Xinhua, the Chinese government's news agency, has been putting out happy, happy stories about the Panchen Lama's visit to Tibet. This would be the Chinese government's Panchen Lama, not the real one.
The Panchen Lama is the second highest lama in Tibetan Buddhism. The faux Panchen Lama is Gyaltsen Norbu, son of a Tibetan Communist Party official, who was appointed to the position by Beijing in 1995 a few weeks after the legitimate tulku, Gendu Choekyi Nyima, and his family disappeared. Both boys were six years old at the time.
Gyaltsen Norbu lives in Beijing, and his visit to Tibet is a rare event. Xinhua tells us the pretender led a prayer service in Jokhang Temple in Lhasa and was greeted by lamas bearing incense and silk scarves.
Beijing can be reasonably certain that no monk of Jokhang would disrupt the ceremonies, since most of the monks were removed for "re-education" during the summer of 2008. Once the Beijing Olympics were over, monks who did not have families in Lhasa were not allowed to return but were sent to their home provinces. The few hundred monks remaining in Lhasa's monasteries -- which are vast complexes that housed thousands of monks in the past -- are approved by government.
One of the critical responsibilities of the Panchen Lama is to identify reborn Dalai Lamas and act as regent while the Dalai Lamas are children. It's beyond question that Beijing is preparing for the death of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, and Gyaltsen Norbu is an important part of their plans. Their Boy is being puffed up so that he becomes the public face of Tibetan Buddhism when His Holiness dies. Beijing must also expect the world will recognize whatever boy Gyaltsen Norbu is ordered to choose as the 15th Dalai Lama.
The popularity of His Holiness the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, must worry Beijing, however. Many Tibetans hope the Karmapa will be able to assume a leadership role and hold Tibetan Buddhism together after the 14th Dalai Lama is gone. Beijing was no doubt behind India's refusal to allow the Karmapa to travel to Europe this summer.
The faux lama often appears in public with party officials to praise Chinese rule over Tibet. He recently was appointed to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.
Asia Sentinel has a good background article on the Panchen Lama situation. The article describes how the governor of Tibet recently said the actual Panchen Lama, now 20, is living in Tibet with his family. "Presumably much as the famed last Emperor Pu Yi ended up working as a gardener in the Beijing Botanical Gardens," the Asia Sentinel says. However, the government remains extremely vague about Gendu Choekyi Nyima, and I still think it is unlikely the boy and his family are still alive.
There are so many issues with this post that I’ve had to respond with a full-length blog post.
Suffice to say here, though, the issues revolve around the fact that we’re talking about political issues here as opposed to Buddhist issues, and the Buddhist offices of the Panchen and Dalai Lamas in no way encumbers anyone to recognize them as such, regardless of who appointed them and how.
Mumon — Maintaining the unbroken lineages of tulkus is critically important to the religious practices and observances of Tibetan Buddhism, whether you (or I) personally agree with the Tibetan perspective on rebirth or not. Breaking a lineage has huge repercussions in Tibetan Buddhism.
Barbara,
Thanks for your comment & visit to my blog; I think it’s important to have this discussion in Western Buddhism.
I’m also looking at it in the context of a guy who’s been negotiating various things related to the business of my company (albeit of a technical nature) for over two decades. There’s an art and a skill to doing negotiation, and to me, there is simply no reason why all parties involved – and that includes the Chinese – could get what’s needed here. But there are reasons why that is not happening, and as they say over there, it takes two hands to clap.
Yes. And now are you going to tell us that the wise and patient Chinese have tried oh, so hard to negotiate with that obstinate, unbendable Dalai Lama? Because I want you to think very hard before you tell us that. And may I point out that you have a very bad habit of imposing your own pet issues onto blog posts that are about something else entirely.
The issue in the post is not the negotiations over autonomy for Tibet, which I take it is what you want to talk about. But you will have to take that discussion elsewhere, because that’s mostly a separate issue and I don’t want the comment thread highjacked.
The post is about the Chinese government’s interference in the lineages of the tulkus. This is a critical issue for Tibetan Buddhism, because as Tibetans understand it if the lineages are broken the teachings can no longer be correctly transmitted to new generations. If the lineages are broken, Tibetans will have to abandon large parts of their practices that go back centuries. For Tibetan Buddhism, this is not a political issue, but a religious issue.
The tulku situation is a small part of the autonomy negotiations, of course, but the Chinese interference in identifying the rebirths of high lamas impacts Tibetan Buddhism all over the globe.
It has not been uncommon, in fact I’d say it is basic operating procedure, for the Chinese government to do things such as putting government agent monks inside each monastery and parading the Tibetan culture for tourists and the world for the sole benefit of the Chinese regime. I feel that the Chinese are doing just about everything in their power to neuter Tibetan Buddhism in China, particularly in the Tibet providence because they see it as a threat. Them breaking the lineage is most definitely par for the course, and while they think it will strengthen their hold over the region. It just makes them look like the big bullies they are, and its a slap in the face to all Tibetan followers around the world.
Thanks for claifying the point of your post. To be honest, I thought the point of your post was something else to which I responded.
I have responded to the tulku issue on my blog; suffice to say here is if it is so important means will emerge to address it.
It’s what Avolokitesvara does.
P.S. As I write this CCTV9 is having this news special including a tutorial on Buddhism that could have been done by Karen Armstrong.
I have responded to the tulku issue on my blog; suffice to say here is if it is so important means will emerge to address it.
It’s what Avolokitesvara does.
Sometimes Avalokiteshvara manifests as crabby westerners calling out the government of China for interfering with Tibetan Buddhism.
Update: Although, come to think of it, Samantabhadra or maybe Manjusri would more likely manifest as crabby westerners calling out the government of China, possibly in some wrathful form.
Aren’t people forgetting that the 14th Dalia Lama was predicted to be the LAST one for centuries already?
I have never heard of any such prediction and strongly suspect it’s just a rumor. The current Dalai Lama has said he has considered not coming back, which may be what’s confusing you, but he has also said he might choose a successor before he dies and also that the next Dalai Lama might be a girl.
On a plus points, the Chinese Government protect the Tibetan Buddhist legacy that the Talibans would have wiped out from the surface of this world.
Not a plus. There’s close to zero chance the Taliban would ever have made it into Tibet.
I was doing some research on Buddhist spirituality when I have found your blog. I love your content and I feel your compassion. I am just back from Tibet and our guide told us that when the Chinese faux Lama comes to Lhasa, the roads are lined up with Chinese soldiers standing shoulder to shoulder along all the streets he and his convoy travels. All the traffic in the city is diverted miles away from wherever he goes. “Why so much security if he is so loved!?” our Tibetan guide asked rhetorically.
“I am just back from Tibet and our guide told us that when the Chinese faux Lama comes to Lhasa, the roads are lined up with Chinese soldiers standing shoulder to shoulder along all the streets he and his convoy travels. All the traffic in the city is diverted miles away from wherever he goes. “Why so much security if he is so loved!?” our Tibetan guide asked rhetorically.”
I’m not sure if you are alluding to something , or just quoting the tour guide. But….
-the chinese government spends tens of billions of yuan in public security related to censorship/web monitoring/related issues
-even after multiple worker strikes occurred, the government ordered media restrictions on what cannot be publicly discussed reported (see http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2010/06/latest-directives-from-the-ministry-of-truth-may-27-may-30-2010/)
-here is an interesting story about the government openly discussing how it altered photographs of astronaut Yang Liwei who had a blood nose from returning from the atmosphere. the government dislikes the fact there was extremely faulty design involved that almost killed the astronaut, so they “cleaned up” his picture to make everything look perfect! http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2010/06/xia-lin-%E5%A4%8F%E6%9E%97-xinhua-deputy-chief-editor-reveals-secret-details-of-old-news-stories/
-in specific regard to Tibet… let’s just look at the so-called open media tour after the March 2008 protests/Lhasa riot. there is the world famous scene of monks, breaking away from their holding area, to speak candidly in front of taiwanese news reporter that most of the people in the area are fakes, even monks are not monks but on the payroll just to make everything look “harmonious”. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnBkD_1N1QE&feature=related
- last but not least, do you recall the famous (but now it’s obviously quite old) picture from the Great Leap Forward that was printed in Renminribao that showed children jumping on ENORMOUS piles of crops, and the propaganda videos that showed peasants harvesting TREMENDOUS yields that their piles were many times taller than them. But in reality, it is estimated no less than 20-30 million peasants died of starvation at this very time, it was all a cover-up, and everything was done at all levels to make everything look harmonious and prosperous and the government was still always right….
So I would definitely doubt a government with this kind of track record.
“I am just back from Tibet and our guide told us that when the Chinese faux Lama comes to Lhasa, the roads are lined up with Chinese soldiers standing shoulder to shoulder along all the streets he and his convoy travels. All the traffic in the city is diverted miles away from wherever he goes. “Why so much security if he is so loved!?” our Tibetan guide asked rhetorically.”
I’m not sure if you are alluding to something , or just quoting the tour guide. But….
-the chinese government spends tens of billions of yuan in public security related to censorship/web monitoring/related issues
-even after multiple worker strikes occurred, the government ordered media restrictions on what cannot be publicly discussed reported (see chinadigital times website 2010.06
-here is an interesting story about the government openly discussing how it altered photographs of astronaut Yang Liwei who had a blood nose from returning from the atmosphere. the government dislikes the fact there was extremely faulty design involved that almost killed the astronaut, so they “cleaned up” his picture to make everything look perfect!
(china digital times website 2010/06)
-in specific regard to Tibet… let’s just look at the so-called open media tour after the March 2008 protests/Lhasa riot. there is the world famous scene of monks, breaking away from their holding area, to speak candidly in front of taiwanese news reporter that most of the people in the area are fakes, even monks are not monks but on the payroll just to make everything look “harmonious”. (al jazera had a report on this on youtube)
- last but not least, do you recall the famous (but now it’s obviously quite old) picture from the Great Leap Forward that was printed in Renminribao that showed children jumping on ENORMOUS piles of crops, and the propaganda videos that showed peasants harvesting TREMENDOUS yields that their piles were many times taller than them. But in reality, it is estimated no less than 20-30 million peasants died of starvation at this very time, it was all a cover-up, and everything was done at all levels to make everything look harmonious and prosperous and the government was still always right….
(the book, Hungry Ghosts, focuses on this time period including the propaganda efforts)
So I would definitely doubt a government with this kind of track record.
Learn the Tibetan national anthem, goto Tibet, walk up to a guard, they are EZ to spot. They are in pairs on every corner. Sing. Thats my plan. As an American mabe 3 hours in the clink. For a Tibetan, 30 years.