Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on July 1, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026
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The Dalai Lama will meet senior monks to discuss reincarnation, likely issuing a statement on his succession, amid tensions with Beijing.
By Krishna N. Das
DHARAMSHALA, India (Reuters) -The Dalai Lama will meet 11 senior Buddhist monks on Wednesday morning before delivering a written statement that will "most probably" talk about his eventual succession as the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhists, an official said.
Tibetan Buddhists believe that enlightened monks are reborn to continue their spiritual legacy. The 14th Dalai Lama will turn 90 on Sunday and has long been expected to use the occasion to share possible clues on where his successor, a boy or a girl, could be found following his death.
Beijing views the Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule, as a separatist and says it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama has said his successor will be born outside China and has urged his followers to reject anyone chosen by Beijing.
The northern Indian town of Dharamshala, where the Dalai Lama is based with thousands of other Tibetans, has already seen the arrival of the heads of various sects of Buddhism ahead of a Wednesday-Friday religious conference that precedes the birthday celebrations on the weekend.
"All the religious heads are here and they are going to talk to His Holiness, which may relate to reincarnation issues," said Tenzin Lekshay, spokesperson for the exiled government in Dharamshala, as mists and rains cloaked the Himalayan hills.
On the first day of the conference, more than 100 religious figures including the senior monks will issue a declaration of gratitude to the Dalai Lama and discuss the way ahead, he said.
The Dalai Lama will address them in Tibetan in a pre-recorded message but is unlikely to refer to reincarnation in that message, Lekshay said.
The issue will "most probably" be covered in a written statement to be issued by the Dalai Lama late morning, he said.
Another official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the written statement would refer to his reincarnation.
(Reporting by Krishna N. Das; Editing by Aidan Lewis)
The Dalai Lama will meet with 11 senior Buddhist monks to discuss issues related to his eventual succession and reincarnation.
The statement is expected to address his reincarnation, which is a crucial topic for Tibetan Buddhists who believe in the rebirth of enlightened monks.
The Dalai Lama is based in Dharamshala, India, where he resides with thousands of other Tibetans.
The Dalai Lama will address the senior monks in Tibetan through a pre-recorded message, but he is unlikely to mention reincarnation in that message.
More than 100 religious figures, including senior monks, will participate in the conference to issue a declaration of gratitude to the Dalai Lama.
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