How did Tibetan Buddhism come to find its great teachers by reincarnation?
The first Dalai Lama was never called that in his lifetime, and his own school had decided not to look for reincarnations.
▶ Start the storyBecause of an idea Tibetans developed in the Middle Ages: the tulku. A tulku is an individual recognised as the reincarnation of a previous spiritual master, a lama, and expected to be reincarnated in turn after death. The system originated in Tibet, particularly with the recognition of the second Karmapa in the 13th century. The line of the Dalai Lamas is one example.
How does a lineage find the next one? When a tulku dies, a committee of senior lamas looks for the child. They probably start with a letter left by the departed master indicating where he intends to be born again. They may also consult an oracle, follow the dreams of a prominent lama, or follow a sign such as a rainbow. The child is then brought up in a monastery under a head tutor, with few if any toys or playmates.
Where did the idea come from? The word is the Tibetan for the Sanskrit nirmāṇakāya, the "transformation body" of a Buddha, a notion found throughout Mahayana Buddhism. But the concept of a master who returns to earthly existence, the yangsi, is uniquely Tibetan, and the idea of taking a corporeal form is described as a local religious idea alien to Indian Buddhism and other forms of Buddhism such as Theravada or Zen.
Scholars disagree about why it arose. It took shape in a political vacuum after the assassination of Ralpachen, when monastic centres were building political power, and Turrell Wylie wrote that it developed primarily for political reasons. Reginald Ray replied that this misses its important religious dimensions, deeply rooted in the bodhisattva concept.
1193
The first Karmapa dies; a child is later recognised as the 2nd Karmapa
1474
Gendun Drup dies; his school had refrained from a tulku system
1487
A boy is installed at Tashilhunpo as his tulku, albeit informally
1578
The Tümed Altan Khan gives the title "Dalai Lama"
1792
Qianlong's 29-Article Ordinance covers the selection of high lamas
1995
The 14th Dalai Lama recognises Gedhun Choekyi Nyima as 11th Panchen Lama; the Chinese government names Gyaincain Norbu by Golden Urn
Political reading (Wylie)
- Developed primarily for political reasons
- Arose in a political vacuum after Ralpachen's assassination
- Monastic centres gained political power
Religious reading (Ray)
- Important ideological and religious dimensions
- Deeply rooted in the bodhisattva concept
- The political view misses its distinctive feature
Quiz me
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Recap
The tulku system began in 13th-century Tibet; scholars debate whether its roots were more political or more religious.
💡 A trick to remember it · A letter, a dream, a rainbow: clues point to a child, and a lineage, and a monastery's future, rests on the search.
Surprising fact · The title "Dalai Lama" was given by the Tümed Altan Khan in 1578, and the two earlier lamas were accorded it afterwards.
Connects to
- 🪷 Why would someone delay their own enlightenment to help others?
- 🪷 Why did Buddhism split into Theravada and Mahayana?
- Reincarnation
- Qing dynasty
- Dalai lama
Sources (2)
No source, no claim. Every fact in this lesson (27 claims) cites at least one of these.