China’s Panchen asked Tibetans to be patriotic during Qinghai visit

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The Chinese appointed 11th Panchen Lama. (Photo courtesy: ImagineChina)
The Chinese appointed 11th Panchen Lama. (Photo courtesy: ImagineChina)

(TibetanReview.net, Jul31, 2017) – China said Jul 26 that Gyaltsen Norbu, its so-called 11th Panchen Lama of Tibet, had taken part in a series of religious and social activities during a visit to Qinghai Province from Jul 18 to 24.

The Pachen Lama, Tibet’s second most prominent religious figure, traditionally lives in the Tashi Lhunpo Monastery in Tibet. But Gyaltsen Norbu, appointed by China after it took away and rendered disappeared in 1995 the Pachen Lama recognized by Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, lives in Beijing and is taken on occasional visits to Tibetan areas.

During the latest visit, Gyaltsen Norbu “went to monasteries, performed religious rites, gave sermons, chanted mantras and blessed believers,” reported China’s official Xinhua news agency Jul 26.

He was reported to have asked monks and nuns at the Tibetan Buddhism College of Qinghai “to be patriotic and contribute to prosperity, national unity and social harmony”.

And at a meeting with senior Buddhists, apparently at the college, he was reported to have spoken highly of their contribution to harmony and stability in religious areas, and to have called on them to “play a greater role in preserving national unity, and promoting Tibetan Buddhism in a socialist society.”

Gyaltsen Norbu as the Chinese government appointed Panchen Lama is a vice-president of the Buddhist Association of China and a member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, the country’s top political advisory body.

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