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Soul Boy of Dalai Lama to Be Found According to Historical Customs: Tibetan Official
The reincarnation or soul boy of the 14th Dalai Lama will be found upon his death in accordance with historical customs and religious rituals.
This remark was made by Raidi, chairman of the Standing Committee of the Tibet Autonomous Regional People's Congress, while being interviewed by a group of journalists from Hong Kong Sunday.
The 14th Dalai Lama is now living in exile in India.
Raidi said previous Dalai lamas have all been chosen according to historical customs and religious rituals.
The common practice to decide who will be the soul boy proceeds as follows: first several candidates for the soul boy are found; the reincarnation is then chosen by drawing lots from a golden urn; finally the soul boy is confirmed after being ratified by the central Chinese government.
Raidi emphasized that acts that violate historical customs and religious rituals will be deemed void.
In accordance with historical customs, the soul boy or reincarnation of a deceased prominent living Buddha in the Tibetan Buddhism is decided by drawing lots from the golden urn, which was formally established as a system in 1792.
In Tibet alone, from the time of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) until the end of the Republic of China (1912-1949), the reincarnation of more than 70 deceased living Buddhas from Gelug, Kagyu and Nyingma, the three major sects of the Tibetan Buddhism, has been decided by drawing lots from the golden urn.
The first living Buddha, chosen by drawing lots from the golden urn, following the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, was Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu, the 11th Panchen Lama, who was the soul boy of the 10th Panchen Lama.
The Hong Kong press delegation, consisting of journalists from 19 press organizations in Hong Kong, carried out extensive reports in Tibet on topics ranging from transport and tourism to religion earlier this month.
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