-hearted woman. After a very few minutes, he left. I was quite bewildered by these remarks and did not know what to make of them.'
The comments Mao made during their last meeting shocked the Dalai Lama beyond belief. 'My final interview with this remarkable man was toward the end of my visit to China. I was at a meeting of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly when I received a message asking me to go to see him at this house. By then, I had been able to complete a tour of the Chinese provinces, and I was able to tell him truthfully that I had been greatly impressed and interested by all the development projects I had seen. Then he started to give me a long lecture about the true form of democracy, and advised me how to become a leader of the people and how to take heed of their suggestions. And then he edged closer to me on his chair and whispered:
'I understand you very well. But of course, religion is poison. It has two great defects: It undermines the race, and secondly it retards the progress of the country. Tibet and Mongolia have both been poisoned by it.'"[98] In his autobiography,Freedom In Exile, the Dalai Lama recalls: "How could he have thought I was not religious to the core of my being?'"[99]
Long called a "splittist" and "traitor" by China,[100] the Dalai Lama has attempted formal talks over Tibet's status in China.[101] In 2019, after the United States passed a law requiring the US to deny visas to Chinese officials in charge of implementing policies that restrict foreign access to Tibet, the US Ambassador to China "encouraged the Chinese government to engage in substantive dialogue with the Dalai Lama or his representatives, without preconditions, to seek a settlement that resolves differences".[102]
The Chinese Foreign Ministry has warned the US and other countries to "shun" the Dalai Lama during visits and often uses trade negotiations and human rights talks as an incentive to do so.[103][104][105][106] China sporadically bans images of the Dalai Lama and arrests citizens for owning photos of him in Tibet.[107][108][109]Tibet Autonomous Region government job candidates must strongly denounce the Dalai Lama, as announced on the Tibet Autonomous Region government's online education platform,
"Support the (Communist) Party's leadership, resolutely implement the [Chinese Communist] Party's line, line of approach, policies, and the guiding ideology of Tibet work in the new era; align ideologically, politically, and in action with the Party Central Committee; oppose any splittist tendencies; expose and criticize the Dalai Lama; safeguard the unity of the motherland and ethnic unity and take a firm stand on political issues, taking a clear and distinct stand".[110]
In April 2018, the Dalai Lama confirmed Chinese government claims aboutGedhun Choekyi Nyima by saying that he knew from "reliable sources" that the Panchen Lama he had recognised was alive and receiving normal education. He said he hoped that the Chinese-recognised Panchen Lama (Gyaincain Norbu) studied well under the guidance of a good teacher, adding that there were instances in Tibetan Buddhist tradition, of a reincarnated lama taking more than one manifestation.[111][112]
The Dalai Lama is a target of Chinese state sponsored hacking. Security experts claim "targeting Tibetan activists is a strong indicator of official Chinese government involvement" since economic information is the primary goal of private Chinese hackers.[113] In 2009 the personal office of the Dalai Lama asked researchers at theMunk Center for International Studies at theUniversity of Toronto to check its computers for malicious software. This led to uncoveringGhostNet, a large-scale cyber spying operation which infiltrated at least 1,295 computers in 103 countries, including embassies, foreign ministries, other government offices, and organisations affiliated with the Dalai Lama in India, Brussels, London and New York, and believed to be focusing on the governments of South and Southeast Asia.[114][115][116]
A second cyberspy network,Shadow Network, was discovered by the same researchers in 2010. Stolen documents included a year's worth of the Dalai Lama's personal email, and classified government material relating to India, West Africa, the Russian Federation, the Middle East, and NATO. "Sophisticated" hackers were linked to universities in China, Beijing again denied involvement.[117][118] Chinese hackers posing asThe New York Times,Amnesty International and other organisation's reporters targeted the private office of the Dalai Lama,Tibetan Parliament members, and Tibetan nongovernmental organisations, among others, in 2019.[119]
The abandoned former quarters of the Dalai Lama at thePotala. The empty vestment placed on the throne symbolises his absence.The 14th Dalai Lama being interviewed byVoice of America journalistLillard Hill in 1959In 1967, Dalai Lama was out of India for the first time since he resided there from 1959. TheJapanese government granted him a visa on the condition he would not attack PRC while in Japan.[120]
In 2016, there were demands from Indian citizens and politicians of different political parties to confer the Dalai Lama the prestigiousBharat Ratna, the highest civilian honour of India, which has only been awarded to a non-Indian citizen twice in its history.[126]
In 2021, it was revealed that the Dalai Lama's inner circle were listed in thePegasus project data as having been targeted withspyware on their phones. Analysis strongly indicates potential targets were selected by the Indian government.[127][128]
Theflag of Tibet (designed by the 13th Dalai Lama) shares the stage with Gyatso in April 2010 inZurich, Switzerland.
At theCongressional Human Rights Caucus in 1987 inWashington, D.C., the Dalai Lama gave a speech outlining his ideas for the future status of Tibet. The plan called for Tibet to become a democratic "zone of peace" withoutnuclear weapons, and with support forhuman rights.[citation needed] The plan would come to be known as the "Strasbourg proposal," because the Dalai Lama expanded on the plan atStrasbourg on 15 June 1988. There, he proposed the creation of a self-governing Tibet "in association with the People's Republic of China." This would have been pursued by negotiations with the PRC government, but the plan was rejected by the Tibetan Government-in-Exile in 1991.[129] The Dalai Lama has indicated that he wishes to return to Tibet only if the People's Republic of China agrees not to make any precondition for his return.[130] In the 1970s, theParamount leaderDeng Xiaoping set China's sole return requirement to the Dalai Lama as that he "must [come back] as a Chinese citizen ... that is, patriotism".[131]
The Dalai Lama celebrated his 70th birthday on 6 July 2005. About 10,000 Tibetan refugees, monks and foreign tourists gathered outside his home.Patriarch Alexius II of theRussian Orthodox Church alleged positive relations with Buddhists. However, later that year, the Russian state prevented the Dalai Lama from fulfilling an invitation to the traditionally Buddhist republic ofKalmykia.[132] The President of the Republic of China (Taiwan),Chen Shui-bian, attended an evening celebrating the Dalai Lama's birthday at theChiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei.[133] In October 2008 in Japan, the Dalai Lama addressed the2008 Tibetan violence that had erupted and that the Chinese government accused him of fomenting. He responded that he had "lost faith" in efforts to negotiate with the Chinese government, and that it was "up to the Tibetan people" to decide what to do.[134]
During his visit to Taiwan afterTyphoon Morakot 30 Taiwanese indigenous peoples protested against the Dalai Lama and denounced it as politically motivated.[135][136][137][138]
The Dalai Lama is an advocate for a world free of nuclear weapons, and serves on the Advisory Council of theNuclear Age Peace Foundation.
Until reaching his mid-80s, the Dalai Lama maintained a busy international lecture and teaching schedule. Since 2018, he has continued to teach, but has limited his travel to within India only.[140] Hispublic talks andteachings are usuallywebcast live in multiple languages, via an inviting organisation'swebsite, or on the Dalai Lama's own website. Scores of his past teaching videos can be viewed there, as well aspublic talks,conferences,interviews,dialogues andpanel discussions.[141]
The Dalai Lama's best known teaching subject is theKalachakra tantra which, as of 2014, he had conferred a total of 33 times,[142] most often in India's upper Himalayan regions but also in theWestern world.[143] TheKalachakra (Wheel of Time) is one of the most complex teachings of Buddhism, sometimes taking two weeks to confer, and he often confers it on very large audiences, up to 200,000 students and disciples at a time.[143][144]
In his essay "The Ethic of Compassion" (1999), the Dalai Lama expresses his belief that if we only reserve compassion for those that we love, we are ignoring the responsibility of sharing these characteristics of respect and empathy with those we do not have relationships with, which cannot allow us to "cultivate love." He elaborates upon this idea by writing that although it takes time to develop a higher level of compassion, eventually we will recognise that the quality of empathy will become a part of life and promote our quality as humans and inner strength.[147]
For decades, he frequently accepted requests from students to visit various countries worldwide in order to give teachings to large Buddhist audiences, teachings that were usually based on classical Buddhist texts and commentaries,[148] and most often those written by the 17 pandits or great masters of theNalanda tradition, such as Nagarjuna,[149][150] Kamalashila,[151][152] Shantideva,[153] Atisha,[154] Aryadeva[155] and so on. Since 2018, his schedule has contained fewer engagements, with most occurring in India along with a handful webcasts to international audiences.
The Dalai Lama's main teaching room atDharamshalaDalai Lama conferring Kalachakra initiation at Bodh Gaya, India, December 1985Overview of teaching venue at Bodh Gaya Kalachakra, 1985
The Dalai Lama refers to himself as a follower of these Nalanda masters,[156] in fact he often asserts that 'Tibetan Buddhism' is based on the Buddhist tradition of Nalanda monastery in ancient India,[157] since the texts written by those 17 Nalanda pandits or masters, to whom he has composed a poem of invocation,[158] 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.[159]
As examples of other teachings, in London in 1984 he was invited to give teachings on the Twelve Links of Dependent Arising, and onDzogchen, which he gave at Camden Town Hall; in 1988 he was in London once more to give a series of lectures on Tibetan Buddhism in general, called 'A Survey of the Paths of Tibetan Buddhism'.[160] Again in London in 1996 he taught theFour Noble Truths, the basis and foundation of Buddhism accepted by all Buddhists, at the combined invitation of 27 different Buddhist organisations of all schools and traditions belonging to the Network of Buddhist Organisations UK.[161]
In India, the Dalai Lama gives religious teachings and talks in Dharamsala[154] and numerous other locations including the monasteries in the Tibetan refugee settlements,[148] in response to specific requests from Tibetan monastic institutions, Indian academic, religious and business associations, groups of students and individual/private/lay devotees.[162] In India, no fees are charged to attend these teachings since costs are covered by requesting sponsors.[148] When he travels abroad to give teachings there is usually a ticket fee calculated by the inviting organisation to cover the costs involved[148] and any surplus is normally to be donated to recognised charities.[163]
Dozens of videos of recorded webcasts of the Dalai Lama's public talks on general subjects for non-Buddhists like peace, happiness and compassion, modern ethics, the environment, economic and social issues, gender, the empowerment of women and so forth can be viewed in his office's archive.[169]
In 2019, the Dalai Lama fully sponsored the first-ever 'Celebrating Diversity in the Muslim World' conference in New Delhi on behalf of the Muslims ofLadakh.[180]
Remains of Dalai Lama'sBaby Austin car. Lhasa, 1993Remains of Dalai Lama'sDodge car. Lhasa, 1993
The Dalai Lama's lifelong interest in science[181][182] and technology[183] dates from his childhood in Lhasa, Tibet, when he was fascinated by mechanical objects like clocks, watches, telescopes, film projectors, clockwork soldiers[183] and motor cars,[184] and loved to repair, disassemble and reassemble them.[181] Once, observingthe Moon through atelescope as a child, he realised it was a crater-pocked lump of rock and not a heavenly body emitting its own light as Tibetancosmologists had taught him.[181] He has also said that had he not been brought up as a monk he would probably have been anengineer.[185] On his first trip to the west in 1973 he asked to visitCambridge University'sastrophysics department in the UK and he sought out renowned scientists such asSir Karl Popper,David Bohm andCarl Friedrich von Weizsäcker,[184] who taught him the basics of science.
His growing wish to develop meaningful scientific dialogue to explore theBuddhism and science interface led to invitations for him to attend relevant conferences on his visits to the west, including theAlpbach Symposia on Consciousness in 1983 where he met and had discussions with the late Chilean neuroscientistFrancisco J. Varela.[184] Also in 1983, the Americansocial entrepreneur andinnovatorR. Adam Engle,[187] who had become aware of the Dalai Lama's deep interest in science, was already considering the idea of facilitating for him a serious dialogue with a selection of appropriate scientists.[188] In 1984 Engle formally offered to the Dalai Lama's office to organise a week-long, formal dialogue for him with a suitable team of scientists, provided that the Dalai Lama would wish to fully participate in such a dialogue. Within 48 hours the Dalai Lama confirmed to Engle that he was "truly interested in participating in something substantial about science" so Engle proceeded with launching the project.[189]Francisco Varela, having heard about Engle's proposal, then called him to tell him of his earlier discussions with the Dalai Lama and to offer his scientific collaboration to the project.[189] Engle accepted, and Varela assisted him to assemble his team of six specialist scientists for the first'Mind and Life' dialogue on thecognitive sciences,[190] which was eventually held with the Dalai Lama at his residence in Dharamsala in 1987.[184][189] This five-day event was so successful that at the end the Dalai Lama told Engle he would very much like to repeat it again in the future.[191] Engle then started work on arranging a second dialogue, this time withneuroscientists in California, and the discussions from the first event were edited and published as Mind and Life's first book,"Gentle Bridges: Conversations with the Dalai Lama on the Sciences of Mind".[citation needed]
Apart from time spent teaching Buddhism and fulfilling responsibilities to his Tibetan followers, the Dalai Lama has probably spent, and continues to spend, more of his time and resources investigating the interface betweenBuddhism and science through the ongoing series ofMind and Life dialogues and its spin-offs than on any other single activity.[183] As the institute's Cofounder and the Honorary chairman he has personally presided over and participated in all its dialogues, which continue to expand worldwide.[197]
These activities have given rise to dozens of DVD sets of the dialogues and books he has authored on them such asEthics for the New Millennium andThe Universe in a Single Atom, as well as scientific papers and university research programmes.[198] On the Tibetan and Buddhist side, science subjects have been added to the curriculum for Tibetan monastic educational institutions and scholarship.[199] On the Western side, university and research programmes initiated by these dialogues and funded with millions of dollars in grants from the Dalai Lama Trust include the Emory-Tibet Partnership,[200]Stanford School of Medicine's Centre for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARES)[201] and the Centre for Investigating Healthy Minds,[202] amongst others.
In 2019, Emory University's Center for Contemplative Sciences and Compassion-Based Ethics, in partnership with The Dalai Lama Trust and the Vana Foundation of India, launched an international SEE Learning (Social, Emotional and Ethical Learning) program in New Delhi, India, a school curriculum for all classes from kindergarten to Std XII that builds on psychologistDaniel Goleman's work on emotional intelligence in the early 1990s. SEE learning focuses on developing critical thinking, ethical reasoning and compassion and stresses on commonalities rather than on the differences.[203][204][205][206]
In particular, the Mind and Life Education Humanities & Social Sciences initiatives have been instrumental in developing the emerging field of Contemplative Science, by researching, for example, the effects of contemplative practice on the human brain, behaviour and biology.[198]
In his 2005 bookThe Universe in a Single Atom and elsewhere, and to mark his commitment to scientific truth and its ultimate ascendancy over religious belief, unusually for a major religious leader the Dalai Lama advises his Buddhist followers: "If scientific analysis were conclusively to demonstrate certain claims in Buddhism to be false, then we must accept the findings of science and abandon those claims."[207] He has also cited examples of archaic Buddhist ideas he has abandoned himself on this basis.[181][208]
These activities have even had an impact in the Chinese capital. In 2013 an 'academic dialogue' with a Chinese scientist, a Tibetan 'living Buddha' and a professor of Religion took place in Beijing. Entitled "High-end dialogue: ancient Buddhism and modern science" it addressed the same considerations that interest the Dalai Lama, described as 'discussing about the similarities between Buddhism and modern science'.[209]
The Dalai Lama uses variousmeditation techniques, including analytic meditation andemptiness meditation.[210] 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."[211] "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."[212]
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 Fifteenth Dalai Lama to be recognized, 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 recognized 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.[217][218]
In October 2011, the Dalai Lama repeated his statement in an interview with CanadianCTV 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 would reincarnate or be the last Dalai Lama.[219]
In an interview with the German newspaperWelt am Sonntag published on 7 September 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."[220] 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. This was taken by Tibetan activists andThe Wire to mean that China will make the Dalai Lama reincarnate no matter what.[221]
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.[222]
In 2015, the 14th Dalai Lama has claimed he may be reincarnated as a mischievous blonde woman.[214] In 2019, the 14th Dalai Lama said that if a female Dalai Lama comes, she should be more attractive.[215] Chinese politicianPadma Choling accused the 14th Dalai Lama of flip-flopping with his various statements on the issue, and of hypocrisy as he himself was reincarnated. He also accused the 14th Dalai Lama of profaning Tibetan Buddhism "by doubting his reincarnation".[223]
In October 2019, the 14th Dalai Lama stated that because of the feudal origin of the Dalai Lama reincarnation system, the reincarnation system should end.[224][225][226]
However, in July 2025, as the 14th Dalai Lama reached the age of 90, he addressed growing discussions about his succession by reaffirming 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 of the Dalai Lama, 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.[227] The Dalai Lama reaffirmed that his reincarnation will occur outside China.[228] In a direct challenge to China, he asserted that the centuries-old spiritual institution bearing his name will endure beyond his death, emphasising that only his inner circle—not Beijing—will have the authority to identify his successor. The Dalai Lama has stated that his successor will be born in a free country, suggesting that the next reincarnation could come from the Tibetan diaspora—around 140,000 people worldwide, with about half residing in India.[229] In response, the Chinese government rejected the Dalai Lama’s position. Officials inBeijing stated that the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, as well as other high-ranking Tibetan Buddhist figures such as thePanchen Lama, must be approved by the central government. According to theChinese Foreign Ministry, the government holds ultimate authority in confirming the identity of reincarnated Tibetan spiritual leaders.[227]
Samdhong Rinpoche, a senior leader of the Dalai Lama’s trust, affirmed the continuation of the Dalai Lama institution, stating that both a 15th and 16th Dalai Lama would follow. He said the current Dalai Lama would issue guidelines for identifying his successor. Deputy speaker of the parliament of theCentral Tibetan Administration Dolma Tsering Teykhang accused China of trying to control the reincarnation process and emphasised the need for the Dalai Lama to address the world directly.[229]
In his book, "Voices for the Voiceless", published in 2025, the 14th Dalai Lama said Tibetans worldwide want the institution of the Dalai Lama to continue after his death and specified that his successor would be born in the "free world".[230]
Despite initially advocating for Tibetan independence from 1961 to 1974, the Dalai Lama no longer supports it. Instead he advocates for more meaningful autonomy for Tibetans within the People's Republic of China.[231] This approach is known as the "Middle Way". In 2005, the 14th Dalai Lama emphasised that Tibet is a part of China, and Tibetan culture and Buddhism are part of Chinese culture.[232] In a speech atKolkata in 2017, the Dalai Lama stated that Tibetans wanted to stay with China and they did not desireindependence. He said that he believed that China after opening up, had changed 40 to 50 per cent of what it was earlier, and that Tibetans wanted to get more development from China.[233] In October 2020, the Dalai Lama stated that he did not support Tibetan independence and hoped to visit China as a Nobel Prize winner. He said "I prefer the concept of a 'republic' in the People's Republic of China. In the concept of republic, ethnic minorities are like Tibetans, The Mongols, Manchus, and Xinjiang Uyghurs, we can live in harmony".[234]
The Tibetan people do not accept the present status of Tibet under the People's Republic of China. At the same time, they do not seek independence for Tibet, which is a historical fact. Treading a middle path in between these two lies the policy and means to achieve a genuine autonomy for all Tibetans living in the three traditional provinces of Tibet within the framework of the People's Republic of China. This is called the Middle-Way Approach, a non-partisan and moderate position that safeguards the vital interests of all concerned parties-for Tibetans: the protection and preservation of their culture, religion and national identity; for the Chinese: the security and territorial integrity of the motherland; and for neighbours and other third parties: peaceful borders and international relations.[22][232]
The Dalai Lama maintains close ties with India.[235] In 2008, the Dalai Lama said thatArunachal Pradesh, partially claimed by China, is part of India, citing the disputed1914 Simla Accord.[236] In 2010 at the International Buddhist Conference inGujarat, he described himself as a "son of India" and "Tibetan in appearance, but an Indian in spirituality." The newspaper of theCentral Committee of the Chinese Communist Party,People's Daily, questioned if the Dalai Lama, by considering himself Indian rather than Chinese, is still entitled to represent Tibetans, alluding to the links betweenChinese and Tibetan Buddhism and the Dalai Lama siding with India onsouthern Tibet.[237] Dhundup Gyalpo, the Dalai Lama's eventual secretary inNew Delhi, argued that Tibetan and Chinese peoples have no connections apart from a few culinary dishes and that Chinese Buddhists could also be deemed "Indian in spirituality", because both Tibetan and Chinese Buddhism originated from India.[238][239]
The Dalai Lama has said that, from the perspective of the Buddhist precepts,abortion is an act of killing.[240] In 1993, he clarified a more nuanced position, stating, "... it depends on the circumstances. If the unborn child will be retarded or if the birth will create serious problems for the parent, these are cases where there can be an exception. I think abortion should be approved or disapproved according to each circumstance."[241]
The Dalai Lama has repeatedly expressed his opposition to thedeath penalty, saying that it contradicts the Buddhist philosophy of non-violence and that it expresses anger, not compassion.[242] During a 2005 visit toJapan, a country whichhas the death penalty, the Dalai Lama called for the abolition of the death penalty and said in his address, "Criminals, people who commit crimes, usually society rejects these people. They are also part of society. Give them some form of punishment to say they were wrong, but show them they are part of society and can change. Show them compassion."[243] The Dalai Lama has also praisedUS states that have abolished the death penalty.[244]
Democracy, nonviolence, religious harmony, and Tibet's relationship with India
The Dalai Lama says that he is active in spreading India's message ofnonviolence and religious harmony throughout the world.[245] "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. He has noted that millions of people lost their lives in violence and the economies of many countries were ruined due to conflicts in the 20th century. "Let the 21st century be a century of tolerance and dialogue."[246]
The Dalai Lama has also critiqued proselytisation and certain types of conversion, believing the practices to be contrary to the fundamental ideas of religious harmony and spiritual practice.[247][248][249][250] He has stated that "It's very important that our religious traditions live in harmony with one another and I don't think proselytizing contributes to this. Just as fighting and killing in the name of religion are very sad, it's not appropriate to use religion as a ground or a means for defeating others."[251] In particular, he has critiqued Christian approaches to conversion in Asia, stating that he has "come across situations where serving the people is a cover for proselytization."[252] The Dalai Lama has labelled such practices counter to the "message of Christ" and has emphasised that such individuals "practice conversion like a kind of war against peoples and cultures."[249] In a statement with Hindu religious leaders, he expressed that he opposes "conversions by any religious tradition using various methods of enticement."[250]
In 2001, in response to a question from aSeattle schoolgirl, the Dalai Lama said that it is permissible to shoot someone in self-defense (if the person was "trying to kill you") and he emphasised that the shot should not be fatal.[254]
In 2013, the Dalai Lama criticised Buddhist monks'attacks on Muslims inMyanmar and rejectedviolence by Buddhists, saying: "Buddha always teaches us about forgiveness, tolerance, compassion. If from one corner of your mind, some emotion makes you want to hit, or want to kill, then please remember Buddha's faith. ... All problems must be solved through dialogue, through talk. The use of violence is outdated, and never solves problems."[255] In May 2013, he said "Really, killing people in the name of religion is unthinkable, very sad."[256] In May 2015, the Dalai Lama called on Myanmar'sNobel Peace Prize winnerAung San Suu Kyi to do more to help theRohingya Muslims in Myanmar, and said that he had urged Suu Kyi to address the Rohingyas' plight in two previous private meetings and had been rebuffed.[257]
The Dalai Lama has consistently praised India.[259][260] In December 2018, he said Muslim countries like Bangladesh, Pakistan and Syria should learn about religion from India for peace in the world.[261][262] When asked in 2019 about attacks on the minority community in India including a recent one against a Muslim family inGurgaon, he said: "There are always a few mischievous people, but that does not mean it a symbol of that nation".[263][264] He reiterated in December 2021 that he thought India was a role model for religious harmony in the world.[265][266]
People think of animals as if they were vegetables, and that is not right. We have to change the way people think about animals. I encourage the Tibetan people and all people to move toward a vegetarian diet that doesn't cause suffering.
The Dalai Lama advocates compassion for animals and frequently urges people to tryvegetarianism or at least reduce their consumption of meat. In Tibet, where historically meat was the most common food, most monks historically have beenomnivores, including the Dalai Lamas. The Fourteenth Dalai Lama was raised in a meat-eating family but converted to vegetarianism after arriving in India, where vegetables are much more easily available and vegetarianism is widespread.[268] He spent many years as a vegetarian, but after contractinghepatitis in India and suffering from weakness, his doctors told him to return to eating meat which he now does twice a week.[269] This attracted public attention when, during a visit to the White House, he was offered a vegetarian menu but declined by replying, as he is known to do on occasion when dining in the company of non-vegetarians, "I'm a Tibetan monk, not a vegetarian".[270] His own home kitchen, however, is completely vegetarian.[271]
In 2009, the English singerPaul McCartney wrote a letter to the Dalai Lama inquiring why he was not a vegetarian. As McCartney later toldThe Guardian, "He wrote back very kindly, saying, 'my doctors tell me that I must eat meat'. And I wrote back again, saying, you know, I don't think that's right. [...] I think now he's vegetarian most of the time. I think he's now being told, the more he meets doctors from the west, that he can get his protein somewhere else. [...] It just doesn't seem right – the Dalai Lama, on the one hand, saying, 'Hey guys, don't harm sentient beings... Oh, and by the way, I'm having a steak.'"[272]
I am not only a socialist but also a bit leftist, a communist. In terms of social economy theory, I am a Marxist. I think I am farther to the left than the Chinese leaders. [Bursts out laughing.] They are capitalists.[273]
He reports hearing ofcommunism when he was very young, but only in the context of the destruction of theMongolian People's Republic. It was only when he went on his trip toBeijing that he learned aboutMarxist theory from his interpreterBaba Phuntsog Wangyal of theTibetan Communist Party.[276] At that time, he reports, "I was so attracted to Marxism, I even expressed my wish to become aCommunist Party member," citing his favourite concepts ofself-sufficiency and equaldistribution of wealth. He does not believe that China implemented "true Marxist policy,"[277] and thinks the historicalcommunist states such as theSoviet Union "were far more concerned with their narrow national interests than with theWorkers' International".[278] Moreover, he believes one flaw of historically "Marxist regimes" is that they place too much emphasis on destroying the ruling class, and not enough on compassion.[278] He finds Marxism superior to capitalism, believing the latter is only concerned with "how to make profits," whereas the former has "moral ethics".[279] Stating in 1993:
Of all the modern economic theories, the economic system ofMarxism is founded on moral principles, whilecapitalism is concerned only with gain and profitability. Marxism is concerned with the distribution of wealth on an equal basis and the equitable utilisation of themeans of production. It is also concerned with the fate of theworking classes—that is, the majority—as well as with the fate of those who are underprivileged and in need, and Marxism cares about the victims of minority-imposedexploitation. For those reasons the system appeals to me, and it seems fair. I just recently read an article in a paper where His Holiness the Pope also pointed out some positive aspects of Marxism.[274][278]
OnIndia–Pakistan relations, the Dalai Lama in October 2019 said: "There is a difference between Indian and Pakistani Prime Minister's speech at the UN. Indian Prime Minister talks about peace, and you know what his Pakistan counterpart said, getting China's political support is Pakistan's compulsion. But Pakistan also needs India. Pakistani leaders should calm down and think beyond emotions and should follow a realistic approach".[280][281]
The Dalai Lama is outspoken in his concerns aboutenvironmental problems, frequently giving public talks on themes related to the environment. He has pointed out that many rivers in Asiaoriginate in Tibet, and that themelting of Himalayan glaciers could affect the countries in which the rivers flow.[282] He acknowledged official Chinese laws againstdeforestation in Tibet, but lamented they can be ignored due to possiblecorruption.[283] He was quoted as saying "ecology should be part of our daily life";[284] personally, he takes showers instead of baths, and turns lights off when he leaves a room.[282]
The Dalai Lama's stances on topics of sexuality have changed over time.
A monk since childhood, the Dalai Lama has said that sex offers fleeting satisfaction and leads to trouble later, while chastity offers a better life and "more independence, more freedom".[289] He has said that problems arising from conjugal life sometimes even lead to suicide or murder.[290] He has asserted that all religions have the same view about adultery.[291]
In his discussions of the traditional Buddhist view on appropriate sexual behaviour, he explains the concept of "right organ in the right object at the right time," which historically has been interpreted as indicating that oral, manual and anal sex (both homosexual and heterosexual) are not appropriate in Buddhism or for Buddhists. However, he also says that in modern times all common, consensual sexual practices that do not cause harm to others are ethically acceptable and that society should accept and respect people who aregay ortransgender from a secular point of view.[292] In a 1994 interview withOUT Magazine, the Dalai Lama clarified his personal opinion on the matter by saying, "If someone comes to me and asks whetherhomosexuality is okay or not, I will ask 'What is your companion's opinion?' If you both agree, then I think I would say, 'If two males or two females voluntarily agree to have mutual satisfaction without further implication of harming others, then it is okay.'"[293] However, when interviewed by Canadian TV news anchorEvan Solomon onCBC News: Sunday about whether homosexuality is acceptable in Buddhism, the Dalai Lama responded that "it is sexual misconduct".[294]
In his 1996 bookBeyond Dogma, he described a traditional Buddhist definition of an appropriate sexual act as follows: "A sexual act is deemed proper when the couples use the organs intended for sexual intercourse and nothing else ... Homosexuality, whether it is between men or between women, is not improper in itself. What is improper is the use of organs already defined as inappropriate for sexual contact."[295] He elaborated in 1997, conceding that the basis of that teaching was unknown to him. He also conveyed his own "willingness to consider the possibility that some of the teachings may be specific to a particular cultural and historic context".[296]
In 2006, the Dalai Lama has expressed concern at "reports of violence and discrimination against"LGBT people and urged "respect, tolerance and the full recognition of human rights for all".[297]
In a 2014 interview withLarry King, the Dalai Lama expressed thatsame-sex marriage is a personal issue, can be ethically socially accepted, and that he personally accepts it. However, he also stated that if same-sex marriage is in contradiction with one's chosen traditions, then they should not follow it.[298]
In 2007, he said that the next Dalai Lama could possibly be a woman: "If a woman reveals herself as more useful the lama could very well be reincarnated in this form."[213]
In 2009, ongender equality and sexism, the Dalai Lama proclaimed at theNational Civil Rights Museum inMemphis, Tennessee: "I call myself afeminist. Isn't that what you call someone who fights forwomen's rights?" He also said that by nature, women are more compassionate based on their biology and capacity for reproduction and maternal care. He called on women to "lead and create a more compassionate world," citing the good works of nurses and mothers.[299]
At a 2014 appearance at theTata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai, the Dalai Lama said, "Since women have been shown to be more sensitive to others' suffering, their leadership may be more effective."[300]
In 2015 the Dalai Lama said in aBBC interview that if a female were to succeed him, "that female must be attractive, otherwise it is not much use." When asked if he was joking, he replied, "No. True!" The Dalai Lama followed with a joke about his success being due to his own appearance.[301] His office later released a statement of apology citing the interaction as a translation error.[302] In 2019 the Dalai Lama said during another interview with the BBC that if a female Dalai Lama were not attractive, "people, I think, prefer not see her...that face."[303]
In 2013, at the Culture of Compassion event inDerry, Northern Ireland, the Dalai Lama said that "Warm-heartedness is a key factor for healthy individuals, healthy families and healthy communities."[304]
In a 2020 statement inTime magazine on theCOVID-19 pandemic, the Dalai Lama said that the pandemic must be combated with compassion, empirical science, prayer, and the courage of healthcare workers. He emphasised "emotional disarmament" (seeing things with a clear and realistic perspective, without fear or rage) and wrote: "The outbreak of this terrible coronavirus has shown that what happens to one person can soon affect every other being. But it also reminds us that a compassionate or constructive act – whether working in hospitals or just observing social distancing – has the potential to help many."[305]
In September 2018, speaking at a conference inMalmö, Sweden, home to a largeimmigrant population, the Dalai Lama said "I think Europe belongs to the Europeans," but also that Europe was "morally responsible" for helping "a refugee really facing danger against their life". He stated that Europe has a responsibility to refugees to "receive them, help them, educate them," but that they should aim to return to their places of origin and that "they ultimately should rebuild their own country".[306][307]
Speaking to German reporters in 2016, the Dalai Lama said there are "too many" refugees in Europe, adding that "Europe, for example Germany, cannot become an Arab country." He also said that "Germany is Germany".[308][309]
Dorje Shugden is an entity in Tibetan Buddhism that, since the 1930s, has become a point of contention over whether to include or exclude certain non-Gelug teachings. After the 1975 publication of theYellow Book containing stories about Dorje Shugden acting wrathfully against Gelugpas who also practisedNyingma, the 14th Dalai Lama, himself a Gelugpa and advocate of an inclusive approach,[310] publicly renounced the practice of Dorje Shugden.[311][312] Several groups broke away as a result, notably theNew Kadampa Tradition (NKT). According toTibetologists, the Dalai Lama's disapproval has reduced the prevalence of Shugden sects among Tibetans in China and India.[313] Shugden devotees have since complained about being ostracised when trying to get jobs or receive services. The Dalai Lama's supporters expressed that any discrimination is neither systematic nor encouraged by him.[313] Some Shugden movements such as the NKT have organised demonstrations as a form of protest.[314] Some journalists have suggested that the Chinese government has taken advantage of the controversy.[313] The group disbanded in 2016.[315][316][317] His office said that there was no ban or discrimination against Shugden worshippers.[318]
In October 1998, the Dalai Lama's administration acknowledged that it received $1.7 million a year in the 1960s from the US government through aCentral Intelligence Agency program.[319] When asked by CIA officer John Kenneth Knaus in 1995 to comment on theCIA Tibetan program, the Dalai Lama replied that though it helped the morale of those resisting the Chinese, "thousands of lives were lost in the resistance" and further, that "the U.S. Government had involved itself in his country's affairs not to help Tibet but only as a Cold War tactic to challenge the Chinese."[320] As part of the program the Dalai Lama received 180,000 dollars a year from 1959 till 1974 for his own personal use.[321]
His administration's reception of CIA funding has become one of the grounds for some state-runChinese newspapers to discredit him along with the Tibetan independence movement.[citation needed]
In his autobiographyFreedom in Exile, the Dalai Lama criticised the CIA again for supporting the Tibetan independence movement "not because they (the CIA) cared about Tibetan independence, but as part of their worldwide efforts to destabilize allcommunistgovernments".[322]
In 1999, the Dalai Lama said that the CIA Tibetan program had been harmful for Tibet because it was primarily aimed at serving American interests, and "once theAmerican policy toward China changed, they stopped their help."[26]
The Dalai Lama meeting with US PresidentBarack Obama in 2016Buddhist temple inKalmykia, Russia
The Dalai Lama places highly in global surveys of the world's most admired men, ranking withPope Francis as among the world's religious leaders cited as the most admired.[323][324]
Stone plaque at a plantation by Tenzin in Amaravathi
The Dalai Lama's appeal is variously ascribed to his charismatic personality, international fascination with Buddhism, hisuniversalist values, and international sympathy for the Tibetans.[325] In the 1990s, many films were released by theAmerican film industry about Tibet, includingbiopics of the Dalai Lama. This is attributed to both the Dalai Lama's 1989 Nobel Peace Prize as well as to the euphoria following theFall of Communism. The most notable films,Kundun andSeven Years in Tibet (both released in 1997), portrayed "an idyllic pre-1950 Tibet, with a smiling, soft-spoken Dalai Lama at the helm—a Dalai Lama sworn tonon-violence": portrayals the Chinese government decried as ahistorical.[326]
The Dalai Lama has tried to mobilise international support for Tibetan activities.[330] The Dalai Lama has been successful in gaining Western support for himself and the cause of greater Tibetan autonomy, including vocal support from numerousHollywood celebrities, most notably the actorsRichard Gere andSteven Seagal, as well as lawmakers from several major countries.[331] Photos of the Dalai Lama were banned afterMarch 1959 Lhasa protests until after the end of theCultural Revolution in 1976. In 1996 the Chinese Communist Party once again reinstated the total prohibition of any photo of the 14th Dalai Lama. According to the Tibet Information Network, "authorities in Tibet have begun banning photographs of the exiled Dalai Lama in monasteries and public places, according to reports from a monitoring group and a Tibetan newspaper. Plainclothes police went to hotels and restaurants in Lhasa, the Tibetan capital, on 22 and 23 April and ordered Tibetans to remove pictures of the Dalai Lama..."[332] The ban continues in many locations throughout Tibet today.
A biographicalgraphic novel,Man of Peace, also envisaging the Dalai Lama's return to Tibet, was published byTibet House US.[336][337]The Extraordinary Life of His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama: An Illuminated Journey, illustrations and text by artist Rima Fujita, narrated by the Dalai Lama, was published by Simon and Schuster in 2021.[338]
2007Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award bestowed by the American Congress and President.[348] The Chinese government declared this would have "an extremely serious impact" on relations with the United States;[349]
2007Ahimsa Award from the Institute of Jainology in recognition of individuals who embody and promote the principles ofAhimsa (Non-violence); and in
2012,Order of the Republic of Tuva by theTuvan Republic in recognition of the contribution to the upbringing of high spiritual and cultural tolerance, strengthening interreligious and interethnic harmony.[350]
Footage of Dalai Lama's controversial encounter with an Indian schoolboy in 2023
In a February 2023 video, the Dalai Lama was seen kissing a boy on the lips and asking the child to suck his tongue.[355][356] The incident took place at his temple inDharamshala, Himachal Pradesh, India. Nearly 100 students were in attendance, as well as the boy's mother, a trustee of the event's organiser.[357][358] Her son had requested a hug from the Dalai Lama, who then asked for and received a kiss from the child, pulling him closer to touch lips.[359] After a pause, the Dalai Lama said "suck my tongue" and, with his tongue out, leaned toward the boy, who appeared nervous and withdrew after sticking out his own tongue.[360][361] In an interview clip released byVoice of Tibet, the boy later said it had been a "good experience" meeting the Dalai Lama, from whom he received a lot of "positive energy".[362]
The interaction was originally recorded byVoice of America, which posted the footage after editing out the "suck my tongue" part.[363] The removed portion of the clip resurfaced in April 2023, and the Dalai Lama's conduct received negative media coverage.[356] Some victim groups and media commentators raised concerns of "child abuse",[364][365] while the Tibetan Legal Association warned four Indian news outlets to retract parts of their reporting.[366]
The office of His Holiness issued a statement saying that the Dalai Lama often teases "in an innocent and playful way," adding that he "wishes to apologize to the boy and his family ... for the hurt his words may have caused" and "regrets the incident".[367][368]Penpa Tsering, the political leader of the Central Tibetan Administration, called the gesture an "innocent grandfatherly affectionate demeanour" followed by a "jovial prank" with a tongue.[369] He and other Tibetans accused "pro-Chinese sources" of being behind the video but have not provided any evidence.[362][370]
Some academics, Tibetan leaders and cultural groups described the situation as a cultural misunderstanding.[362][371][372][370] They mentioned that sticking out one's tongue is a form of traditional Tibetan greeting to show respect or agreement, stemming from a tradition of performing the gesture to demonstrate that one is not reincarnated from the malevolent kingLangdarma, who was said to have a black tongue.[373] The practice is not known to involve "sucking," however.[364]David Germano, aTibetologist at the University of Virginia, suggested that the Dalai Lama's limited English proficiency led him to mistranslate a Tibetan expression that means "eat my tongue." Germano said, "The context as I understand it is that when grandparents play with kids they are communicating that I have given you every sweet or treat I have, and now I have none left, so you can eat my tongue!"[363] The HAQ Centre for Child Rights inNew Delhi said the video was "certainly not about any cultural expression and even if it is, such cultural expressions are not acceptable."[374]
The controversy also drew attention to past incidents where the Dalai Lama had inappropriately touched other people, such asLady Gaga.[375][376][377]
Consciousness at the Crossroads. Ed. Zara Houshmand, Robert B. Livingston, B. Alan Wallace. Trans. Thupten Jinpa, B. Alan Wallace.Snow Lion, 1999.ISBN978-1-55939-127-6
Dzogchen: Heart Essence of the Great Perfection, translated by Geshe Thupten Jinpa and Richard Barron, Snow Lion Publications, 2000,ISBN978-1-55939-219-8
Violence and Compassion: Dialogues on Life Today, with Jean-Claude Carriere, Doubleday, 2001,ISBN978-0-385-50144-6
Imagine All the People: A Conversation with the Dalai Lama on Money, Politics, and Life as it Could Be, Coauthored with Fabien Ouaki, Wisdom Publications, 2001,ISBN978-0-86171-150-5
Der Weg des Herzens. Gewaltlosigkeit und Dialog zwischen den Religionen (The Path of the Heart: Non-violence and the Dialogue among Religions), co-authored withEugen Drewermann, PhD, Patmos Verlag, 2003,ISBN978-3-491-69078-3
The Wisdom of Compassion: Stories of Remarkable Encounters and Timeless Insights, coauthored with Victor Chan, Riverhead Books, 2012,ISBN978-0-55216923-3
My Appeal to the World, presented by Sofia Stril-Rever, translated from the French by Sebastian Houssiaux, Tibet House US, 2015,ISBN978-0-9670115-6-1
Behind the Smile: The Hidden Side of the Dalai Lama, by Maxime Vivas (author), translated from the French bookNot So Zen, Long River Press 2013,ISBN978-1592651405
^The name is part of the full title 圣识一切瓦齐尔达喇达赖喇嘛 (Holy OmniscientVajradhara Dalai Lama) given byAltan Khan, a ruler of theTumed Mongol tribe and king under theMing dynasty of China.[6]
^Schwieger, Peter (2015).The Dalai Lama and the Emperor of China: a political history of the Tibetan institution of reincarnation. New York: Columbia University press.ISBN978-0-231-16852-6.
^陈庆英 (2003).达赖喇嘛转世及历史定制. 五洲传播出版社.ISBN978-7-5085-0272-4. 于是赠给尊号“圣识一切瓦齐尔达喇达赖喇嘛”的称号，“圣”，是超凡入圣，即超出尘世间之意；“识一切”，是藏传佛教对在显宗方面取得最高成就的僧人的尊称； “识一切”，是藏传佛教对在显宗方面取得最高成就的僧人的尊称；“瓦齐尔达喇“，是梵文Vajradhra的音译，译成藏语是 rdo- rje- vchange (多吉绛)，译成汉语是执金刚，这是藏传佛教对于在密宗方面取得早高成就的僧人的尊称。So he was given the title of "Holiness Knowing Everything Vazirdala Dalai Lama". "Holiness" means transcending the ordinary and entering the holiness, that is, beyond the world; "Knowing Everything" is a Tibetan Buddhist title for monks who have achieved the highest achievements in the exoteric teachings; "Vazirdala" is the transliteration of the Sanskrit word Vajradhra, which is translated into Tibetan as rdo-rje-vchange (Dojijiang) and translated into Chinese as Vajra, which is a Tibetan Buddhist title for monks who have achieved high achievements in the esoteric teachings.
^"Definition of Dalai Lama in English". Oxford Dictionaries. Archived fromthe original on 7 July 2016. Retrieved2 May 2015.The spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhism and, until the establishment of Chinese communist rule, the spiritual and temporal ruler of Tibet
^Thondup, Gyalo; Thurston, Anne F. (2015).The Noodle Maker of Kalimpong: The Untold Story of My Struggle for Tibet.Gurgaon:Random House Publishers India Private Limited. p. 20.ISBN978-81-8400-387-1.Lama Thubten named my new brother Lhamo Thondup.
^A 60-Point Commentary on the Chinese Government Publication: A Collection of Historical Archives of Tibet, DIIR Publications, Dharamsala, November 2008: "Chija Tagtser born holy precious child Lhamo Dhondup ... the holy reincarnate child in Chija Tagtser."
^Craig, Mary (1998).Kundun : une biographie du Dalaï-Lama et de sa famille. Bstan-ʼdzin-rgya-mtsho, Dalai Lama XIV, 1935–, Vidonne, François. [S.l.]: Presses du Châtelet.ISBN2-911217-33-0.OCLC40821251.
^Thomas Laird,The Story of Tibet: Conversations With the Dalai LamaArchived 1 March 2020 at theWayback Machine, p. 262 (2007) "At that time in my village", he said, "we spoke a broken Chinese. As a child, I spoke Chinese first, but it was a broken Xining language which was (a dialect of) the Chinese language." "So your first language", I responded, "was a broken Chinese regional dialect, which we might call Xining Chinese. It was not Tibetan. You learned Tibetan when you came to Lhasa." "Yes", he answered, "that is correct..."
^Politically incorrect tourism ,The Economist, 26 February 2009: "When the Dalai Lama was born, the region, regarded by Tibetans as part of Amdo, a province of their historic homeland, was under the control of a Muslim warlord, Ma Bufang. The Dalai Lama and his family didn't learn Tibetan until they moved to Lhasa in 1939."
^管理喇嘛寺廟條例 [Regulations on the Management of Lama Temples] (in Chinese). 1935 – viaWikisource.
^廢 管理喇嘛寺廟條例 [Abolish the Regulations on Management of Lama Temples].Laws & Regulations Database of The Republic of China. 11 June 1992.Archived from the original on 10 August 2021. Retrieved10 August 2021.
^喇嘛轉世辦法 [Lama reincarnation method] (in Chinese). 1936 – viaWikisource.
^廢 喇嘛轉世辦法 [Abolish the method of reincarnation].Laws & Regulations Database of The Republic of China. 20 February 1993.Archived from the original on 10 August 2021. Retrieved10 August 2021.
^[1][permanent dead link] 1938年9月22日，西藏驻京办事处代表阿旺桑丹、格登恪典、图丹桑结等电告蒙藏委员会报告寻获灵儿，并将其送西藏掣签认定，电称："达赖佛转世事，经民众代表寻访结果，西藏内部寻得灵异幼童2名，西宁塔尔寺方面寻得灵异幼童1名。依照西藏宗教仪式，所寻选之幼童应聚集西藏，降驾掣签，认定真正达赖之转世，既多灵异后，复经庄严之金本巴瓶内典礼拈之。现典礼期将近，关于西宁塔尔寺地方所寻选者，请中央政府俯允该主持人员，迅将寻选幼童送至西藏，参加典礼并恳发给执照，以利行程。" On 22 September 1938, representatives of Tibet Office in Beijing informed Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission via telegraph which says "as for the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, as a result of a search by representatives of the people, two supernatural children were found in Tibet, and one supernatural child was found in Xining. According to Tibetan religious ceremonies, the selected young children should gather in Tibet, Golden Urn ceremony should be held, and determine that the true reincarnation of the Dalai Lama. The ceremony is approaching. Regarding the candidates for the Taer Monastery in Xining, the central government is requested to host, and promptly send the selected children to Tibet, participate in the ceremony and issue approval to facilitate the itinerary."
^"【边疆时空】喜饶尼玛 李双｜国民政府管理藏传佛教活佛措施评析".Sohu (in Chinese). 16 April 2021.Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved20 October 2023.蒙藏委员会于1938年10月拟定了《十四世达赖喇嘛转世掣签征认办法》 [The Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission drafted the "Method of Using Golden Urn for the 14th Dalai Lama" in October 1938.]
^1938年12月12日热振摄政致蒙藏委员会电报称“达赖大师转世之化身三灵儿，已蒙转电青海省政府督促纪仓佛速将西宁所选灵儿送来拉萨，良深感慰。所有中央派员参加办法一则，业经与司伦、噶厦商议，三灵儿迎到后，举行掣签典礼之际，为昭大信，悦遐迩计，中央当派员参加。” [For the three candidates of reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, request has been sent to the Qinghai Provincial Government to urge to send candidate of Xining to Lhasa, which is deeply gratified. All members of the Central Committee, along with Kashag, when three candidates arrived, lottery ceremony would be held, the Central (Government) should dispatch officials to participate.]
^Melvyn C. Goldstein (2013). "The Circulation of Estates in Tibet: Reincarnation, Land, and Politics". In Tuttle, Gray; Schaeffer, Kurtis R. (eds.).The Tibetan History Reader. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 482.ISBN978-0-231-14468-1.Archived from the original on 23 October 2022. Retrieved17 February 2022.The corporations of the regents were not the only ones to acquire numerous estates and serfs. So too did the families of the Dalai Lamas. The (natal) family of the Dalai Lama was "ennobled" and became a part of the highest stratum of the Tibetan aristocracy. Each such family received estates sufficient to match, on an economic scale, their newly found social status...Certainly [the family of the fourteenth Dalai Lama] acquired huge land and serf holdings.
^Peter Graves (host) (26 April 2005).Dalai Lama: Soul of Tibet.A&E Television Networks. Event occurs at 08:00.
^Smith, Warren W. Jr. (1997).Tibetan Nation: A History of Tibetan Nationalism and Sino-Tibetan Relations. New Delhi: HarperCollins. pp. 107–149.ISBN0-8133-3155-2.
^University of Cambridge. Mongolia & Inner Asia Studies Unit (2002).Inner Asia, Volume 4, Issues 1–2. The White Horse Press for the Mongolia and Inner Asia Studies Unit at the University of Cambridge. p. 204.Archived from the original on 27 April 2016. Retrieved28 June 2010.
^Melvyn Goldstein (2004)."Tibet and China in the Twentieth Century". In Rossabi, Morris (ed.).Governing China's Multiethnic Frontiers. Seattle:University of Washington Press. pp. 193–194.ISBN0-295-98390-6.Archived from the original on 12 May 2024. Retrieved17 February 2022.Tibet, it said, had the right to exercise regional autonomy under leadership of the central PRC government. This meant that the CCP allowed the feudal system, with its serflike peasantry, to persist, and it allowed the Dalai Lama's government to continue to rule Tibet internally in accordance with its own language and traditional laws.
^《国务院关于撤销达赖喇嘛·丹增嘉措职务的决定》（一九六四年十二月十七日国务院全体会议第一五一次会议通过）: "西藏自治区筹备委员会主任委员达赖喇嘛·丹增嘉措，一九五九年发动叛国的反革命武装叛乱。在逃往国外以后，组织流亡伪政府，公布伪宪法，支持印度反动派对我国的侵略，并积极组织和训练逃亡国外的残匪骚扰祖国边境。这一切都证明他早已自绝于祖国和人民，是一个死心塌地为帝国主义和外国反动派作走狗的叛国分子。国务院根据西藏地方人民的要求，决定撤销达赖喇嘛·丹增嘉措的西藏自治区筹备委员会主任委员和委员的职务。"On 17 December 1964, the 151st meeting of the plenary session of the State Council approved: The Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso, chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Region Preparatory Committee, launched a treasonous counter-revolutionary armed rebellion in 1959. After fleeing abroad, he organized a pseudo-government in exile, promulgated a pseudo-constitution, supported the Indian reactionaries' aggression against our country, and actively organized and trained bandits who fled abroad to harass the motherland's borders. All this proves that he has terminated himself from the motherland and the people, and he is a traitor who is desperately running for the imperialism and foreign reactionaries. The State Council decided to remove the Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso's duties as chairman and member of the Tibet Autonomous Region Preparatory Committee in accordance with the request of the local people in Tibet.
^11th Panchen Lama alive, receiving education: Dalai LamaArchived 13 May 2019 at theWayback Machine,The Statesman, 25 April 2018: "Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Wednesday said 11th Panchen Lama Gedhun Choekyi Nyima "according to reliable source is alive and receiving normal education". Talking to the media at Gaggal Airport in Kangra district after returning from four-day Delhi visit, Lama hoped that the official Panchen Lama studies well under the guidance of a good teacher. "Then the Panchen Lama, which I recognised sometime back, there was no news, but then according to reliable information, he is still alive and receiving normal education. So we will see," he said. He said there are instances in Tibetan Buddhist tradition, "where a reincarnated lama took more than one manifestation"."
^From Article 31 of Charter of the Tibetans-in-exile 1991: "The Council of Regency shall exercise executive powers and authority in the following circumstances: (1)(a) of His Holiness the Dalai Lama has not assumed or retained the powers of the head of the Tibetan Administration and the executive functions therein;"
^"Dalai Lama teaching Kamalashila text in Australia, 2008". Dalai Lama in Australia. 11 June 2008. Archived fromthe original on 4 April 2016. Retrieved3 May 2015.by reference to Kamalashila's text, His Holiness the Dalai Lama will demonstrate how the nature of awareness, developed through meditative practices can be transformed into the direct perceptual wisdom necessary to achieve enlightenment itself
^"Compassion in Emptiness: Dalai Lama Teaches Shantideva"(DVD set). Oscilloscope. 7 May 2011.Archived from the original on 26 February 2021. Retrieved3 May 2015.In 2010, His Holiness traveled to New York City to teach A Commentary on Bodhicitta by Nagarjuna and A Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life by Shantideva.
^"The Dalai Lama's Boston teachings". Shambala Publications. 17 October 2012. Archived fromthe original on 21 May 2015.Texts mentioned by His Holiness in his talk ... Aryadeva's 400 Stanzas of the Middle Way
^James Blumenthal, PhD (July 2012)."The Seventeen Pandits of Nalanda Monastery"(Online Magazine). FPMT.Archived from the original on 7 April 2015. Retrieved19 May 2015.he Dalai Lama frequently refers to himself as a follower of the lineage of the seventeen Nalanda masters today
^"About the Seventeen Paṇḍitas of Nālandā". Bodhimarga. Archived fromthe original on 24 April 2016. Retrieved19 May 2015.they came to shape the very meaning of Buddhist philosophy and religious practice, both in India and Tibet
^Tseten Samdup (7 July 1996)."His Holiness the Dalai Lama will visit the UK from July 15–22 1996". World Tibet Network News.Archived from the original on 6 October 2015. Retrieved18 May 2015.For the first time in the West, His Holiness the Dalai Lama will give two exclusive days of teaching on 17 and 18 July 1996 on the Four Noble Truths—the heart of the Buddha's teachings. This has been requested by The Network of Buddhist Organisations—a forum for dialogue and co-operation between Buddhist organisations in the UK.
^"Teachings". Office of Dalai Lama.Archived from the original on 21 April 2015. Retrieved3 May 2015.His Holiness has also been giving teachings in India at the request of various Buddhist devotees from Taiwan and Korea
^"ONLINE DONATION FACILITY IS AVAILABLE". Dalai Lama in Australia.Archived from the original on 20 May 2015. Retrieved3 May 2015.Should there be any surplus funds from His Holiness' events, that surplus will be disbursed to charitable organizations under the advisement of His Holiness the Dalai Lama
^abcdTenzin Gyatso (12 November 2005)."Our Faith in Science".The New York Times.Archived from the original on 31 March 2014. Retrieved5 February 2017.Science has always fascinated me
^abcJames Kingsland (3 November 2014)."Dalai Lama enlightens and enraptures contemplative scientists in Boston".The Guardian. Boston, USA.Archived from the original on 5 January 2021. Retrieved10 December 2016.Asked how his interest in science originally developed he said he'd been fascinated by technology since childhood, recalling a clockwork toy British soldier with a gun that he played with for a few days before taking apart to see how it worked. He described how as a young man visiting China he was excited to be shown around hydroelectric dams and metal smelting works
^Kyle, Bobbie L. (28 March 2008)."10 Things You Didn't Know About the Dalai Lama". The U.S. News & World Report.Archived from the original on 6 January 2021. Retrieved22 August 2017.The Dalai Lama has an interest in machines, which he developed as a young boy. As a teenager he repaired a movie projector by himself, without its guide or any instructions. He has been known to say that he would have become an engineer if he hadn't been a monk
^Curt Newton (1 February 2004)."Meditation and the Brain".technologyreview.com. MIT Technology Review.Archived from the original on 12 April 2015. Retrieved16 May 2015.The Dalai Lama notes that both traditions encourage challenging dogma based on observation and analysis, and a willingness to revise views based on empirical evidence.
^Vincent Horn."The Evolution of the Mind and Life Dialogues". Buddhist Geeks. Archived fromthe original(Podcast Interview, transcription) on 4 May 2015. Retrieved9 May 2015.This week, Adam Engle, the business mastermind behind the Mind and Life Institute, joins us to discuss both the evolution of the project as well as its larger impact
^Begley, Sharon (2007). "1".Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain (2008 Paperback ed.). New York: Random House. p. 19.ISBN978-0-345-47989-1.
^abcBegley, Sharon (2007). "1".Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain (2008 Paperback ed.). New York: Random House. pp. 20–22.ISBN978-0-345-47989-1.
^"Mission". Mind and Life Institute.Archived from the original on 21 August 2020. Retrieved6 May 2015.Mind and Life emerged in 1987 from a meeting of three visionaries: Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama – the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people and a global advocate for compassion; Adam Engle, a lawyer and entrepreneur; and Francisco Varela, a neuroscientist
^"The Dalai Lama Centre for Ethics and Transformative Values". Massachusetts Institute of Technology.Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved7 May 2015.The Center focuses on the development of interdisciplinary research and programs in varied fields of knowledge, from science and technology to education and international relations
^Tenzin Gyatso (12 November 2005)."Science at the Crossroads". Washington DC: Office of Dalai Lama.Archived from the original on 29 April 2015. Retrieved7 May 2015.I am also grateful to the numerous eminent scientists with whom I have had the privilege of engaging in conversations through the auspices of the Mind and Life Institute which initiated the Mind and Life conferences that began in 1987 at my residence in Dharamsala, India. These dialogues have continued over the years and in fact the latest Mind and Life dialogue concluded here in Washington just this week.
^"Dialogues with the Dalai Lama". Mind and Life Institute. Archived fromthe original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved6 May 2015.These Dialogues will expand as Mind and Life grows to include Europe, Asia, and beyond
^"The Dalai Lama and Western Science". Mind and Life Institute. Archived fromthe original on 19 February 2015. Retrieved6 May 2015.he has led a campaign to introduce basic science education in Tibetan Buddhist monastic colleges and academic centers, and has encouraged Tibetan scholars to engage with science as a way of revitalizing the Tibetan philosophical tradition
^"Emory-Tibet Science Initiative receives $1 million grant from Dalai Lama Trust". Georgia, USA: Emory University. 2014. Archived fromthe original on 18 May 2015.For more than 30 years I have been engaged in an ongoing exchange with scientists, exploring what modern scientific knowledge and time-honored science of mind embodied by the Tibetan tradition can bring to each other's understanding of reality
^"His Holiness the XIVth Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso Founding Patron, CCARE". Palo Alto, California: Stanford University School of Medicine.Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved7 May 2015.He has been a strong supporter of the neurosciences for over two decades. His Holiness is a benefactor of CCARE having personally provided the largest sum he has ever given to scientific research
^"Our History". Madison, Wisconsin, USA: University of Wisconsin-Madison. Archived fromthe original on 7 May 2015. Retrieved7 May 2015.In 1992, the Dalai Lama personally challenged Dr. Davidson to investigate how well-being could be nurtured through the insights from neuroscience. His Holiness believes that "All humans have an innate desire to overcome suffering and find happiness." This launched a robust series of research studies and new discoveries have emerged about how the mind works and how well-being can be cultivated.
^"Addressing Students from North Indian universities".His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet. 25 October 2019.Archived from the original on 6 November 2019. Retrieved19 August 2021.In seeking to balance preserving tradition and modern development, His Holiness suggested that the custom of recognising reincarnate lamas may have had its day. He remarked that no such custom existed in India. There is no reincarnation of the Buddha or Nagarjuna. He wondered what place this institution has in a democratic society.
^Shri Puri (26 October 2019)."Reincarnation feudal, should end now: Dalai Lama amid successor row with China".Times of India.Archived from the original on 26 October 2019. Retrieved19 August 2021."The tradition should end now as reincarnation has some connection with the feudal system," the Dalai Lama, the 14th to hold this position, said in Dharamshala on Friday. The Dalai Lama was addressing a gathering of college students from Bhutan and India at his residence in McLeodganj when he was asked about keeping alive traditional values in modern times and passing them on to future generations. "Any culture needs to evolve over a period of time. Like the Buddhist community in India has no tradition of reincarnation or lama institution. It developed in Tibet. I think there is some feudal connection to it and it needs to change now," he told the students. "Institutions need to be owned by the people, not by an individual. Like my own institution, the Dalai Lama's office, I feel it is linked to a feudal system. In 1969, in one of my official statements, I had mentioned that it should continue... But now I feel, not necessarily. It should go. I feel it should not be concentrated in a few people only (Tibetans)," he said. Elaborating, he added, "The system should end, or at least change with the changing times. There have been cases of individual lamas who use reincarnation (to get their way) but never pay attention to study and wisdom," he said, adding that he feels there should be no institutions of lamas and no reincarnations now.
^ab"Dalai Lama: "Tibet is a Part of the People's Republic of China"".CECC. 15 March 2005. Archived fromthe original on 19 January 2024. Retrieved5 March 2024.This is the message I wish to deliver to China. I am not in favor of separation. Tibet is a part of the People's Republic of China. It is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China. Tibetan culture and Buddhism are part of Chinese culture. Many young Chinese like Tibetan culture as a tradition of China.
^Ellen, Barbara (17 July 2010)."Interview: Paul McCartney".The Guardian. London.Archived from the original on 15 September 2013. Retrieved22 September 2021.
^"Secular Ethics for Higher Education".His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet. The Office of His Holiness The Dalai Lama.Archived from the original on 5 January 2021. Retrieved13 August 2018.
^David Lague; Stephanie Nebehay (11 March 2016)."Buddhist group leading global anti-Dalai Lama protests disbands".Reuters. Geneva, Switzerland.Archived from the original on 2 June 2016. Retrieved12 March 2016.The Buddhist group leading a global campaign of harassment against the Dalai Lama has called off its demonstrations and disbanded, according to a statement on its website. The announcement comes after a Reuters investigation revealed in December that China's ruling Communist Party backs the Buddhist religious sect behind the protests that have confronted the Dalai Lama in almost every country he visits. Reuters found that the sect had become a key instrument in China's campaign to discredit the Tibetan spiritual leader.
^Contemporary Tibet: Politics, Development and Society in a Disputed Region. Routledge. 2017.
^Mann, Jim (15 September 1998)."CIA Gave Aid to Tibetan Exiles in '60s, Files Show".Los Angeles Times.Archived from the original on 11 September 2013. Retrieved8 September 2013.In his 1990 autobiography, 'Freedom in Exile', the Dalai Lama explained that his two brothers made contact with the CIA during a trip to India in 1956. The CIA agreed to help, 'not because they cared about Tibetan independence, but as part of their worldwide efforts to destabilize all Communist governments', the Dalai Lama wrote.
^Fisher, D., Shahghasemi, E. & Heisey, D. R. (2009). A Comparative Rhetorical Analysis of the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso. Midwest CIES 2009 Conference, Ohio, U.S.
^Carlota Bisbe (18 April 2023)."Sale a la luz un polémico nuevo vídeo del Dalai Lama tocando de forma inapropiada a una niña".La Vanguardia (in Spanish). Retrieved15 June 2024.El último vídeo del que todo el mundo habla aparece el líder espiritual acariciando continuamente el brazo de una niña pequeña sentada a su lado. Unas imágenes muy polémicas que han revolucionado Twitter y han generado todo tipo de críticas, la mayoría acusando al Dalai Lama de "sentir atracción por los niños". [...] Tal y como se puede ver en las imágenes, el Dalai Lama no solo no presta atención a la mujer que está hablando durante la conferencia sino que además empieza a tocar la pierna de Lady Gaga y cuando se dispone a tocar la otra, la cantante le aparta la mano.
Mullin, Glenn H. (2001).The Fourteen Dalai Lamas: A Sacred Legacy of Reincarnation, pp. 452–515. Clear Light Publishers. Santa Fe, New Mexico.ISBN978-1-57416-092-5.
Richardson, Hugh E. (1984).Tibet & Its History. 1st edition 1962. 2nd edition, Revised and Updated. Shambhala Publications, Boston.ISBN978-0-87773-376-8 (pbk).
Shakya, Tsering.The Dragon in the Land of Snows (1999) Columbia University Press.ISBN978-0-231-11814-9.
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