MCLEOD GANJ/BEIJING: The Dalai Lama said on Wednesday that the 600-year-old Tibetan spiritual institution would continue after his death, reassuring Buddhist followers around the globe and saying his office “exclusively” would name his successor, even as China insisted it would.

Followers of the Dalai Lama laud his tireless campaign for greater autonomy for Tibet, a vast high-altitude plateau in China about the size of South Africa. It is a landmark decision for Tibetans, many of whom had feared a future without a leader, as well as for global supporters who see the Dalai Lama as a symbol of non-violence, compassion and the enduring struggle for Tibetan cultural identity under Chinese rule.

According to Tibetans, Tenzin Gyatso is the 14th reincarnation of the Dalai Lama.

He and thousands of other Tibetans have lived in exile in India since Chinese troops crushed an uprising in the Tibetan capital Lhasa in 1959.

China says Tibetan spiritual leader’s successor must be approved by it

The charismatic Nobel Peace Prize-winning Buddhist had previously said the institution of Dalai Lama would continue only if there was popular demand. He said Wednesday he had received multiple appeals over the past 14 years from the Tibetan diaspora, Buddhists from across the Himalayan region, Mongolia and parts of Russia and China, “earnestly requesting that the institution of the Dalai Lama continue”.

“In particular, I have received messages through various channels from Tibetans in Tibet making the same appeal,” he said in a video broadcast at the start of a meeting of religious leaders in the Indian Himalayan town where he has lived for decades.

“In accordance with all these requests, I am affirming that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue,” he added, according to an official translation. The announcement was made ahead of his 90th birthday on July 6.

China said on Wednesday that the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama “must be approved by the central government”.

The current Dalai Lama, who turns 90 this week, has lived in exile in India since Chinese troops crushed an uprising in the Tibetan capital Lhasa in 1959. China, which views the current Dalai Lama as a separatist, countered that Beijing has the final say on who the successor will be.

“The reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, the Panchen Lama and other great Buddhist figures must be chosen by drawing lots from a golden urn, and approved by the central government,” foreign ministry spokeswoman said.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2025