Dalai Lama Confirms Succession
Letter reaffirms that the Gaden Phodrang Trust has the sole authority to recognise the reincarnation of future Dalai Lamas.
On 2 July 2025, a statement released by the Office of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama confirmed that the institution of the Dalai Lama will continue into the future. It further reaffirmed that the Gaden Phodrang Trust, the foundation created by the 14th Dalai Lama, “has sole authority to recognise the future reincarnation; no one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter.”
The Dalai Lama stated that, although he has had very limited public discussions around his reincarnation over the past 14 years – when he last made a major statement about the issue of succession – he has received correspondence from around the world urging that the institution of the Dalai Lama continue. In particular, he highlighted the messages that he received from Tibetans inside Tibet, despite the strict and severe control on communications that they face.
Statement issued by His Holiness 14th Dalai Lama regarding his succession in original Tibetan. Source: https://www.gyalwarinpoche.com/news/2025/7-2
The process of reincarnation and identification of future Dalai Lamas will follow the guidelines set out in his September 2011 statement. Responsibility for the recognition of future Dalai Lamas will rest exclusively with the Gaden Phodrang Trust, in consultation with heads of Buddhist traditions and the reliable oath-bound Dharma Protectors who are linked inseparably to the lineage of Dalai Lamas. This will be done in accordance with past tradition.
This statement comes shortly before the 14th Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday on 6 July 2025, as a week of celebrations, conferences, and prayer sweeps across the town of Dharamsala, India, where the Dalai Lama lives in exile.
