The Panchen Lama is a tulku of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. Panchen Lama is one of the most important figures in the Gelug tradition, with its spiritual authority second only to Dalai Lama. Along with the council of high lamas, he is in charge of seeking out the next Dalai Lama. Panchen is a portmanteau of Pandita and Chenpo, meaning "great scholar".
Chökyi Gyalpo, also referred to by his secular name Gyaincain Norbu or Gyaltsen Norbu, is considered the 11th Panchen Lama by the government of the People's Republic of China (PRC). He is also the vice president of the Buddhist Association of China. Gyalpo is considered by some to be a proxy of the Chinese government.
Thubten Choekyi Nyima (1883–1937), often referred to as Choekyi Nyima, was the ninth Panchen Lama of Tibet.
Ngawang Lobsang Thupten Gyatso Jigdral Chokley Namgyal, abbreviated to Thubten Gyatso was the 13th Dalai Lama of Tibet, enthroned during a turbulent era and the collapse of the Qing Empire. Referred to as "the Great Thirteenth", he is also known for redeclaring Tibet's national independence, and for his reform and modernization initiatives.
Lobsang Trinley Lhündrub Chökyi Gyaltsen was the tenth Panchen Lama, officially the 10th Panchen Erdeni, of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. According to Tibetan Buddhism, Panchen Lamas are living emanations of the buddha Amitabha. He was often referred to simply as Choekyi Gyaltsen.
Thubten Zopa Rinpoche is a Nepali lama from Khumbu, the entryway to Mount Everest.
Tashi Lhunpo Monastery, founded in 1447 by the 1st Dalai Lama, is the traditional monastic seat of the Panchen Lama, and an historically and culturally important monastery in Shigatse, the second-largest city in Tibet.
Frederick Marshman Bailey was a British political officer and one of the last protagonists of The Great Game. His expeditions in Tibet and Assam Himalaya gave him many opportunities to pursue his hobbies of photography, butterfly collecting, and trophy hunting in the high Tibetan region. Over 2000 of his bird specimens were presented to the Natural History Museum, although his personal collection is now held in the American Museum of Natural History, New York. His papers and extensive photograph collections are held in the British Library, London.
The 11th Panchen Lama controversy is a dispute about the recognition of the 11th Kunsik Panchen Lama. The Panchen Lama is considered the second most important spiritual leader in Tibetan Buddhism after the Dalai Lama. Following the death of the 10th Panchen Lama, the 14th Dalai Lama recognized Gedhun Choekyi Nyima in 1995. Three days later, the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) abducted the Panchen Lama and his family. Months later, the PRC chose Gyaincain Norbu as its proxy Panchen Lama. During the traditional search process, Chadrel Rinpoche indicated to the Dalai Lama that all signs pointed to Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, while the Dalai Lamas and Panchen Lamas recognize each other's incarnations. The PRC had established its own search committee, which included Chatral Rinpoche and other monks, and used a lottery system referred to as the Golden Urn. Neither Gedhun Choekyi Nyima nor his family have been seen since the abduction. Chatral Rinpoche was arrested by Chinese authorities the day after the abduction.
Gedhun Choekyi Nyima is the Dalai Lama-appointed 11th Panchen Lama belonging to the Gelugpa school of Tibetan Buddhism. The Central Government of China rejected such appointment. The 14th Dalai Lama recognized and announced on 14 May 1995 by bypassing the Golden Urn selection process and approval process from the Central Government of China. The institutionalization of Golden Urn was to prevent such appointment by rejecting private designation based on one person's decision.
George Bogle was a Scottish adventurer and diplomat, the first to establish diplomatic relations with Tibet and to attempt recognition by the Chinese Qing dynasty. His mission is still used today as a reference point in debates between China and Tibetan independence activists.
This is a list of topics related to Tibet.
Kumbum Monastery, also called Ta'er Temple, is a Tibetan gompa in Lusar, Huangzhong County, Xining, Qinghai, China. It was founded in 1583 in a narrow valley close to the village of Lusar in the historical Tibetan region of Amdo. Its superior monastery is Drepung Monastery, immediately to the west of Lhasa. It is ranked in importance as second only to Lhasa.
Sir Charles Alfred Bell was the British Political Officer for Bhutan, Sikkim and Tibet. He was known as "British India's ambassador to Tibet" before retiring and becoming a noted tibetologist.
Sir Basil John Gould, CMG, CIE was a British Political Officer in Sikkim, Bhutan and Tibet from 1935 to 1945.
Robert Webster Ford CBE was a British radio officer who worked in Tibet in the late 1940s. He was one of the few Westerners to be appointed by the Government of Tibet in the period of de facto independence between 1912 and the year 1950 when the Chinese army marched on Chamdo. He was arrested and jailed for five years by the Chinese. In 1994, he declared that he "had the opportunity to witness and experience at first hand the reality of Tibetan independence." In 1956 he was appointed at the British Diplomatic Service and served in the Foreign Office.
Ugyen Dorji was a member of the elite Dorji family and an influential Bhutanese politician. He served as the closest adviser to Ugyen Wangchuck, the hereditary 12th Penlop of Trongsa and later 1st Druk Gyalpo. Ugyen Dorji was instrumental in advising the Penlop to aid the British Empire in its expedition to Tibet in 1904 and fostering friendly relations with the British after the Bhutan War (1864–1865). Operating from Bhutan House in Kalimpong, India, Ugyen Dorji used his position to open Bhutan to the outside world, establish Bhutan's foreign relations, and operate a lucrative trading outlet.
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir William Frederick Travers O'Connor was an Irish diplomat and officer in the British and British Indian armies. He is remembered for his travels in Asia, cartography, study and publication of local cultures and language, his actions on the Younghusband expedition to Tibet, Royal Geographic Society council member, member of the Royal Automobile Club and for his work negotiating and signing the Nepal–Britain Treaty of 1923.
Chadrel Rinpoche, also known as his dharma name Jampa Trinley, is a Gelug lama of Tibetan Buddhism. In 1954, he joined the Tashilhunpo Monastery at the age of 15. He was a close disciple of Choekyi Gyaltsen, the 10th Panchen Lama. Later, he became the khenpo of the Tashilhunpo Monastery. Chadrel Rinpoche was instructed to lead the Chinese efforts to install a substitute 11th Panchen Lama, but he instead aided efforts to locate the authentic reincarnation, and to recognize Gedhun Choekyi Nyima in 1995. As a result, he was arrested, imprisoned, the held under house arrest until his reported death from a suspicious poisoning in 2011. He was also a Member of the 7th and 8th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).
