On June 2, the mayor of Budapest, Hungry did something unusual.
He re-named a street in the city after the Dalai Lama.
Because the mayor was protesting against the Hungarian President's decision
to allow the Chinese Fudan University to build its campus in Budapest.
And so he renamed four streets, where the university was planning to set up.
Many western countries are criticizing China using the Dalai Lama.
For example, in 2020, Donald Trump passed the Tibetan Policy and Support Act in light of the US-China trade war.
The act formally recognized the Central Tibetan Administration,
Tibet's parliamentary government based in Dharamshala.
It was recognized as the legitimate representative of the Tibetan people.
But there’s an interesting clause in this act.
You can find it on page 12 of the act.
Here it says that the Chinese government can’t interfere in the process of recognizing a successor of the Dalai Lama.
On the other hand, China has a completely different policy.
It states that the next Dalai Lama must comply with Chinese law.
In other words, the next Dalai Lama has to meet the approval of the Chinese government.
And it’s crucial for India too.
The gravity of this situation can be judged by the fact that senior security officials in India,
including in the prime minister’s office, have been discussing the appointment of the next Dalai Lama.
How the next Dalai Lama, or the 15th Dalai Lama, is decided is very crucial for the future of Tibetans.
The 6 million Tibetans who’re living in China and 150 thousand others who live across 40 countries, including India.
It’s not only crucial for their lives but also for their culture and identity.
Buddhism was introduced in Tibet during the reign of Songsten Gampo in the 7th Century.
He married Han Chinese Princess and was recognized as the first true unifier of Tibet.
Their wedding is recognized as the first formal relations between the Hans, the dominant ethnicity in China, and the Tibetans.
Buddhism in Tibet is divided into five schools.
Each of these schools follows the teachings of Gautama Buddha, but with slight variations.
For a long time, the Sakya school was dominant.
However, it declined in the 13th century due to internal tensions.
Consequently, the Gelug School, the newest of these schools, became dominant in Tibet.
The Dalai Lama is a crucial figure in this school, who’s seen as a spiritual and political figure,
especially during the reign of the 5th Dalai Lama.
In the 16th century, the relations between China and Tibet were largely diplomatic,
with little political control from the Chinese side.
History gets trickier with the rise of the 5th Dalai Lama.
For example, it’s agreed upon that the Dalai Lama had relations with China.
But both sides differ on the nature of the relationship.
Both sides agree that the Chinese Emperor Shunzhi and the Dalai Lama met each other.
Tibetan accounts claim that Emperor Shunzhi traveled to Tibet to meet the Dalai Lama.
If it’s true, it indicates a degree of equality between the Chinese and Tibetans.
The Chinese accounts relate that the emperor was out hunting when he coincidentally met the Dalai Lama.
Both accounts agree that the Dalai Lama was exempt from the traditional kowtow,
symbolizing total subservience by bowing and kneeling on the ground.
However, he was required to kneel before the emperor.
And this kneeling is used by China as an argument that Tibet was subservient to its authority.
By the 18th century, Chinese involvement became more pronounced in Tibet.
When the Mongols invaded the Tibetan capital of Lhasa, the Qing dynasty from China sent an army to protect the 7th Dalai Lama.
After their victory, “the Chinese armies were welcomed in Tibet".
The Chinese also created some administrative changes in Tibet.
For example, they permanently placed officials known as the ‘Ambans’ in Tibet.
The ‘Ambans’ were diplomats but their powers increased gradually,
especially after the Chinese helped Tibet fight the Gorkhas of Nepal.
Some accounts suggest that this position was on a par with the Dalai Lama.
And they could also influence financial, diplomatic, and trade matters.
And according to Chinese accounts, "Tibet at that point became a part of China.â€
Now till this point, China was the only external power interested in Tibet.
But this changed in the 19th and 20th centuries,
as Tibet was caught in the "Great Game" between the British and Russians who wanted to extend their influence in Asia.
So in the early 20th century, British troops invaded Tibet.
However, China regained control over the region and a pact was signed on 18 August 1907.
Both Russia and Britain recognized Chinese suzerainty over Tibet and pledged not to interfere in Tibet’s internal matters.
The term “suzerainty†is pretty interesting.
It is a diplomatic term used to denote a condition under which a dependent state
enjoys local autonomy over domestic matters,
while it depends on a more powerful state for other issues.
But this situation changed instantly.
The Chinese revolution overthrew the Qing dynasty and the Chinese Ambans (representatives) had to leave Tibet.
So in 1913, for the first time in centuries, there were no Chinese in Tibet.
The 13th Dalai Lama considered it an opportunity to announce Tibet’s independence.
However, the British had different plans.
The British saw an opportunity in decreasing the influence of the Chinese over Tibet.
They signed the Simla Convention Agreement with Tibet, and Tibet became a protectorate of Britain.
It’s similar to the concept of “suzerainty†where an agreement exists between two states.
But WWII reduced Britain’s influence and Tibet started asserting its independence again.
The assertion of independence accelerated as China was distracted by the ongoing communist revolution.
However, this independence was about to end soon.
The Communist Party wanted to take control of Tibet for three major reasons.
First, the party believed that Tibet was never independent and it was always a part of China.
The party also had strategic reasons.
Tibet acted as a buffer zone between China and India, providing protection to China.
The third reason is economic.
Many of China’s water sources come from Tibet.
Besides that, Tibet is home to large deposits of minerals.
The Chinese communists knew that exercising control over Tibet would be difficult unless they win the favor of the Dalai Lama.
Because he had strong control over the political and cultural identity of Tibetans.
So they signed a seventeen-point agreement with the Dalai Lama.
The agreement allowed the Dalai Lama to control Tibet's internal affairs, but it remained sovereign to China.
He did sign the agreement but he wasn’t happy with it.
In 1959, the situation became grim.
Tibetan rebels launched attacks against Chinese government troops,
while Chinese soldiers launched a counterattack and captured Lhasa, Tibet's capital.
As a result, the Dalai Lama escaped to India and established a government in Dharamshala.
After his escape, China increased its oppression in Tibet.
It denounced the Dalai Lama's authority as he had escaped the country.
China called him “a wolf in sheep’s clothing†and “a devil with a human faceâ€.
Meanwhile, the Dalai Lama tried to raise awareness about the plight of Tibetans.
And in doing so, he not only spoke about Tibet but also about Buddhism.
Many high-profile celebrities met him.
If you would also like to know about his teachings, you can consider listening to the audiobook called The Book of Joy.
In the book, he shares a conversation with Archbishop Desmond Tutu
about finding joy and happiness in the face of suffering and grief.
You can listen to it on the KuKu FM app, which has sponsored this video.
This app features many other original podcasts and audiobooks in multiple Indian languages.
The annual plan is only INR399, less than the price of the book.
And because they are sponsoring the video, you will get 20% off if you use the coupon MOHAK20.
This brings the cost below 1rs a day.
So do check out the app. The link is in the description.
Now let's come back to the video.
After assuming control over Tibet, China started to gradually change its landscape.
For example, it started re-education camps to alter the cultural and political opinions of the Tibetans.
Satellite imagery has shown that new camps are being set up too.
Second, it undertook a population shift by giving subsidies to the Hans Chinese,
the dominant ethnicity in China, to make them settle in Tibet.
Moreover, China has also sought to take control over the religious figures of Tibet.
Take a look at this picture.
The person on the right is the current Dalai Lama while on the left is the Panchen Lama,
the second most important figure in Tibet.
However, in 1964, he was imprisoned for being vocal against the communist party's policies.
After his death, the Dalai Lama named this boy the next Panchen Lama.
However, the Chinese government kidnapped the boy and named another Panchen Lama,
who is not recognized by many Tibetans.
Many believe that China can use the same tactic to decide the successor of the Dalai Lama.
In April 2019, the Dalai Lama was hospitalized with a chest infection in Delhi.
Although it was a minor illness, it evoked a larger question of the future of his position in case of his death.
To understand this, let’s first learn who the Dalai Lama is and how he is appointed.
According to Buddhist beliefs, a Dalai Lama is a representative of the Buddhist god 'Avolokiteshvara'.
He’s a person who can be born again.
Before he dies, he leaves behind clues of finding the next Dalai Lama.
The senior monks interpret these clues, search for the new Dalai Lama and train him.
When the 13th Dalai Lama died in 1933,
the monks noticed some unusual fungal growth on his shrine which pointed towards the northeast direction.
They began searching for the 14th Dalai Lama, eventually choosing a 2-year old boy.
The current Dalai Lama says that his successor would be selected in a similar manner.
But this process takes time.
Last time it took 4 years.
Some say it might take 10 years.
Over the years, the current Dalai Lama has been dropping clues about his successor.
Once he said that the next Dalai Lama may be a female but she would have to be attractive, which is sexist.
But we’ll discuss that in another video.
He once dreamed of living until he turns 113.
Once he even said that the institution of the Dalai Lama would be abolished, meaning he would be the last Dalai Lama.
He has not been clear with these clues but he has been clear with one thing:
China won't have the authority to decide the next Dalai Lama.
The next Dalai Lama would be born in a free country like India.
According to China, only the Chinese laws can decide the next Dalai Lama.
For this, they’ll use the ‘Golden Urn’ system, which was previously used in the 18th century to select the Dalai Lama.
It’s basically a lottery system that involves drawing chits from an urn.
Many of you might ask: Why does the selection of the next Dalai Lama matter?
Because the next Dalai Lama will have a significant influence over Buddhist regions and their people.
That’s why China is using Tibetan Buddhism to promote its Belt and Road initiative among Buddhist-dominated regions.
If China has control over the next Dalai Lama, it can also control the Tibetans living in Arunachal Pradesh,
a state that is claimed by China.
As the current Dalai Lama resides in India, it has a great influence over Tibetans.
This was indicated in the recent India-China tension.
India used the Special Frontier Force, a secretive battalion composed of Tibetan soldiers, to fight China.
Besides all the geopolitics that's at stake, it’ll also impact the lives of people.
Mainly the lives of the 6 million Tibetans who’re facing many challenges.
Tibetans are allowed to become permanent citizens of India, but they refuse to do so.
They believe that if they take up Indian Citizenship, their movement for a free Tibet would lose momentum.
As a result, they struggle to get admissions to colleges or find jobs.
Many also find it challenging to buy a property and get loans.
Hence, many Tibetans have left India and migrated to other countries.
Due to such challenges, many young people are losing hope of ever going back to Tibet.
Their hopes rest on the future of the Dalai Lama.
Maybe there will be two Dalai Lamas in the future, just like there are two Panchen Lamas currently.
One could be appointed by the current Dalai Lama and another by China.
For now, the Dalai Lama's quarters in Tibet remain empty.
However, that might not be the case in the future.
But it remains to be seen if people believe in the person who sits there in the future.
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