Dalai Lama says will be reborn in ‘the free world’

The Dalai Lama, turning 90, asserts his successor will be born in the "free world" and urges rejection of any choice made by Beijing.

Dharamshala: The Dalai Lama, who will turn 90 on July 6, has said that his successor as the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism will be born in the “free world”, in an apparent reference to areas outside China, and urged his followers to reject any successor chosen by Beijing.

The Dalai Lama poses with his new book "Voice for the Voiceless" in this photograph posted on his X account on January 24, 2025. (via REUTERS)

In his latest book, “Voice for the Voiceless”, which was released in the US and the UK on Tuesday, the Dalai Lama has also asserted that the fight for Tibetan freedom will continue “no matter what”, even after his death.

“Since the purpose of a reincarnation is to carry on the work of the predecessor, the new Dalai Lama will be born in the free world so that the traditional mission of the Dalai Lama — that is, to be the voice for universal compassion, the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, and the symbol of Tibet embodying the aspirations of the Tibetan people — will continue,” the 89-year-old spiritual leader writes in the book.

In Tibetan tradition, it is believed that when a senior Buddhist monk passes away, his soul is reincarnated in the body of a child. Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, was recognised as the reincarnation of his predecessor at the age of two.

At the age of 23, the Dalai Lama fled to India with thousands of other Tibetans in 1959 after a failed uprising against the rule of Mao Zedong’s Communists, which gained control of Tibet in 1950. Since then, the Dalai Lama has been living in exile in Dharamshala in the Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh in northern India.

The Dalai Lama, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 for keeping alive the Tibetan cause, had previously mentioned that the line of spiritual leaders might end with him. In the past, the Dalai Lama has said that any successor chosen by China will not be respected by Tibetan people.

In the book, published by William Morrow in the US and Harper Non-Fiction in the UK, the Dalai Lama mentions that for over a decade, he has been receiving petitions from a broad range of Tibetan people, urging him to ensure the continuation of the Dalai Lama lineage.

Though he has dozens of books, including autobiographies while in exile, to his credit, the new book recounts the nearly seven-decade-long struggle with China, including negotiations, cultural preservation, and advocating for Tibetans under Chinese rule. In the book, which also contains his personal, spiritual and historical reflections, the Dalai Lama writes that his homeland “remains in the grip of repressive Communist Chinese rule”, calling for global solidarity and a resolution that respects Tibet’s distinct identity while fostering coexistence.

China, which brands the Dalai Lama as a “separatist”, maintained that the process of selecting his successor must adhere to “Chinese law”, asserting its control over the Tibetan Buddhism, and rejected any succession beyond its authority.

“The 14th Dalai Lama is a political exile engaged in separatist activities under the guise of religion. He has absolutely no right to represent the people in Xizang (another name for Tibet),” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a regular press conference in Beijing on Tuesday.

“The lineage of the Dalai Lama living Buddha was formed and developed in China’s Tibet, and his religious status and name were also determined by (China’s) central government,” the spokesperson said, adding the 14th Dalai Lama himself was identified in accordance with religious rituals and historical conventions, and this was submitted to the then central government to approve the succession.

Spokesperson of Tibetan government-in-exile, Tenzin Lekshay, said, “The China Communist regime has no legitimate authority over the reincarnation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Since it is a Tibetan Buddhist tradition, His Holiness the Dalai Lama is the sole authority over his reincarnation. No matter how much China seeks, it will doom to fail. Moreover, we are very hopeful that he (Dalai Lama) is going to be with us for two more decades.”

In a recent statement, the Tibetan parliament-in-exile has also rejected the interference from China saying that the process of recognising the reincarnations of lamas in Tibetan Buddhism is solely and uniquely a Tibetan religious tradition.