Author: John Powers, ANU

During a visit to Tibet in 2003, I saw pilgrims from eastern parts of the region approach a vendor in Lhasa whose sign proclaimed that he was selling photos of the Panchen Lama, the second most influential reincarnation in Tibetan Buddhism after the Dalai Lama. A pilgrim picked one up and then contemptuously tossed it on the ground, saying, ‘It’s the fake one.’

This incident highlights the crisis of legitimacy facing the PRC’s designated Panchen Lama, Gyaltsen Norbu. Read more…