Just days ahead of his 90th birthday, the Dalai Lama had outlined his succession plans in a long-anticipated statement from Dharamshala, where he has lived for decades.
New Delhi: A day after the Dalai Lama stated that only a trust affiliated with his office would have the authority to decide on his reincarnation, prompting China to assert that its approval was necessary, India’s minority affairs minister Kiren Rijiju endorsed the Tibetan Buddhist leader’s position and said that no one else had the right to make that decision.
Talking to reporters on Thursday (July 3), Rijiju said that thae Dalai Lama is the “most important and defining institution” for Buddhists.
“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,” Rijiju was quoted as saying by PTI.
On Wednesday, just days before his 90th birthday, the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhism had outlined his succession plans in a long-anticipated statement from Dharamshala, where he has lived for decades.
“I am affirming that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue,” he said in a video message in the Tibetan language. “I hereby reiterate that the Gaden Phodrang Trust has sole authority to recognize the future reincarnation. No one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter.”
China, which considers the Dalai Lama a separatist figure, responded by reiterating that any reincarnation must receive approval from Beijing. Click here to read more.
