New Delhi, 7th July 2023: The Dalai Lama, Tibet’s spiritual leader, celebrated his 88th birthday on Thursday, receiving well-wishes from people and leaders all around the world. Notably, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also contacted the Dalai Lama to express his best wishes on the occasion.
The Prime Minister tweeted, “Spoke to His Holiness @DalaiLama and conveyed heartfelt greetings to him on his 88th birthday. Wishing him a long and healthy life.”
Due to the difficult relations between Beijing and the Dalai Lama, the exchange of phone conversations and public pronouncements between the Indian Prime Minister and the Tibetan spiritual leader is of great diplomatic importance.
The Chinese government calls the Dalai Lama a “splittist,” whereas India has always highlighted the importance of both sides respecting each other’s sensitivities, interests, and concerns.
On the occasion of his birthday, the Dalai Lama, who lives in Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, sent out a video message.
He said, “Although I am just one human being in the short term, I aspire to contribute to the world peace in thought, word and deed. While in the long term I pray that everyone may reach Buddhahood, the trumpet state of Omnisense, by ascending the paths and grounds (of Bothisattvas), I rejoice that all our different religious traditions make prayers for the benefit of all.”
On July 6, 1935, the Dalai Lama was born to a farming family in Taktser, Amdo Province, northeastern Tibet.
He was two years old when he was recognised as the reincarnation of the 13th Dalai Lama, Thubten Gyatso, and was given the name Lhamo Dhondup.
The invading Chinese army put down the Tibetan national uprising in Lhasa in 1959, forcing the Dalai Lama and over 80,000 Tibetans into exile in India and nearby countries.
