Editing Dalai Lama (section)

== Future of the position ==
{{Main|Succession of the 14th Dalai Lama}}
[[File:Dalai lama teaching room.jpg|thumb|The main teaching room of the Dalai Lama in [[Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh|Dharamshala]], India]]
[[File:DalaiLama0054 tiny.jpg|thumb|14th Dalai Lama]]

{{blockquote|In the mid-1970s, Tenzin Gyatso told a Polish newspaper that he thought he would be the last Dalai Lama. In a later interview published in the English language press he stated, "The Dalai Lama office was an institution created to benefit others. It is possible that it will soon have outlived its usefulness."<ref>[[Glenn H. Mullin]], "Faces of the Dalai Lama: Reflections on the Man and the Tradition," ''Quest'', vol. 6, no. 3, Autumn 1993, p. 80.</ref> These statements caused a furore amongst Tibetans in India. Many could not believe that such an option could even be considered. It was further felt that it was not the Dalai Lama's decision to reincarnate. Rather, they felt that since the Dalai Lama is a national institution it was up to the people of Tibet to decide whether the Dalai Lama should reincarnate.<ref>Verhaegen 2002, p. 5.</ref>|sign=|source=}}

The government of the [[People's Republic of China]] (PRC) has claimed the power to approve the naming of "high" reincarnations in Tibet, based on a precedent set by the [[Qianlong Emperor]] of the [[Qing dynasty]].<ref>{{cite magazine|title=China Says It Will Decide Who the Dalai Lama Shall Be Reincarnated As|url=https://time.com/3743742/dalai-lama-china-reincarnation-tibet-buddhism/|magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]|date=13 March 2015|access-date=17 December 2015|archive-date=18 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151218233702/http://time.com/3743742/dalai-lama-china-reincarnation-tibet-buddhism/|url-status=live}}</ref> The Qianlong Emperor instituted a system of selecting the Dalai Lama and the [[Panchen Lama]] by a lottery that used a [[Golden Urn]] with names wrapped in clumps of barley. This method was used a few times for both positions during the 19th century, but eventually fell into disuse.<ref>{{cite web|title=Murder in Tibet's High Places|url=http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/murder-in-tibets-high-places-62805827|work=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]]|date=10 April 2012|access-date=15 December 2015|archive-date=23 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151223010656/http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/murder-in-tibets-high-places-62805827/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Reincarnation|url=http://www.dalailama.com/messages/statement-of-his-holiness-the-fourteenth-dalai-lama-tenzin-gyatso-on-the-issue-of-his-reincarnation|publisher=[[14th Dalai Lama]]|date=24 September 2011|access-date=17 December 2015|archive-date=14 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150514084334/http://www.dalailama.com/messages/statement-of-his-holiness-the-fourteenth-dalai-lama-tenzin-gyatso-on-the-issue-of-his-reincarnation|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1995, the Dalai Lama chose to proceed with the selection of the [[11th Panchen Lama|11th reincarnation of the Panchen Lama]] without the use of the Golden Urn, while the Chinese government insisted that it must be used.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Ellis-Petersen |first1=Hannah |date=2021-07-31 |title=Tibet and China clash over next reincarnation of the Dalai Lama |language=en-GB |work=The Observer |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/31/tibet-and-china-clash-over-next-reincarnation-of-the-dalai-lama |access-date=2023-12-22 |issn=0029-7712}}</ref> This has led to two rival Panchen Lamas: [[Gyaincain Norbu]] as chosen by the Chinese government's process, and [[Gedhun Choekyi Nyima]] as chosen by the Dalai Lama. However, Nyima was abducted by the Chinese government shortly after being chosen as the Panchen Lama and has not been seen in public since 1995.<ref>{{cite web |title=China says boy picked by Dalai Lama now a college graduate |url=https://apnews.com/79313edf55b390fb26ce1652bc9fb1d5 |website=AP NEWS |date=19 May 2020 |access-date=20 May 2020 |archive-date=20 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200520084828/https://apnews.com/79313edf55b390fb26ce1652bc9fb1d5 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In September 2007, the Chinese government said [[State Religious Affairs Bureau Order No. 5|all high monks must be approved by the government]], which would include the selection of the [[15th Dalai Lama]] after the death of [[14th Dalai Lama|Tenzin Gyatso]].<ref name="ChinaDaily">{{cite web|title=Reincarnation of living Buddha needs gov't approval|url=http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-08/04/content_5448242.htm|website=China Daily|access-date=11 March 2018|archive-date=25 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190325155356/http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-08/04/content_5448242.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Guardian">{{cite news|last1=Ramesh|first1=Randeep|last2=Watts|first2=Jonathan|title=Dalai Lama challenges China – with a referendum on reincarnation|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/nov/28/china.religion|newspaper=The Guardian|access-date=11 March 2018|date=28 November 2007|archive-date=12 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312083314/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/nov/28/china.religion|url-status=live}}</ref> Since by tradition, the Panchen Lama must approve the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, that is another possible method of control. Consequently, the Dalai Lama has alluded to the possibility of a referendum to determine the 15th Dalai Lama.<ref name="Guardian"/>

In response to this scenario, [[Tashi Wangdi]], the representative of the [[14th Dalai Lama]], replied that the Chinese government's selection would be meaningless. "You can't impose an [[Imam]], an [[Archbishop]], saints, any religion...you can't politically impose these things on people", said Wangdi. "It has to be a decision of the followers of that tradition. The Chinese can use their political power: force. Again, it's meaningless. Like their Panchen Lama. And they can't keep their Panchen Lama in Tibet. They tried to bring him to his monastery many times but people would not see him. How can you have a religious leader like that?"<ref>[[n:Dalai Lama's representative talks about China, Tibet, Shugden and the next Dalai Lama|Interview with Tashi Wangdi]], David Shankbone, ''[[Wikinews]]'', 14 November 2007.</ref>

The 14th Dalai Lama said as early as 1969 that it was for the Tibetans to decide whether the institution of the Dalai Lama "should continue or not".<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.tibet.com/DL/next-reincarnation.html |publisher=Government of Tibet in Exile |title=Dalai's reincarnation will not be found under Chinese control |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090712112849/http://www.tibet.com/DL/next-reincarnation.html |archive-date=12 July 2009 }}</ref> He has given reference to a possible vote occurring in the future for all Tibetan Buddhists to decide whether they wish to recognize his rebirth.<ref>[http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,22838048-25837,00.html Dalai Lama may forgo death before reincarnation] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071201142125/http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,22838048-25837,00.html |date=1 December 2007 }}, Jeremy Page, ''[[The Australian]]'', 29 November 2007.</ref> In response to the possibility that the PRC might attempt to choose his successor, the Dalai Lama said he would not be reborn in a country controlled by the People's Republic of China or any other country which is not free.<ref name="sdpcnw" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tibet.com/DL/next-reincarnation.html |publisher=Government of Tibet in Exile ex Indian Express 6 July 1999 |title=Dalai's reincarnation will not be found under Chinese control |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090712112849/http://www.tibet.com/DL/next-reincarnation.html |archive-date=12 July 2009 }}</ref> According to [[Robert D. Kaplan]], this could mean that "the next Dalai Lama might come from the Tibetan cultural belt that stretches across Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, [[Nepal]], and [[Bhutan]], presumably making him even more pro-Indian and hence anti-Chinese".<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/china/2010-05-01/geography-chinese-power |url-access=subscription |title=The Geography of Chinese Power |magazine=Foreign Affairs |first=Robert D. |last=Kaplan |date=May–June 2010 |access-date=2 June 2018 |archive-date=9 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180909001817/https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/china/2010-05-01/geography-chinese-power |url-status=live }}</ref>

The 14th Dalai Lama supported the possibility that his next incarnation could be a woman.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Haas|first1=Michaela|title=Why is there no female Dalai Lama?|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/on-faith/why-is-there-no-female-dalai-lama/2013/03/18/75ac132c-8fee-11e2-9cfd-36d6c9b5d7ad_story.html|access-date=7 February 2017|date=18 March 2013|archive-date=28 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170228090157/https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/on-faith/why-is-there-no-female-dalai-lama/2013/03/18/75ac132c-8fee-11e2-9cfd-36d6c9b5d7ad_story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> As an "engaged Buddhist" the Dalai Lama has an appeal straddling cultures and political systems making him one of the most recognized and respected moral voices today.<ref>Puri, Bharati (2006) "Engaged Buddhism – The Dalai Lama's Worldview" New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2006</ref> "Despite the complex historical, religious and political factors surrounding the selection of incarnate masters in the exiled Tibetan tradition, the Dalai Lama is open to change", author [[Michaela Haas]] writes.<ref>Haas, Michaela (2013). "Dakini Power: Twelve Extraordinary Women Shaping the Transmission of Tibetan Buddhism in the West." Shambhala Publications. {{ISBN|1559394072}}</ref>

Despite the tradition of selecting young children, the 14th Dalai Lama can also name an adult as his next incarnation. Doing so would have the advantage that the successor would not need to spend decades studying Buddhism and could immediately be taken seriously as a leader by the [[Tibetan diaspora]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-09-23 |title=Ethnic minorities expert on China's treatment of Uygurs, and Han chauvinism |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3279375/why-minority-languages-are-disappearing-some-classrooms-xinjiang-not-tibet |access-date=2024-09-25 |website=South China Morning Post |language=en}}</ref>