There was only one [***] lama left in the small scripture hall, and his mood was a little calmer.

The words of the Kalun just now were still ringing in his ears. He knew that this time he was facing an unprecedented test, and that his own fate, the rise and fall of Tibetan Buddhism, and the future of Tibetan Province would all depend on his decision.

The pale yellow butter lamp flame was gently flickering, and in front of the lama's eyes, scenes of his own gods and men unconsciously appeared......

His home is the small village of Langdun in the Dabu region of southeast Lhasa, which is a beautiful place surrounded by beautiful mountains and rivers. According to his mother, on May 5, the fifteenth year of the fire rat (the second year of Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty) in the fifteenth "Rao Hui" of the Tibetan calendar, his mother gave birth to him when the morning sun had just risen from the mountain. Neither his parents nor the people in the village could have imagined that he, an ordinary peasant boy, would become a god revered by millions of people on the Tibetan Plateau in a few months.

More than a year before he was born, that is, on March 20, the year of the wooden pig (the first year of Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty) of the 14th "Rao Hui" of the Tibetan calendar, the 12th [***] Chenglie Gyatso, who was only 20 years old, returned to the Potala Palace after traveling abroad, and suddenly died violently in the palace. According to the old practice, the Guangxu Emperor of the Qing Dynasty ordered the search for the reincarnation of the 12th [***] Lama, the 13th [***] Lama. And so the Kashag got busy.

The search for the reincarnation of the 12th [***] Lama, the 13th [***] Lama, is a major event in both the Buddhist and lay worlds in Tibetan Province, and the Kashag and living Buddhas everywhere attach great importance to it. The Kashag specially asked the 8th Panchen Lama in Khatse to ask for a hexagram and ask him about the reincarnation of the 12th [***] Lama. After making a hexagram and asking for divination, Danbai Wangxiu concluded that the reincarnated spirit boy of the twelve [***] lamas had been born, and the direction of his birth should be southeast of Lhasa, but the specific situation of the reincarnated spirit child was not known. The Kashag also invited the special séance of Naijun Qujun and the séance of the Sangkite Monastery in Shannan region to the two of them, and the Kashag held a solemn séance ceremony in the main hall of the Potala Palace, and the living Buddha monks of the three major monasteries of Tibetan Province, namely Sera, Drepung and Kadan Monastery, the regent Jilong Tongshan Hutuktu and all the Kalun of the Kashag participated in the séance. After the séance, Naijun Qujun said that the father of the reincarnated spirit child of the 12 [***] lamas, the 13th [***] lamas, was named Gongga, and his mother should be called Dolma. Men should be sent to the west of the archery furnace to search. Since the Panchen Lama and the other three all said this, after the séance, the Kashag began to follow the old practice of further searching for the exact place of birth and characteristics of the reincarnated spirit child from two paths. On the one hand, the Kashag sent a number of eminent monks and officials to visit various places in Houzang and Xikang, and on the other hand, he sent a former khenpo to the Lake of Our Lady in the Qukegyal region of eastern Lhasa, and threw special items such as hata and treasure vases into the lake. After praying and chanting, look at the image of the birthplace of the spirit child on the lake in the direction of the reincarnation of the 12th [***]. Surprisingly, the khenpo saw a beautiful village in the reflection of the lake, and he thought that God had appeared and that the village was undoubtedly the birthplace of the spirit child. So, he summoned the local magistrate and asked him about the situation. The magistrate told him that he had heard that in the village of Lang Dun in Dab, a woman named Lobsang Dolma had given birth to a boy on the 5th of May in the year of the Fire Rat, and the father of the child seemed to be Gongga Rinchen. The khenpo was secretly overjoyed, and he took his entourage to the village of Langdun to secretly inquire about the family's situation. When he arrived at Langton, he found that the image of the village was the same as that he had seen in the Lake of Our Lady, and that the names of the child's parents happened to match what Najun had said in his hexagram, so he went to the house. When the group saw the extraordinary bearing of the child who was only more than a year old, they were amazed. They then returned to Lhasa and reported to the Kashag what they had seen on their trip. The Kashag then sent a Kalon, the Great Khenpo, to Langdun. Came to this house. They put together some of the things that the Twelfth [***] Lama had used during his lifetime and other items, and then they put the child in front of the pile, and the child actually grabbed a vial from the pile of things that the Twelfth [***] Lama used during his lifetime. Everyone was shocked, because according to the rules of Tibetan Buddhism, if a baby takes something from a [***] lama in a previous life, it proves that he is the reincarnation of a [***] lama in a previous life. They stayed in the village for several days, learned about the child, and told the child's parents to take care of the child before leaving Langdon.

After returning to Lhasa, they reported everything they had seen and heard during their trip to the Kashag. The Kashag and the regent summoned all the representatives of the Kalun and the three major monasteries and asked Nagjunqu to séance again and recognize the child as the reincarnation of the 12th [***] Lama. Then, he told the Panchen Lama about the situation, and the Panchen replied that he also believed that this child was the reincarnation of the 12th [***] Lama.

After a detailed search, the Kashag finally determined that Lang Dun's child was the reincarnation of the 12th [***] Lama.

According to the old system of the Qing Dynasty, after the death of the [***] lama in the previous life, three spirit children should be found, and the real reincarnated spirit children should be selected from the three spirit children through the golden vase given by Emperor Qianlong. However, because there were no similar spiritual children in other places, the 8th Panchen Lama, the regent, the three major monasteries, and all the monks and lay officials of the Tashilhunpo Monastery where the Panchen Lama was located jointly submitted a petition to the Qing minister in Tibet, asking for exemption from casting lots in the golden vase. The minister in Tibet did not dare to call the shots, so he asked the Guangxu Emperor. Emperor Guangxu issued an edict in March 1877 confirming that the child was the reincarnation of the 12th [***] Lama.

On October 20, 1877, the local government of Tibetan Province sent a large number of personnel to Langdun to welcome him to Lhasa. He, a veritable thirteenth [***] lama, knelt to the east, and the Qing minister in Tibet read in front of him the holy decree of the Guangxu Emperor approving his succession as the thirteenth [***] lama. On June 3, 1879, he held a grand enthronement ceremony at the Potala Palace in Lhasa. The Qing ministers stationed in Tibet, the regent, Kalun, the heads of various places, the heads of the 39 Tibetan tribes before and after, and the guests of Zhe Mengxiong were all present to congratulate the people, and the flow of people in Lhasa was unprecedented.

After the enthronement ceremony, he began to study the Buddhist scriptures. At this time, the situation in Tibetan Province began to change, and after two foreign invasions by British troops, he subsequently faced civil strife. According to the old practice, the [***] lamas of all dynasties began to govern each time they reached the age of eighteen, and before that, the regent or minister was in charge. However, since the 9th [***] lama, several [***] lamas have died when they are minors, and the power of Tibetan province is effectively in the hands of the regent. After he entered the Potala Palace, power was in the hands of the regent Timuhutuktu. When he was nineteen years old, Emperor Guangxu ordered him to govern in person, but he was studying the scriptures at the time, so he politely excused himself.

After he was ordained as a bhikshu when he was twenty years old, the officials of the three major monasteries and the Kashag were dissatisfied with the regent Timukhuktu, and under the pretext of "divine will", they demanded that the regent Dimukhutuktu resign and let him take charge of the government. The regent Timuhutuktu had no choice but to agree. On the eighth day of August of that year, a grand pro-government ceremony was held in the main hall of Sisi Phuntsok in the Potala Palace.

After he came to power, he did not fully grasp the power. He knows better than anyone the intricacies of Tibetan politics. He knew the intensity of the power struggle within Tibetan Province from the historical facts of the ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth [***] lamas who were poisoned or mysteriously died at the age of 11, 22, 18, and 20 respectively. So, he remained silent. In the fourth year after his pro-government, a "conspiracy against the 13th [***]" was revealed, and the brother of Timuhutuktu, Aubu Tseren, and others were dissatisfied with his pro-government, and attempted to kill him, supporting his brother Dimutuktu as regent. The Kashag arrested Aobu Tsering and others, and Aobu Tsering and others confessed. The regent, who had stepped down, was shocked when he heard the news, and died of a "violent illness" at the temple where he was meditating that night. From then on, the thirteenth [***] Lama really grasped the power of Tibetan Province.

At this time, the land of China has also changed dramatically.

First, the Xinhai Revolution led to the fall of the Qing Dynasty, then the establishment of the Republic of China, and then after the "Battle of Ganning" and the invasion of Yuben, the short-lived "Chinese Empire" was established, and after the "rebuilding of the republic", the Republic of China was restored, followed by the second invasion of Yuben......

The ongoing political turmoil in China has made Tibetan province precarious.

The history of the British approaching the province of Tibet has always stimulated the nerves of the 13th [***] Lama from time to time.

As early as the year of the death of the 7th [***] Lama, that is, in the thirteenth year of the Tibetan calendar, a British expeditionary force of the British East India Company finally took control of the Indian subcontinent after defeating the Indian army led by the vice king of the Mughal kingdom of India. The legendary Qing Empire's Tibetan province north of the Himalayas became another coveted target of the British Empire. Initially, in the 39th year of Qianlong, the East India Company sent the 22-year-old Bogle into Tibet to meet the 6th Panchen Lama in Yukhase, but the then 8th [***] Lama and the regent refused his request to go to Lhasa, so that Bogle returned in vain. In the sixteenth year of Jiaqing in the Qing Dynasty, Yingyi Manning went to Lhasa, and the Ninth [***] Lama received him, but did not give the British any chance. But it didn't take long for that to change quietly. In 1814, the British Empire took advantage of the dispute between the Gurkha and the Gurkha to send troops to help the Gurkha, and the Gurkha fought back and drove the British and Indian troops out of the country. The following year, the British and Indian troops attacked again, and the Gurkha asked the Qing Dynasty for help, but the Qing Dynasty minister in Tibet not only did not send troops to rescue, but rebuked the Gurkhas, and in the face of the invaders' army, the Gurkha authorities had no choice but to sue for peace with the British colonists. After the war, the British colonists opened the window to covet the Tibetan province.

A year before he was born, the British took advantage of Margaret's murder in Yunnan to force the Qing Dynasty to sign the Treaty of Yantai, which stipulated that the British could enter Tibet from Sichuan and Qinghai. In the sixth year of Guangxu, that is, when he was five years old, the British tried to use the treaty to enter Tibet from Sichuan, and the Tibetan armed forces in Xikang Batang spontaneously blocked him. In the 11th year of Guangxu, the British sent Marcolan from Zhe Mengxiong into Tibet, but he was still prevented from returning.

One of the things I remember most vividly is that when he was 12 years old, the British clashed with Tibetan Province, and the Tibetan army entered the Qing Dynasty vassal state of Zhe Mengxiong, and the British and Indian authorities sent an army armed with modern guns to invade Zhe Mengxiong. The Qing Dynasty was weak and incompetent, and instead of rebuking the aggressive actions of the British and Indian authorities, it demanded that the Tibetan army withdraw from its own territory, Zhemengxiong. He and the Kashag, with the support of Wen Shuo, the Qing minister in Tibet, decided to fight against the Anglo-Indian army. The Qing Dynasty political axe ordered Wen Shuo to be dismissed. However, he and the Kashag still ignored the opposition of the Qing government axe and ordered the Tibetan army to engage in a fierce battle with the British and Indian troops, but the Tibetan army was defeated due to the backward weapons and equipment. When the Tibetan army passed through Lhasa, he was only 12 years old and personally touched the head of each soldier to bless him, and at the same time, he also convened the lamas in the Potala Palace to chant sutras, cursing the defeat of the British and Indian armies. In June of that year, 3,000 Tibetan troops counterattacked the British and Indian forces, but were again defeated. In October, more than 10,000 Tibetan troops counterattacked the British and Indian troops again, and the Tibetan troops armed with broadswords and spears were bombarded by the British and Indian cannons, suffered heavy casualties, and were forced to retreat to Tibetan Province. The gates of Tibetan Province were opened with bayonets and artillery, and the First War of Resistance against Britain was thus defeated.

Because the situation in Tibetan Province had become precarious, in the face of the aggressive attitude of the British and Indian authorities and the weakness of the Qing Dynasty, [***] felt that the peril of Tibetan Province was imminent, at this time, the Tsarist Russian political axe expressed friendship to him and Tibetan Province, and after being led by Delzhi, a Tibetan delegation visited Moscow and was personally received by Tsar Nicholas II, and the relationship between the two sides became closer.

In 1902, more than 200 British and Indian troops invaded Tibet Province in the name of checking the border, and Tsarist Russia made a "protest" to the British and Indian authorities.

It is well known that the outbreak of that war was largely due to the British fear that the Tibetan provinces would lean towards Tsarist Russia. Because the British had already included Tibet Province in their sphere of influence, he and the Kashag and the Qing court saw this very clearly. As the leader of the Tibetan province of theocracy, the lama is aware of his great responsibility. Sometimes, he also secretly complained that he grew up in this eventful autumn and couldn't be a prosperous peace god king. For the invasion of the British and Indian forces, he especially complained about the Qing emperor. As a corner of the Qing Dynasty, Tibet Province could not enjoy the blessings of the Qing Dynasty.

The Qing Dynasty was weak, and it was impossible for Tibetan Province to expect to be protected by the Qing Dynasty. As a god-king, he was deeply worried about the future of Tibetan Province. He once flashed the thought that one day he would lead Tibetan Province away from the Qing Dynasty, but it was only a flash of thought. Separated from the Qing Dynasty, how can the thousand-year-old flesh-and-blood relationship be severed, and who does Tibetan Province rely on? Although he was close to Tsarist Russia, it was only to contain the British invasion. Once the province leaves China, Britain will inevitably tear the province to pieces. His own status, and the future of Tibetan Buddhism, will be wiped out.

Fortunately, after the end of the First World War, China's political situation finally stabilized, not only successfully defeated the second invasion of Yuben, but also defeated the "red" Russia, recovered the homeland, expanded the territory, and the country reached its heyday since modern times.

In the years that followed, China was restored to a strong and stable country, and the economy recovered in an all-round way, bringing unprecedented prosperity to Tibetan Province. As the central government strengthened the construction of transportation to Tibetan Province, commodities from the interior continued to pour into Tibet, and the output of Tibetan land was also exported to the surrounding provinces, and the economy of Tibetan Province also developed at an unprecedented speed.

But despite this, [***] knows that his troubles are no less than before.

While promoting the economic development of Tibetan Province, the Chinese political axe also strengthened its control over Tibetan Province, not only increasing the number of Han troops stationed in Tibetan areas, but also in the name of helping to improve the Tibetan army's weaponry and training, with the intention of seizing the command of the Tibetan army.

Although the "Qinghai-Tibet Railway", which broke ground last year, will further promote exchanges between Tibet and Chinese mainland, which is inaccessible, in the eyes of [***] and others, the military significance of this railway is far greater than its economic significance.

Although the Chinese political axe has always been very good to itself, not only has a large number of financial rewards every year, but also has always supported the development of Tibetan Buddhist culture, and last year also sent people to help repair the Potala Palace, sorting out Tibetan Buddhist literature and cultural relics, but the close attitude of the central political axe, still can not make [***] feel truly at ease.

What he feared most was a policy that the central government might adopt against Tibetan Province -- that is, to abolish the centuries-old serfdom in Tibetan Province!

Since the fall of the Qing Dynasty and the establishment of the Republic of China, [***] has been worried about the arrival of this day, although at that time, [***] was a bit unfounded, but later facts have proved that [***] worries are not unnecessary.

The concepts of "science," "boiling," and "freedom" advocated by Chinese mainland are all in conflict with the feudal regime of "theocracy" in Tibetan Province!

The mere spread of these ideas in Tibet has already constituted a threat to the theocracy of Tibetan provinces!

At this time, the rhythm of a familiar song suddenly appeared in the mind of the [***] lama.

“…… O white clouds in the sky, where are you going to drift freely? The wind is with you, how I envy you. But I can only look at you from afar......"

“…… Although there is no temple on the mountain, it is so beautiful, but the beautiful scenery is no longer ......"

“…… The mirror-like West Sea, although there is no dragon in the sea, but the turquoise sea water is enough for me to like, and the sun in the east, although it is golden, but the warmth it gives me cannot be by my side forever......"

“…… O beast on the mountain, how free and easy, how enviable, O man under the mountain, but there is no ...... without a master."

(To be continued)