Tenzin Gyatso | |
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14th Dalai Lama | |
Reign | 22 February 1940 – present |
Predecessor | Thubten Gyatso |
Regent |
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Head of the Tibetan Administration for Tibetans-in-exile | |
In office | 14 June 1991 – 2011 |
Head of State of Tibet[1][dubious – discuss] | |
In office | 10 March 1963 – 13 June 1991 |
Director of the Preparatory Committee for the Tibet Autonomous Region | |
In office | 1956–1959 |
Predecessor | Office established |
Successor | 10th Panchen Lama (acting) |
Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress | |
In office | 15 September 1954 – 17 December 1964[a] |
Born | Lhamo Thondup 6 July 1935 Taktser, Amdo, Tibet |
Father | Choekyong Tsering |
Mother | Diki Tsering |
Religion | Tibetan Buddhism (Gelug school) |
Signature |
Part of a series on |
Tibetan Buddhism |
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The 14th Dalai Lama[b] (spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, also known as Tenzin Gyatso;[c] né Lhamo Thondup;[d] born 6 July 1935) is, as the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. Before 1959, he served as both the spiritual and temporal leader of Tibet and subsequently established and led the Tibetan government in exile in India. [2] By the adherents of Tibetan Buddhism, he is considered a living Bodhisattva; specifically, an emanation of Avalokiteśvara in Sanskrit, and Chenrezig in Tibetan. The Dalai Lama, whose name means "Ocean of Wisdom," is known to Tibetans as Gyalwa Rinpoche, "The Precious Jewel-like Buddha-Master," Kundun, "The Presence," and Yizhin Norbu, "The Wish-Fulfilling Gem." His devotees, as well as much of the Western world, often call him His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the style employed on his website. He is also the leader and a monk of the Gelug school, the newest school of Tibetan Buddhism, formally headed by the Ganden Tripa.[3]
The 14th Dalai Lama was born to a farming family in Taktser (Hongya Village), in the traditional Tibetan region of Amdo, Dhomay province, (administratively Qinghai, Republic of China).[4][5][6] He was selected as the tulku of the 13th Dalai Lama in 1937, and formally recognized as the 14th Dalai Lama in a public declaration near the town of Bumchen in 1939.[7] As with the recognition process for his predecessor, a Golden Urn selection process was waived and approved by the Central Government of the Republic of China.[8][9][10][11] His enthronement ceremony was held in Lhasa on 22 February 1940 and he eventually assumed full temporal duties on 17 November 1950 (at 15 years of age), after the People's Republic of China's occupation of Tibet.[7] The Tibetan government administered the historic Tibetan regions of Ü-Tsang, Kham and Amdo.[12]
The central government of Tibet at the time of his selection, the Ganden Phodrang, invested the Dalai Lama with temporal duties until his exile in 1959.[13][14] Subsequent to the annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China, during the 1959 Tibetan uprising, the Dalai Lama escaped to India, where he continues to live in exile while remaining the spiritual leader of Tibet. On 29 April 1959, the Dalai Lama established the independent Tibetan government in exile in the north Indian hill station of Mussoorie, which then moved in May 1960 to Dharamshala, where he resides. He retired as political head in 2011 to make way for a democratic government, the Central Tibetan Administration.[15][16][17][18]
The Dalai Lama advocates for the welfare of Tibetans and since the early 1970s has called for the Middle Way Approach with China to peacefully resolve the issue of Tibet. This involves recognizing Tibet as a part of China, while pushing for substantial autonomy for Tibetans within China. This strategy seeks to find a middle ground between Tibetan desires for self-governance and China's assertion of sovereignty over Tibet, aiming to address the interests of both parties through dialogue and communication.[19] The Dalai Lama is not in favor of separation from China, he stated that Tibet is a part of China, Tibet is an autonomous region of China. Tibetan culture and Buddhism are part of Chinese culture.[20]
The Dalai Lama travels worldwide to give Tibetan Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism teachings, and his Kalachakra teachings and initiations are international events. He also attends conferences on a wide range of subjects, including the relationship between religion and science, meets with other world leaders, religious leaders, philosophers, and scientists, online and in-person. His work includes focus on the environment, economics, women's rights, nonviolence, interfaith dialogue, physics, astronomy, Buddhism and science, cognitive neuroscience,[21][22] reproductive health and sexuality.
The Dalai Lama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989. Time magazine named the Dalai Lama one of the "Children of Gandhi" and Gandhi's spiritual heir to nonviolence.[23][24] The 12th General Assembly of the Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace in New Delhi unanimously recognized 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 July 6th, his birthday, as the Universal Day of Compassion.[25][26]
The spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhism and, until the establishment of Chinese communist rule, the spiritual and temporal ruler of Tibet
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