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Reincarnation of the Dalai Lama
Dazza
Explorer
Hi everyone,
I'm glad I have found this site as I have many questions!! My first is as follows:
I am sorry if this has been posted before.
If the Dalai Lama is enlightened and/or has reached a state state or nirvana after death, then why is he reincarnated into a human being? (the next Dalai Lama).
I have heard people say that when he reaches nirvana, he chooses to go back to the human body to teach others seeking enlightenment but doesn't that suggest he is asked by someone else such as a god who has the power to send the spirit back to become a human?
Also the birth, re-birth and reaching nirvana are natural consequences due to karmic actions so how would anyone no matter who you are have a say on where you want to go unless there is a God (or whatever you want to call it!)
I am new to buddhism so correct me if I am wrong as I am here to learn and hope you understand what I am going on about
Look forward to your answers! Many thanks
I'm glad I have found this site as I have many questions!! My first is as follows:
I am sorry if this has been posted before.
If the Dalai Lama is enlightened and/or has reached a state state or nirvana after death, then why is he reincarnated into a human being? (the next Dalai Lama).
I have heard people say that when he reaches nirvana, he chooses to go back to the human body to teach others seeking enlightenment but doesn't that suggest he is asked by someone else such as a god who has the power to send the spirit back to become a human?
Also the birth, re-birth and reaching nirvana are natural consequences due to karmic actions so how would anyone no matter who you are have a say on where you want to go unless there is a God (or whatever you want to call it!)
I am new to buddhism so correct me if I am wrong as I am here to learn and hope you understand what I am going on about
Look forward to your answers! Many thanks
0
Comments
HH The Dalai lama is said to be an emanation of the Bodhisattva Avolokitesvara - also called Chenresig in the Tibetan tradition. Avolokitesvara is the fully realised Buddha of Compassion, and is able to emanate many forms to help humans achieve Enlightenment. One image of him is called Thousand Armed Chenresig which indicates that he is able to do many things at once. HH The Daiai Lama is said to be one of these. No God is needed in this process as it is quality of his level of spiritual dvelopment. There is the concept of miracle powers in Buddhism - not endowed by a God - but which are part of the attainment of higher spiritual levels.
I have heard people say that when he reaches nirvana, he chooses to go back to the human body to teach others seeking enlightenment but doesn't that suggest he is asked by someone else such as a god who has the power to send the spirit back to become a human?
This is called the Bodhisattva Idea in Mahayana Buddhism, where final Enlightenment is delayed in order to help all sentient beings.
Also the birth, re-birth and reaching nirvana are natural consequences due to karmic actions so how would anyone no matter who you are have a say on where you want to go unless there is a God
This is a misconception. Birth, ageing, sickness and death and then rebirth are natural processes directed by karma. Reaching nirvana is not a natural consequence in the same way, but is a goal that is reached after striving along The Buddha's path. The idea of God is not needed in this.
Because he chooses to,
No. He chooses to reincarnate by himself. That's what beings like him do. "He" has the power to do that himself.
It's primordial wisdom.
I have no idea what the MindState of a being is, who can choose reincarnation rather than Nirvana.
To nit-pick, and to illustrate a distinction to the OP: For the sake of this specific discussion,
Reincarnation - is a choice.
Re-Birth - isn't.
Reincarnation is an option taken by a - let's say - Highly elevated and Totally Aware Lama or Guru. They designate their own reincarnation, and after their passing, their students or monks take upon themselves the task of seeking his new manifestation. The Lama that has passed, leaves behind significant and distinct clues as to where the reincarnated Lama can be located.
The new reincarnated Lama is known as a Tulku, and there are further means tests to establish that he is in fact the reincarnated Lama.
This Tulku is a person in their own right. It's not a duplicate, carbon-copy identical (DND-Cloned) reproduction. It's a person in their own right, and their own character, temperament and personality is still there.....
Thanks to all who have kindly replied to help me understand my question. It is much clearer to me now. :thumbsup:
Dazza
Now that's what I call multitasking!
Mtns
Yes - they say blokes are rubbish at it.
Not the next Dalai Lama, but there may have been a Tulku who did that.
It's going to be a difficult time for the Tibetans when HH dies. The whole controversy will blow up with perhaps the Chinese claiming the position for a child candidate of their own. There have been great problems with the candidate for the Panchen Lama and others. I think HH has said that the rebirth will be in the West.
It makes for an interesting read.
What Steven Segal has done with this matter of personal responsibility, is for nobody else to judge, however....
I heard this too.
Does anyone have a source for this?
It's going to be ugly when the current DL dies. The Chinese have abducted the Panchen Lama, and appointed another in his place. Politics and the real world collide.
Mtns
This doesnt mean that Chenrezig will stop emanating nirmanakaya.
The Dalai Lama is one emanation. There are many more right now.
I actually dont think it will be that ugly.
When Kundun passes, the loyal and completely competent regents will find his tulku and they will be the trusted source.
I have a lot of trust in Ling Rinpoche and the Karmapa.
The search will never have been done across the whole world before, nor under the media spotlight. It will also bring the question of which Karmapa? to public notice. Add the problem of the Panchen into the mix and it is likely to be messy. Not for the first time.
But, the current Dalai Lama will choose his regents, those regents will choose his tulku and everyone else can say and do what they want.
In the end, it wont really matter.
Just like with the whole Karmapa fiasco, its pretty obvious how that one is turning out.
Who wouldn't get angry or heated? Who is not tue to their religion?
wasn't there that boy who was chosen to be the next one who ran away after some years of practice? He didn't want to continue with that way of life and was depressed because of it..
I wondered why you'd put this comment too.
If only. The Chinese will capitalise on the situation to discredit the Tibetans in exile and cede confusion. The Western media - not the best informed in Buddhist matters - what will their take be? The most extreme beause they're only interested in polarity and extremity.
Mind you- I have trust in HH.
I heard a long time ago about the boy who ran away and could not remember if he was to be the next lama, I was throwing it in here to see if anybody had heard of this also...
"And what is right speech? Abstaining from lying, from divisive speech, from abusive speech, & from idle chatter: This is called right speech."
— SN 45.8
"Monks, a statement endowed with five factors is well-spoken, not ill-spoken. It is blameless & unfaulted by knowledgeable people. Which five?
"It is spoken at the right time. It is spoken in truth. It is spoken affectionately. It is spoken beneficially. It is spoken with a mind of good-will."
— AN 5.198
No. I'm just saying that you do not follow what the Buddha describes as "right speech". I don't know if you are a Buddhist or not or if you are a practicing Buddhist or not. But I do know what "right speech" is.
Goodbye, and thnks for all the cr*p.
You need to cite your sources at the very least. You can't just say things without citation.
Mtns
Edited to add: The above should not in any way be taken as an endorsement of the Chinese government.
My wife studied History recently including China and Tibet. Apparently Mao and the Chinese communists engineered the famine in Tibet which killed a good proportion of the Tibetan people.
HH The Dalai Lama has consistently advocated a peaceful slution to the conflict between China and the Tibetan Govt in exile. That's why he got the Nobel Peace Prize.
Having said that, we knew a Tibetan in India who would tell us about Tibet. He followed HH around India at that time. He said that Tibet wasn't perfect, and there was a lot of banditry and corruption.
Finally HH The Dalai Lama has said that Buddhism has similar aims to communism in it's purest form.
We've often discussed the invaision of Tibet and its repecussions. In actual fact it has spread Buddhism around the world much more effectively than preserving it in Tibet would have. The big question is what will happen to expat Tibetans in the future.
There are many descriptions of Tibet before the Chinese invasion, including by HHDL himself. There is no doubt that the political and economic system was, to say the least, archaic. We can compare it to the feudal system in Europe conflated with a watered-down caste system.
It is much to the credit of the present Dalai Lama and the government-in-exile that a process was introduced many years ago to bring about a more democratic and representative approach.
It is just as dangerous to view pre-1959 Tibet as 'Shangri-La' as to demonise it.
Anyway, I was wondering why there are lamas and such positions within buddhism. I do not know a great deal about the history of the religion and do not act as if I do, but I do know that buddha was asked who would be his successor to teach and spread the word of this new found way of life. he replied that the dharma is his successor, he did not appoint or think it would be necessary to appoint anybody after him
It's called flaming. Excessively harsh. Especially without any valid citations. Good judgment call from Fed.
Anyway, I was wondering why there are lamas and such positions within buddhism.
This is specific to Tibetan Buddhism. Lamas are really just approved teachers. Reincarnated positions are specific to Tibetan Buddhism, and it's a matter of personal belief. I myself believe that Tendzin Gyatso is the 14th Dalai Lama and that the continuity from the 13th to the 14th is striking. But I can't prove anything.
As I said, I was relating information from a Tibetan man my wife and I met in Mumbai in 1990. I didn't claim it was anything other than anecdotal. As far as we are concerned, his iformaton was valid. He taugh us a lot about Tibetan Buddhism, and later we heard he attended Rumtek monastery.
I am a follower of HH The Dalai Lama Sherab, and so related what I had heard in the full knowledge of the Chinese attitude to Tibet. As Simon has said, a balanced view of things is important.