Dalai Lama, a global symbol of Tibetan culture and resistance, turns 90

DHARAMSHALA, India — The Dalai Lama turned 90 on Sunday surrounded by thousands of followers, who thronged the Himalayan town of Dharamshala, where the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism has been living in exile since fleeing Chinese rule in Tibet in 1959.

Sitting before a packed audience that included hundreds of red-robed monks and nuns who braved incessant rain to see him, he said: “When I look back on my life, I see that I have not wasted it at all.”

“I live my life in the service of other sentient beings,” he added.

Dressed in a traditional robe and a flowing yellow wrap, the Dalai Lama was escorted to the temple courtyard by a group of monks, as Tibetan artists beat drums and played bagpipes while senior lamas struck cymbals in his honor. The head of the democratically elected Tibetan government-in-exile, Penpa Tsering, raised the Tibetan flag as the musicians played the Tibetan anthem.

Recognized worldwide in his red robes and wide smile, Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, describes himself as a “simple Buddhist monk.” But millions of Tibetan Buddhists worship him as living manifestations of Chenrezig, the Buddhist god of compassion.

The birthday party capped a week of celebrations, during which the Nobel Peace Prize winner said he plans to reincarnate after his death, ending years of speculation that he might be the last person to hold the role. He also said that the next Dalai Lama should be and recognized as per past Buddhist traditions.

On Saturday, the Dalai Lama said he hoped to live until the age of 130.

In the past, the Dalai Lama has said his successor will be born in the “free world” — outside China. Many exiled Tibetans, however, fear China will name its own successor to the Dalai Lama to bolster control over Tibet, a territory it poured troops into in 1950 and has ruled ever since.

China, which views the Dalai Lama as a separatist, has repeatedly said that it alone has the authority to approve the next spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism. It also says it will reject anyone chosen without Beijing’s consent.

Dignitaries including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, sent their wishes to the Tibetan leader.

Modi said the Dalai Lama has “been an enduring symbol of love, compassion, patience and moral discipline,” while Rubio said the Buddhist spiritual leader “continues to inspire people by embodying a message of unity, peace and compassion.”

The celebration was also attended by hundreds of followers from around the world including Hollywood movie star Richard Gere.

"He is the most extraordinary man to ever walk on this planet," said Gere, as the crowd broke into a rapturous applause.

In a birthday message on his website on Saturday, the Dalai Lama reiterated that he was “just a simple Buddhist monk” and that he will “continue to focus on my commitments of promoting human values religious harmony.”

Celebrations were also held in Kathmandu, Nepal, where hundreds of Tibetan refugees, monks and foreign diplomats marked the day with Buddhist prayers, chanting and dances.

The Dalai Lama was thrust onto the Tibetan throne in 1937. Soon after, Chinese troops swept into his homeland in the 1950s and crushed a failed uprising, forcing him to escape with thousands of his followers to India where he established a government in exile.

Since then, he has spent more than seven decades in exile and sustained a nation in exile by managing to build a community that’s kept the Tibetan culture and identity alive. The Dalai Lama has also become one of the world’s most recognizable figures while leading a Tibetan diaspora through their struggle for autonomy and opposition of China’s control of Tibet.