What did the 14th Dalai Lama declare in 2025 about a 15th Dalai Lama?

On July 2, 2025, four days before his 90th birthday, the 14th Dalai Lama publicly affirmed that the lineage of the Dalai Lama will continue after his death, confirming that there will be a 15th Dalai Lama.12

In his statement, he reiterated that the Gaden Phodrang Trust—an entity he established within his offices in India—holds the sole authority to identify and recognize his successor. He specified that this identification process will involve consultation with dharmapalas (protector deities of Tibetan Buddhism) and other authoritative lamas across various Tibetan Buddhist schools.12

This declaration serves to maintain the independence of the succession process, as it directly challenges the Chinese government’s insistence on overseeing the selection of high lamas, particularly through the use of a golden urn. The Chinese government has countered this by maintaining that the golden urn method must be used, reflecting a long-standing and acrimonious debate regarding religious autonomy and political interference in Tibetan Buddhism.13