Dalai Lama Confirms Continuation Of His Spiritual Institution, Asserts Exclusive Right To Choose Successor

The Dalai Lama has firmly confirmed that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue, following years of appeals from Tibetan communities and Buddhist followers worldwide.

In a significant message, rejecting any interference by China in selecting his successor, he said, “I hereby reiterate that the Gaden Phodrang Trust has sole authority to recognize the future reincarnation; no one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter.“

Although he has not held public discussions on the issue in recent years, the spiritual leader revealed that, over the past 14 years, he has received numerous letters from leaders of various Tibetan Buddhist traditions, members of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, and others, urging that the institution should be maintained.

"I am affirming that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue." he said.

He clarified that the process for identifying his successor has been established in his earlier statement of 24 September 2011.

“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,” he explained.

The announcement comes amid growing tensions with China.

The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, who fled to India in 1959 following a failed uprising, declared earlier this year that his successor would be born in the “free world,” implying a birth outside Chinese control.

China has already intervened in Tibetan religious succession once before.

Following the death of the 10th Panchen Lama, the Dalai Lama acknowledged a six-year-old successor in 1995, who subsequently disappeared.

China then installed its own appointee, deepening distrust over Beijing’s attempts to shape Tibet’s religious future.

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