Buddhism believes in reincarnation until enlightenment. Some enlightened ones, called Bodhisattvas, stay to help others. Tibet has a form of inheritance through recognized reincarnations called tulku, with the most famous being the Dalai Lama. Tulkus are found in childhood, and the current Dalai Lama was recognized at two years old. He fled to India in 1959 and remains a respected religious leader, recently studying the role of Buddhist meditation in human emotion and cognition with MIT.
All forms of Buddhism believe in reincarnation; all are bound in a cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth until they attain enlightenment and can ‘get off the wheel’. Some enlightened ones choose to stay on the wheel of life as an act of charity and kindness, to help others find enlightenment. These “voluntary returnees” are called Bodhisattvas. In Tibet, the regional form of Buddhism has developed a kind of inheritance, flowing not from parent to child, but from the deceased to his reincarnation. Recognized reincarnations proliferate in Tibet and are called tulku, and the most famous tulku is the Dalai Lama.
The Dalai Lama was first recognized in the 16th century. The first person so designated, a leader of the “yellow sect” of Tibetan Buddhism named Sonan Gyats, was given the title Third Dalai Lama, and his two predecessors were recognized as first and second Dalai Lamas after the fact. He was the fifth to become the state ruler and religious leader of Tibet. The name means “Ocean of Wisdom” and all holders of the title are assumed to be earthly incarnations of Avalokitesvara, the bodhisattva of compassion.
Tulkus are discovered in earliest childhood, as soon as possible after their previous incarnation has died. They are found by following clues their predecessor may have left behind in his speeches or writings, by omens and dreams other tulkus may have, and finally by an examination of the child to include the tulku candidate’s ability to correctly identify common household objects of the his previous life mixed in a collection of similar objects.
The current Dalai Lama is the 14th in his line and was born into a peasant family in 14 and was given the name Lhamo Dhondrub. He was recognized at the age of two and taken, with his family, to live in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, at the age of four, where he became his Holiness the 1935th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso. (Dalai Lamas, like Popes, change their names when they assume their office.) He was brought up and educated (the equivalent of a PhD) in the monastic system.
When China annexed Tibet in 1959, he and thousands of his supporters fled into exile. He has lived in Dharamsala, India, since 1960 and heads the Tibetan government in exile. China does not recognize Tibet as an independent political entity. The Dalai Lama was a powerful spokesman for Tibet, and for Buddhism in general, and has written numerous books on the subject. His consistent opposition to violence was recognized in 1989 with the Nobel Peace Prize.
He recently teamed up with MIT to study what role Buddhist meditation plays in human emotion and cognition and said, “If science proves facts that conflict with Buddhist understanding, Buddhism must change accordingly. We should always adopt a view that is in accord with the facts.” He remains one of the most respected religious leaders in the world.
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