Dalai Lama

#GS-01 Buddhism

Dalai Lama is the spiritual leader of the Gelugpa tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, which is the largest and most influential tradition in Tibet.
Dalai Lamas are believed to be the manifestations of Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion who is the patron saint of Tibet by Tibetan Buddhists.
The 14th and current Dalai Lama is named Tenzin Gyatso.
Until China’s annexation of Tibet in the 1950s, the Dalai Lamas were the head of the Tibetan government.
The current Dalai Lama fled to India during the 1959 Tibetan uprising.
Former Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru granted him permission to form the ‘Tibetan government in exile’ in Dharamsala (Himachal Pradesh).
This is believed to be one of the reasons for the 1962 Indo-China War.

Tibetan Buddhism believes in the principle of reincarnation.
Hence, they believe that the current Dalai Lama has the ability to choose the body into which he is reincarnated.
Buddhist scholars believe that it is the responsibility of High Lamas of the Gelugpa tradition and the Tibetan government to find the next Dalai Lama.
If more than 1 candidate is identified, the true successor is determined through a public drawing of lots by officials and monks.

Tibetan Buddhism

Buddhism became the principal religion of Tibet towards the end of the 8th century CE.
The Tibetan king, Trisong Detsen, invited two Buddhist masters named, Shantarakshita and Padmasambhava to Tibet from India.
Shantarakshita was the abbot of Nalanda in India and built the first monastery in Tibet.
Padmasambhava was a mahasiddha (master of miraculous powers) of Buddhism.
These two masters helped to translate important Buddhist texts into Tibetan.
Tibetan Buddhism is the combination of the teachings of Mahayana Buddhism with Tantric and Shamanic, and teachings of Bon, an ancient Tibetan religion.
Although Tibetan Buddhism is often considered to be the same as Vajrayana Buddhism, they are not identical.
Vajrayana is taught in Tibetan Buddhism together with the other schools of thoughts.