Tibetans ponder future as Dalai Lama turns 80

8,000 GATHER TO CELEBRATE HIS BIRTHDAY AS PER LUNAR CALENDAR

The Dalai Lama marked his official 80th birthday yesterday, with prayers and celebrations at his hometown in exile, but little to show for decades of lobbying for greater Tibetan autonomy.

The Nobel laureate will be in the United States when he turns 80 on July 6, but yesterday was his official birthday according to the Tibetan lunar calendar, and he celebrated with his fans and followers in Dharamsala.

The Tibetan spiritual leader addressed fellow exiles and Indian dignitaries in the north Indian hill town where he has lived since fleeing Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule. “It’s a massive gathering here with 8,000 people and there are dignitaries from around the world who have come to be part of the day-long celebration,” Tsering Wangchuk, spokesman for the government-in-exile, said. “His holiness’s speech concluded just a little while ago ... and now he is eating lunch with the public,” Wangchuk said, adding he spoke of his teachings on universal responsibility and compassion.

Long life prayers

The event included traditional dancing and a special long life prayer for the Buddhist leader, who shows no sign of slowing down. Although he has officially given up his political role, the Dalai Lama maintains a hectic schedule of foreign travel and is due to visit Britain this month before travelling on to the US.

But his retirement from politics in 2011 was a reminder to exiled Tibetans that the man who remains the universally recognised face of the movement will not be around forever.

“The two big questions are what will happen after he’s gone and whether Tibetans inside and outside China will look to his replacement in the same way,” said Jayadeva Ranade, president of the Centre for China Analysis and Strategy in New Delhi.