tenzin gyatso better known as the dalai
lama is the surprisingly social media
savvy spiritual leader of the tibetan
people
you've probably seen him around maybe
giving a speech to the u.n or
chatting on late night talk shows though
our stereotypical
idea of buddhists might lead us to
believe that he's a serene and serious
kind of guy
he's actually kind of funny if you've
watched any interviews of him
but for the chinese government he is
anything but funny
they see him as a politically subversive
figure that threatens their authority
and if the chinese government gets their
way they would love to choose the next
dalai lama
however the dalai lama himself has
signaled that he might be the last one
so what even is the dalai lama and why
does tenzin gyatso think that the
succession of the dalai lama
must end in tibetan buddhism a llama is
a spiritual teacher and ritual expert
llamas fulfill all types of roles for
their local community ranging from
religious teaching
to even astrology and divining the dalai
lama
dalai meaning big is the title conferred
to the spiritual and political leader of
the tibetan people
tenzin is the 14th man to hold the title
but the role stretches back to the 15th
century
throughout most of the dalai lama's
history they were just as much political
leaders as they were
spiritual leaders hanging out in the
highest echelons of power with
mongol chieftains and chinese emperors
the fifth dalai lama also known as the
great
fifth is among the most famous a 17th
century ruler of tibet who forged the
dalai lama into a political dynasty
the current dalai lama is no political
slouch himself though when the people's
republic of china invaded tibet in the
1950s he tried to negotiate even
traveling to beijing to talk to mao
zedong himself
however diplomacy broke down and in 1959
fearing kidnapping by the chinese
government he escaped into india
and formed a government in exile he has
been living there ever since then
despite his past as a political leader
he's actually given up his political
powers in 2011 and has focused on
religious and ethical teaching
but even as a religious leader he's not
comparable to the pope and catholicism
he's not the head of all
buddhists just like any religion
buddhism is a complex religion that
takes many forms you have japanese zen
buddhism and sri lanka and theravada
buddhism
some scholars categorize tibetan
buddhism as a distinct branch
called vajrayana buddhism vajrayana is
historically linked to the largest
branch of buddhism called mahayana
and the succession of the dalai lama
draws inspiration from the mahayana
conception of the bodhisattva
exemplary beings dedicated to attaining
buddhahood
and showing compassion for other beings
tibet buddhists believe that the dalai
lama reincarnates as a child when he
dies
now buddhists in general believe that
all sentient beings reincarnate but
most beings can't remember their past
lives
only exceptional people can remember and
some called tulkus can direct their
reincarnation
establishing a lineage of famous llamas
that stretch back through the ages
though it's impossible to know for sure
at least some scholars estimate that
there are at least 10
000 tulkus some are heads of monasteries
or
important religious orders but the dalai
lama is the most
important lineage of tulkus the tibetans
have an elaborate process of identifying
and testing the successor in the case of
the 13th dalai lama
he predicted that he would reincarnate
somewhere in eastern tibet
after his death high-ranking llamas
traveled there
and they found the young tenzin as the
candidate for the 14th dalai lama
following a series of tests
one of which being the kid recognizing
the prayer beads and walking stick of
the 13th dalai lama
they concluded that he is the same being
the 13th dalai lama
reincarnated in this child however the
succession is under threat
because of his history of anti-chinese
resistance and tibet the chinese
government has long worked to
undermine the dalai lama's authority
they've banned displaying a photograph
of the dalai lama they've launched
re-education campaigns that force
tibetan dissenters to repeat statements
like i oppose the dalai clique and i
love the communist party
and they even gone as far as to say that
they alone have the authority to name
the successor of the dalai lama in a
2017 press conference a foreign ministry
spokesman said
the title of dalai lama itself is
granted by
china's central government and they've
shown more than enough willingness to
try to meddle with the reincarnation of
llamas
in 1995 when the dalai lama named a
six-year-old boy as the successor for
the panchadlama the second most
important spiritual leader after the
dalai lama the chinese government
abducted the kid
and named their own pancha and llama to
this day
tenzin's choice for the panchan lama
remains in custody and there's a good
chance that the chinese government will
try to do the exact same thing with the
dalai lama's succession
but the succession of the dalai lama
might be in jeopardy because
he himself might choose to be the last
one
stretching back to the 1970s he's been
floating the idea again and again that
he might be the last dalai lama
in a 2014 interview with the bbc he said
the dalai lama institution will cease
one day
these man-made institutions will cease
there is no guarantee that
some stupid dalai lama won't come next
who will disgrace himself or herself so
much better that a centuries-old
tradition should cease at the time of a
quite popular dalai lama
the chinese regional governor of tibet
in 2015 dismissed the dalai lama's
claim saying it's not up to him and the
dalai lama must be chosen with the
approval of the central government
the dalai lama has tried to head off the
possibility of the chinese government
usurping the position
arguing that he alone has the authority
whether or not to reincarnate and that
no recognition or acceptance should be
given to a candidate
chosen for political ends by anyone
including in the people's republic of
china
but at the time of making this video we
just don't know what's gonna happen the
dalai lama has not yet made his
intentions clear
he does say that he'll leave written
instructions and he has said that he
will definitely reincarnate outside of
tibet
but the chinese government probably has
their own plans too
in short this is another example of
politics and religion being intertwined
as a historically political figure the
reincarnation of the dalai lama is not
just a matter of
theology and doctrine it has major
implications for the future of the
tibetan people and the future of
religious freedom rights in china
i have sources in the description below
if you'd like to do some more research
as always thanks for watching and i'll
see you next time hey everyone so i did
this video in collaboration with step
back history he's an
awesome youtuber focuses on history and
a little bit of religion as well
if you head over to his channel right
now you'll see his buddhism explained
video
check it out and as always thanks for
watching i'll see you next time
you