Only Dalai Lama and conventions established by him can decide his successor: Rijiju snubs China

Union Minister for Minority Affairs, Kiren Rijiju, himself a Buddhist, said on Thursday that only the Dalai Lama and the conventions established by him could determine the next incarnation. The minister’s statement is being viewed as an apparent snub of the Chinese stand on the issue. Rijiju said during a press interaction in New Delhi that the Dalai Lama represents the most significant institution for Buddhists.
“The Dalai Lama holds a deeply significant position not only for Tibetans but also for millions of his followers around the world. The decision regarding his successor lies solely with the Dalai Lama,” Rijiju said.

“And all those who follow the Dalai Lama feel that the Incarnation is to be decided by the established convention and as per the wish of the Dalai Lama himself. Nobody else has the right to decide it except him and the conventions in place,” he added.

Rijiju’s statement came after China refused to agree with the Dalai Lama’s succession plans, and said that the incarnation must be “approved by the Chinese government”.

Dalai Lama’s statement on incarnation infuriates China

On Wednesday (July 2), the Dalai Lama said that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue and only the Gaden Phodrang Trust will have the authority to recognise his future reincarnation. The statement came ahead of the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday on July 6, amid growing concerns about succession and China’s claims to selecting his successor due to its control of Tibet.

The Dalai Lama’s statement put to rest speculation that the institution of the Dalai Lama would end with him, or that China would have a free run to decide the next incarnation.

The Chinese fumed at the Dalai Lama’s statement, and Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, said that the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama “must be chosen by drawing lots from a golden urn and approved by the central government (of China).”

She added that the Chinese government which otherwise “implements a policy of freedom of religious belief,” reserved the right to impose “regulations on religious affairs and methods for managing the reincarnation of Tibetan living Buddhas.”

Rijiju to attend Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday celebrations

Rijiju will be attending the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday celebrations along with his Cabinet colleague Rajiv Ranjan Singh “Lallan” who is an MP from Bihar, a atate which has the most important Buddhist sites in the world and is also home to Nalanda, whose Buddhist tradition is followed by the Dalai Lama.

The 600-year-old institution of a spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhists would continue, Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, had announced.

Tenzin Gyatso was only 23 when he fled Lhasa in 1959 when the Chinese troops took control of Tibet. He has long been termed a “separatist” by China.