About the Dalai Lama
The current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is the 14th in the line of Dalai
Lamas. The first was born in 1391. Each Dalai Lama is believed to be the
reincarnation of his predecessors, and the single soul they have shared
is believed to be an emanation of the Bodhisattva of Compassion. The Dalai
Lamas ruled Tibet until the Chinese invasion in 1950, and are still the
spiritual leaders of Tibetan Buddhists. Succession is a somewhat mysterious
process: Each lama predicts where he will be reborn, and the leaders of
his order examine the children born in that area at about the right time.
The one who best seems to recognize familiar possessions of the previous
lama is judged to be the reincarnation. The child is taken from his family
and raised in the monastery; often he is educated by monks who were taught
by his predecessor -- returning the favor, as it were.
The current Dalai Lama was born in 1935 and installed in his office
in 1940. He fled to India following a failed rebellion against the Chinese
in 1959. He is the leader of the Tibetan government in exile centered in
Dharmsala, India. In 1989 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his
nonviolent efforts to liberate his homeland.
The Dalai Lama has written several books about his own life and traditional
life in Tibet: My Land and People (1962), Freedom in Exile (1990),
and My Tibet (1990). He also has written many books about the doctrines
and practices of Tibetan Buddhism.