Dalai Lama today announces that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue after him (ANI)

The Dalai Lama has said today that his institution will carry on after him, with the fateful choice of his heir solely in the hands of “free Tibetans.” His message, issued on Tuesday, comes just ahead of his 90th birthday and breaks much-awaited news about the destiny of his spiritual legacy.

“I am confirming that the institution of the Dalai Lama will persist,” His Holiness added, reaffirming that the Gaden Phodrang Trust alone has “sole authority to recognize the future reincarnation; no one else has any such authority to interfere in this.”

Statement Affirming the Continuation of the Institution of Dalai Lama

(Translated from the original Tibetan)

On 24 September 2011, at a meeting of the heads of Tibetan spiritual traditions, I made a statement to fellow Tibetans in and outside Tibet, followers of Tibetan… pic.twitter.com/VqtBUH9yDm — Dalai Lama (@DalaiLama) July 2, 2025

The Dalai Lama, who celebrates his 90th birthday Sunday, has spent nearly six decades in exile in India after a Tibetan rebellion against Chinese rule failed in 1959. He has before now said he would issue guidance on his succession around this birthday milestone. Multi-day celebrations are ongoing in Dharamshala, where the Tibetan government-in-exile is located.

Successor From The ‘Free World’

The question of succession to the Dalai Lama is a sensitive political matter, especially with China, which considers him to be a separatist and has insisted that it would not recognize any successor named in exile. The Dalai Lama has, however, increasingly indicated that his successor would come from the exiled Tibetan community, most probably in India.

In a book released this year, the Dalai Lama went as far as to say out loud that his next incarnation would be born in the “free world” – outside China’s hold on Tibet. “As the main reason for a reincarnation is to continue the work of the previous one, the new Dalai Lama will be born in the free world so that the traditional task of the Dalai Lama. will be carried on,” he wrote. This endeavor encompasses being the representative of worldwide compassion, the spiritual authority of Tibetan Buddhism, and the icon representing the hopes of the Tibetan people.

Earlier this week, the religious leader of Tibetan Buddhists had also signaled a model for the institution’s continuation. “The remainder of my life I will keep for the benefit of others, to the extent possible, as wide as possible. There must be some kind of a model under which we can discuss the continuity of the institution of the Dalai Lamas,” he said.

The 14th Dalai Lama is the current leader in a succession where every leader is said to be the reincarnation of the last. His statement clears the path ahead, making Tibetan autonomy a foregone conclusion that China will be required to observe and respond to cautiously.

Renewed Engagement With Tibetan Movement

The Dalai Lama’s statement also comes in the backdrop of fresh interaction between the Narendra Modi government and the Tibetan cause, as Indian-China relations worsened after Chinese aggression in 2020. Top Indian politicians, such as Union Minister Kiren Rijiju and Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Pema Khandu, have been conspicuous in attendance at current birthday celebrations in Dharamshala, projecting India’s ongoing backing.

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