India’s explicit endorsement of the Dalai Lama’s announcement on the naming of his own successor marks a turning point ~ not just in the spiritual saga of Tibetan Buddhism, but in the geopolitics of Asia. For decades, New Delhi has walked a careful line on Tibet, offering asylum while avoiding overt political statements that might provoke Beijing.

That caution has now shifted. By publicly affirming that only the Dalai Lama and his institution ~ the Gaden Phodrang Trust ~ hold the legitimacy to recognise his reincarnation, India has contradicted China’s long-held stance. In doing so, it has not merely backed a religious process, but tacitly recognised Tibetan spiritual sovereignty ~ a concept Beijing has spent decades trying to erase. The Chinese Communist Party has consistently claimed that it alone has the authority to name the next Dalai Lama, citing archaic imperial traditions. But those claims have always rung........

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