“No one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter,” the Dalai Lama said in a statement.
The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, had previously suggested — first in 1969 and again in 2011 — that the continuation of the institution would be reviewed in consultation with senior Buddhist leaders and the Tibetan public.
The confirmation comes just days before his 90th birthday on July 6, amid anticipation from Tibetans inside and outside Tibet, as well as followers from the Himalayan region, mainland China, and other parts of the world who have written to him about the future of the Dalai Lama.
He also confirmed that his office will follow the traditional Tibetan search and recognition process in consultation with heads of the Tibetan Buddhist traditions “who are linked inseparably to the lineage of the Dalai Lamas.
“There will be some kind of a framework within which we can talk about the continuation of the institution of the Dalai Lamas,” he said, addressing a gathering of thousands at his residence in Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, as official ceremonies to mark his 90th birthday began on Monday, June 30.
In his book Voice for the Voiceless, published in March 2025, the Dalai Lama stated that his successor would be born in a free country outside China.
