Beijing: China on Wednesday asserted any successor to the Dalai Lama should have its approval as the 83-year-old Tibetan spiritual leader was admitted to a hospital in India with a chest infection. According to the hospital in New Delhi, his condition was stable. Asked if China has any plans to appoint his successor, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told media in Beijing the Chinese central government has to approve the Dalai Lama’s successor chosen through the reincarnation system.
“I am not aware of the physical condition of the 14th (the present) Dalai Lama,” he said. As far as the reincarnation issue is concerned, it is clear the reincarnation is a particular inheritance system of the Tibetan Buddhism. It has fixed rituals, he said. “We have relevant regulations to respect and protect this heritage. The 14th Dalai Lama himself was recognised according to the fixed religious rituals and was approved by the then central govt. “So the reincarnations including that of the Dalai Lama should follow our national laws, regulations and religious rituals,” Lu said.
