Only in the Tibetan leadership does the head of government pay obeisance to, and take advice from formless deities who cannot be held accountable for what they say. In this image, the Tibetan Prime Minister Lobsang Sangay bows to Nechung. Nowhere else in the world will any democratic leader or head of state rely so heavily on an unseen being or spirit. And it seems the Tibetan leadership knows this, as is reflected in their inconsistent relationship with spirit Nechung.

The opinion piece below was sent to dorjeshugden.com for publication. We accept submissions from the public, please send in your articles to ds@dorjeshugden.com.

By: Shashi Kei

As the old adage goes, it takes two hands to clap and therefore when examining the failures of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA; based in Dharamsala, North India), it is merely due diligence to examine their closest advisors too and one of the Tibetan leadership’s closest advisors is the spirit Nechung. Nechung is the common name for the State Oracle of Tibet who takes trance of a deity Pehar and / or Pehar’s spirit-ministers.

In relying on Nechung, what we see is a totally unprecedented situation not witnessed anywhere else in the world. In this instance, a so-called democratically-elected leadership relies heavily on an undemocratically-appointed Oracle to advice, guide, shape and influence the entire community’s and government’s policies. Those with even a passing, Hollywood-induced familiarity of Tibet will be aware of their leadership’s reliance on oracles for spiritual matters like identifying candidates for the next Dalai Lama.

On the one hand, the CTA claims they are a democratic government. On the other hand, they have a designated State Oracle. No other modern democratic nation has an oracle on retainer whom they invoke as a matter of tradition, to “consult on important matters”. (Source: http://tibet.net/2017/06/kashag-invokes-state-oracle-nechung-to-offer-obeisance/)

What they will be less familiar with is the depth of reliance from the Tibetan leadership on all matters political. If people assume that the Tibetan leadership’s reliance on Nechung for political decisions is just a one-off, they could not be further from the truth. And yet, despite this immense reliance on the Nechung Oracle for both secular and spiritual advice, it has been proven time and again just what a dangerous folly it is to implement advice given by the Nechung Oracle.

The Unreliability of the Nechung Oracle

The Nechung Oracle is known for his long history of inaccurate proclamations, which include (but are not limited to):

• Prescribing the wrong medication to the 13th Dalai Lama, which hastened his passing. In his book Portrait of the Dalai Lama which documents the life of the 13th Dalai Lama, Sir Charles Bell wrote, “On this occasion, the Nechung oracle said that the Dalai Lama should take a medicine known as “the seventeen heroes for subduing colds” (chamjom pawo chupdun) and himself prepared the medicine in a cup with water. Most respondents report that the Dalai Lama refused the dose and that the state oracle literally had to pour it into his mouth. The Dalai Lama’s condition immediately deteriorated, and by noon he was unconscious. He never said another word.” Because his advice resulted in this catastrophe, the deity Nechung was flogged while taking trance in the Oracle.
• Giving disastrously wrong advice to the Tibetans during the 1904 British incursion into Tibet. When an Expeditionary Force led by Lt. Col. Sir Francis Younghusband began to advance on Central Tibet after failed negotiations, the Nechung Oracle duly proclaimed that the British Army would reach Central Tibet. He then predicted that the Tibetan army would be victorious. True to his prediction, the British did arrive in Lhasa but unlike in his prophecy, they easily defeated the poorly-equipped Tibetans. The result was the Dalai Lama fleeing Tibet’s capital city, Lhasa, along with the Nechung Oracle. Upon his return when the British had departed, the Nechung Oracle was summarily dismissed from his position as the State Oracle.
• Wrongly and dangerously advising His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama to remain in Tibet during the political turmoil of 1959. It was later discovered that there had been a plot to arrest and harm the Dalai Lama and many other religious leaders. Had Nechung’s advice been followed, it is likely that the 14th Dalai Lama would have been harmed. Instead, the Dalai Lama followed Dorje Shugden’s insistent advice that the Dalai Lama leave Tibet immediately for India. Dorje Shugden also specified the exact time and day of departure, the escape route, and also gave further instructions on what to do to ensure a successful escape. This entire incident was well-documented by the very people who accompanied the Dalai Lama on his escape into exile (see video below).

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• Time and again, Nechung has wrongly proclaimed that exiled Tibetans will return to their homeland. He issued such proclamations in 1986, 1987, 1995, 1997 and 2012. The most recent incident involved an Indian girl, Sambhavi, who traveled to Dharamsala claiming to be an incarnation of a Hindu goddess. Her parents demanded a private audience with the Dalai Lama, claiming that the girl had a special message for him. In “trance”, she warned the Dalai Lama of health concerns and also gave an optimistic prediction that Tibetans would return to Tibet in 2012. The incident was covered by Al-Jazeera news network and French Channel 5. To verify the girl’s claims, the Nechung Oracle was invoked and the deity duly concurred with the girl’s predictions. One of the Oracle’s assistants was even filmed (see video below) saying that when the Dalai Lama returned to Tibet at the appointed time, people would be so overjoyed that they would die. Instead, 2012 came and went and nothing happened.

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• Last but not least, Nechung has wrongly advised the Dalai Lama and Tibetan government to ban Dorje Shugden’s practice, the single most divisive policy of the CTA due to the large percentage of people affected (seeing that the Gelugpa is the largest Tibetan Buddhist sect). It was in 1996 that the Dalai Lama announced the worship of Dorje Shugden was banned and that his oracle, Nechung, had adviced him that the deity was a threat to his personal safety and the future of Tibet.

Given these incidents, it is unsurprising that there is so much doubt surrounding Nechung’s trances. For example, the illogical basis of the Dorje Shugden ban – that Shugden practice will harm the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan cause – has made people question the Oracle’s motivation.

When Nechung first entered into exile, he became aware of the Dalai Lama’s growing affinity with Dorje Shugden. Thus in the 1990s, he entered trance and proclaimed that if the Dalai Lama were to receive sogtae (life entrustment) of Dorje Shugden, it would anger the Buddha Palden Lhamo and would be detrimental to the cause of Tibet – never mind the fact that Palden Lhamo is enlightened and cannot be angered by anything, let alone the practice of another enlightened being like Dorje Shugden.

The Tibetan leadership, already worried about Tibet and suitably panicked by this prophecy of doom, promptly issued a ban on the practice of Dorje Shugden. In casting doubt on Dorje Shugden’s practice, the Nechung Oracle had accomplished what he wanted. Without any ‘competing’ Oracles, the whole Tibetan leadership would have to rely on only him for prophecies and advice. The Nechung Oracle would henceforth be the only Oracle issuing instructions to the Tibetan leaders. This maneuver cemented his position and job and to this day, the Oracle is kept on somewhat of a retainer – as recently pointed out by the Tibetan Member of Parliament Tenpa Yarphel, it is a well-known fact that the Oracle’s salary and Nechung Monastery’s expenses are provided for by the CTA’s Department of Religion.

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Therefore, it is not a new thing for the Nechung Oracle’s motivation to be called into question and in fact, the trances have themselves been problematic for a long time. For decades prior to the fall of Tibet, there had been doubts about exactly what deity was entering the Nechung Oracle. It is said that it was not actually the spirit Nechung entering the Oracle but a malevolent being by the name of Nyatrul. Nyatrul was a monastic official who had been brutally murdered by the Tibetan leadership, and he took a vow of revenge as he died. Since then, Nyatrul has been entering the Nechung Oracle to give inaccurate prophecies and create suffering and problems for the institution who had him killed.

That it is Nyatrul (and not Nechung) entering the Oracle is so well known that back in pre-1959 Tibet, when people heard their government was invoking Nechung, they would avoid going to the trances. They knew that Nyatrul was going to inhabit the Oracle and give inaccurate, damaging prophecies. However, if Drepung Monastery was invoking the trance, then the people would go and seek blessings. Nyatrul would not enter the Oracle at that time because it was not Drepung Monastery he wanted to seek revenge against.

Hence on all levels, it is clear that Nechung – both the deity and the Oracle – is unreliable. The clearest sign of this is the fact that he has, for many decades, given incredibly inaccurate prophecies and advice which has adversely affected the entire Tibetan population. The fact that Nechung has been proven to be unreliable is reflected in the CTA’s inconsistent relationship with both deity and oracle.

The Unreliability of the Tibetan Leadership

Up till today, Nechung is still taking trance primarily for the Tibetan leadership and the Dalai Lama. Yet throughout history, the Nechung Oracle’s relationship with the Tibetan leadership has been an unsteady, tenuous one at best. Therefore, despite this track record and Nechung’s long history of inaccurate prophecies, the fact the Tibetan leadership continue to promote his position within the government is downright illogical. It is almost as though they are setting their people up to fail, and to remain in exile as refugees in the long-term.

The hypocrisy of the leadership is staggering. On the one hand, the Tibetan leadership claims to be a modern democracy. On the other hand, they are recognized all over the world to heavily rely on oracles and deities to guide and shape their government’s policies. Those unfamiliar with the Tibetan political situation may wonder what kind of advice the Tibetan leadership receives from Nechung. The troubling answer is “everything”. Since going into exile, the Tibetan leadership has relied on Nechung to advice them on everything from the political position of Tibet, to how to deal with China, to the direction they should take for the welfare of their people.

It is one thing to rely on Nechung for spiritual advice, but to subject all Tibetans to Nechung’s political advice or force them to rely on the Buddhist tradition of oracles (when not all Tibetans are Buddhist), is downright undemocratic, unfair and unconstitutional.

It is one thing to rely on oracles for spiritual advice, but for the entire Tibetan leadership to be given political direction by unseen beings has no place in a modern democratic society. Amongst the Tibetans, there are many non-Buddhists, for example Tibetan Christians, Tibetan Muslims and Tibetan Bonpos, and all of them may not necessarily appreciate being told what to do by an unenlightened spirit. Why, therefore, are the Tibetan leadership subjecting all of their people to the prophecies of these beings? How come Tibetan Christians, Muslims and Bonpos are having their lives and their futures dictated by spirits like Nechung?

No other government in the world relies on oracles for their decision-making. Not even neighboring Bhutan, who is also Buddhist, relies on oracles for political decisions of the state. Truth be told, it may be one of the reasons why Bhutan remains independent and continues to flourish to this day.

Motivated by Money?

All of this begs the question – if Nechung is so unreliable and if his advice has not improved the Tibetan situation, and if there is no benefit in relying on him, then why even bother? The answer lies in the way in which the Tibetan government promote and talk about Nechung.

For Western audiences who appreciate the concepts of democracy, equality and political transparency, the Tibetan leadership will downplay Nechung’s role in their decision-making process. This is in stark contrast to their treatment of Nechung in the early days of their time in exile. Back then, the CTA were keen to highlight the more esoteric processes of their governance. It somehow made them special, different, compared to other refugees and it was this unique aspect of Shangri-la that appealed to many of their early supporters. Over time, having realized how much the wider community disapproved of their reliance on oracles for state decisions, the Tibetan leadership have worked hard to draw attention away from this fact.

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In the past, the Tibetan leadership’s own website had articles that spoke glowingly of Nechung, even referring to him as the Dalai Lama’s minister or a member of the Dalai Lama’s cabinet. These days, if you try to access those articles, you are met with an error of “Page Not Found”.

This is what happens when you go to the CTA’s official website to read about what the Dalai Lama said regarding Nechung. Why go through all the trouble of removing the article so completely from the Internet, if not because they wish to hide what it says? (Source: http://tibet.net/buddhism/nechung_hh.html)

The Tibetan leadership took great pains to delete all traces of these articles, and invested quite a bit of effort to distance themselves from these proclamations. Luckily, hard copies of this evidence continues to exist. In the July-August 1992 issue of the Tibetan Bulletin, a feature spread on Nechung was published. In it, the Dalai Lama was quoted as referring to Nechung as his cabinet minister. The Tibetan Bulletin is the Tibetan leadership’s own publication, and in the article Nechung was painted as someone as crucial and indispensable to the Dalai Lama as his publicly elected officials. You can click here to download a copy of the publication.

It is precisely this kind of promotion of Nechung which Westerners, who provide the bulk of the Tibetan leadership’s funding, are wary of. But it is this kind of promotion of Nechung which leads Tibetan audiences to follow Nechung’s prophecies unquestioningly.

The Tibetan leadership’s reliance on its State Oracles is encouraged by the Dalai Lama, who is frequently seen with them, thus legitimizing their status.

To Tibetan audiences, the Tibetan leadership boosts Nechung’s role, hinting that it is somehow bad karma to go against his prophecies. The Tibetan leadership works hard to draw a picture of closeness between the deity and the Dalai Lama. It is hardly surprising therefore, that the Tibetan leadership have been known to use Nechung’s proclamations to pursue their personal interests. The manipulation of Nechung’s position in Tibetan society is designed so that the wider public will ignore the government’s transgressions, and allow the leadership to justify their self-serving behaviors, all of which are designed to increase their bank balances.

After all, how can the public comment on any of the government’s decisions, when those decisions are being made by a formless being whom no one can hold accountable? Even more so when the Dalai Lama refers to Nechung as a member of his Cabinet or his Minister. It leads the Tibetan public to immediately assume that going against Nechung’s prophecies or questioning them, is akin to going against the Dalai Lama and questioning him, since monk and oracle are very close. Within Tibetan society, to be viewed as anti-Dalai Lama immediately invites violent retribution and repercussions. Just look at what happened to the member of Parliament Tenpa Yarphel when he questioned Nechung in the Tibetan Parliament. Since then, he has been labelled anti-Dalai Lama and anti-Tibet, and called all manner of vulgar names and profanities.
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On reviewing the situation, it is obvious that the Tibetan leadership’s changing treatment of Nechung is motivated by only one thing – MONEY. By changing how they refer to Nechung, they can placate donors from different backgrounds and therefore upkeep the financial support from happy sponsors flowing into their coffers.

Conclusion

Hand in hand with this unreliable and inconsistent government is their dependence on a deity who has been proven time and again to be unreliable. In light of this situation, what chances do the Tibetan people have of fulfilling their political goals?

In the 60 years since the Tibetans went into exile, their position has not improved. Aside from the Dalai Lama, there are no famous Tibetans or world renowned Tibetans. Tibetans as a whole are no closer to achieving their political aims, and continue to languish in exile waiting and hoping for a breakthrough with China. Dialogue with China has in fact stagnated, with no signs of resuming any time soon and none of the Tibetan leaders have shown any signs of being capable of reinitiating this dialogue.

All this while, in a clear example of misplaced trust, the Tibetan people pin their hopes on an unseen deity whose political advice is interpreted and disseminated by a leadership who have been shown to be motivated by self-benefit. Indeed, to analyze the Tibetan situation is to analyze a sorry state of affairs, one that is underwritten by greedy ambition. If the Tibetans do not want to spend the next 60 years lamenting their situation, all signs point to an urgent need for a new way of decision-making and perhaps even a new wave of decision-makers. It is the only way they will ever be able to break away from the failures of their past.

The Tibetan leadership are known to heavily rely on the advice of the State Oracles for their political decision-making. Seen here is the Tibetan Prime Minister Lobsang Sangay waiting to receive guidance from Nechung.

The State Oracles and their trances often take precedence at official events and state affairs, in front of thousands of Tibetans who witness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government receiving the oracles’ advice over and over again.

The Dalai Lama has such a close relationship with the oracles, and relies so heavily on the deities that he has even been pictured inviting them into his private quarters to take trance.

For decades, Tibetans have witnessed the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan leadership form a very close relationship with the oracles, whom they rely heavily upon for all matters political.

The Tibetan Prime Minister Lobsang Sangay is seated in the background, patiently waiting for an audience with Nechung

In exile, a new government was created according to democratic rules, and the great monastic universities were rebuilt. By these efforts, the Tibetans were able to maintain their culture. The political efforts to regain a free Tibet, however, have been without success.

In the 60s and 70s an increasing interest in Buddhism led to many new contacts between exile Tibetans and the western world. The first appearance of the Dalai Lama in front of a large western audience took place in 1979 on Mont-Pelerin near Lake Geneva, following an invitation by Ven. Geshe Rabten. This event was followed by further visits to the west. Buddhism became known as a religion of tolerance, peace, and reason. Thanks to a growing number of new Dharma centres and Tibet support groups, a broad spectrum of the population was made aware of issues that concerned the Tibetan people. Tibetans were viewed favourably by many western people and were seen as a peaceful, friendly, and unjustly oppressed people.

Causes of the current conflict

In March 1996, the Dalai Lama announced a ban against the worship of the Buddhist deity Dorje Shugden, declaring that such worship posed a “danger to his life and the cause of Tibet”. The exile government then began to enforce this ban. Houses were searched and a signature campaign was carried out. People were coerced into signing their name agreeing to abandon all worship of this deity from then on. Those refusing to sign were openly declared enemies to the cause of Tibet and as endangering the life of the Dalai Lama. The consequences were dire for those who stood by their faith: employees of the exile government were pushed out of their jobs and children of uncompromising parents were denied school attendance. Even the constitution of the exile government was adapted to this change of policy: “The presiding judge of the Judiciary Commission … must not be a worshipper of Gyalchen Shugden …”

Dorje Shugden is one of many Buddhist deities worshipped as a protector of the teachings of Buddha. He is worshipped by many of the most venerated Masters of the Gelug and Sakya traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, as well as by many monasteries, families and entire regions. The Dalai Lama himself has a close connection with this deity. His own teacher, Trijang Rinpoche, one of the most revered Buddhist Masters of recent times, and Geshe Rabten and Lati Rinpoche, two highly regarded Masters who were selected in 1961 by the Dalai Lama to be his religious assistants, are all worshippers of Dorje Shugden. Moreover, entire departments at the monastic universities of Sera and Gaden, as well as most families in entire regions like Chatring (East Tibet) have been worshipping this deity for centuries.

The actions of the Dalai Lama were seen as shocking because Buddhism is a religion of tolerance, not dogma or force. No Lama has the right to change the content of religious doctrine. Differences in opinion are resolved with clear logic in public debates. The use of political power to impose religious opinions is unthinkable.

The events since 1996 have created deep divisions, as well as conflict and suspicion, in all levels of Tibetan society: in families, monasteries, and schools.

Background

The background to the reasons for the Dalai Lama’s actions has become a source of much speculation. One easily recognized factor is the increasing influence of the state oracle over the Dalai Lama since the 70′s. The Tibetan state oracle goes back to a pre-Buddhist shamanic deity. In Tibetan history, this deity has proved helpful at times, but at other times has been destructive. For this reason, the state oracle was not consulted during the Dalai Lama’s escape in 1959. All details of the remarkable escape were arranged by Trijang Rinpoche in connection with an oracle of Dorje Shugden. After the successful escape, the Dalai Lama expressed his gratitude towards Dorje Shugden. This apparently caused the state oracle to become jealous and to begin defaming Dorje Shugden.

The Dalai Lama fell increasingly under the influence of the state oracle. In recent years there have been three more oracles, including a young woman who grew up among the Chinese in Tibet. All these oracles currently live together with the Dalai Lama in his palace compound, and the Dalai Lama seems to base most of his political decisions on the statements of these oracles.

A further member of the close group surrounding the Dalai Lama is Gyalo Dondrub, the elder brother of the Dalai Lama. In Tibet, the family of the Dalai Lama was respected, but had no political power. Gyalo Dondrub, however, has used the changed situation in exile to gain a powerful influence over Tibetan politics. He is continuously occupied with “secret” business behind the scenes, and although he maintains contact with the CIA, he is the only direct contact the Dalai Lama has with the communist leadership in Beijing. He is regarded as the “secret boss”, and his role, as well as his goals are unclear.

In Switzerland

A similar signature campaign was also carried out in Switzerland. Many families, which had the tradition of worshipping Dorje Shugden for centuries, as well as those who didn’t, refused to sign their names renouncing this practice. Those signatures that were gathered were then handed over to the Dalai Lama during his brief visit to Switzerland in 1996. In a private meeting in Caux near Montreux, the Dalai Lama urged his representatives to “continue these efforts in a clever way. We should ensure that future generations will not even know the name Dholgyal” (Dorje Shugden). (These statements have been verified through notes made by representatives present at the meeting.)

Violence, Destruction and Death

Nothing fans the flames of the fanaticism of Tibetans more violently than the thought that the Dalai Lama could be in danger. The Dalai Lama deliberately gave this as a reason justifying the ban of Dorje Shugden, and thus triggered within a few weeks, fights, the destruction of statues and houses, and assassination attempts through rival mobs. The repeated pleas of concerned individuals were ignored by the Dalai Lama.

In one incident, in June 1996 in Dharamsala, the retired Tibetan Minister Kundeling expressed his worries about the new direction of the exile government. As a consequence, while in his own home just a few days later he was nearly stabbed to death in an attempted assassination.

In February 1997, the director of the School of Dialectics in Dharamsala and his two assistants were murdered. Worshippers of Dorje Shugden were immediately suspected, but although the director had supported the Dalai Lama’s new direction by many defamatory writings, he had attacked many who had criticized the exile government and in so doing he had attracted many enemies. Although he was very close to the Dalai Lama, he was also known as a troublemaker. A few months earlier, he had been denied entry into Mongolia for this reason.

Manipulation of Public Opinion

The Indian press initially reacted with critical reports regarding the new developments in the Tibetan community. From the west came concerned questions about how the actions of the exile government could be compatible with freedom of religion and democracy. The exile government soon carried out an extensive campaign to shape public opinion. These were aimed especially at Tibet support groups, Buddhist centers and the western media. The Indian police force was also greatly influenced.

The original reasons for the belief that “the worship of the deity is a danger to the Dalai Lama’s life and the cause of Tibet” was quickly questioned in the west. How could the worship of a deity endanger the Dalai Lama? What is the cause of Tibet? Is it a political or a religious issue?

New justifications were created which sounded more credible to western ears. Dorje Shugden was depicted as an evil spirit who destroyed the harmony of the Buddhist traditions of Tibet. Historical facts which contradict these statements were manipulated. The fame and respect of the Dalai Lama seemed to be enough to make it easy for the exile government to spread false statements. When Walt Disney Productions made the film “Kundun”, which tells the story of the Dalai Lama, they consulted the exile government. Decisive historical events in the Dalai Lama’s life were misrepresented in order to justify the exile government’s current anti-Shugden campaign. There are still eye witnesses alive who can verify these falsifications.

Representations of Dorje Shugden which are closer to reality can be found in many writings of important Tibetan masters of the past 300 years. There has also been a study carried out at the University of Tokyo in 1995 which describes in detail the relationship between the 5th Dalai Lama and Master Dragpa Gyaltsen, the historical source of Dorje Shugden.

The Dorje Shugden Devotees Charitable and Religious Society

In the months following March 1996, monks of the monasteries affected by the ban attempted to negotiate with the Dalai Lama, but to no avail. In June 1996, the Dorje Shugden Devotees Charitable and Religious Society was established. Their aim was to use historical facts in their struggle against the exile government’s intensive spreading of false information. For some authors who have contributed to the preparation of these historical records, the consequences have been tragic. The house of the retired teacher Dr. Thubten from the Tibetan settlement of Clementown was barricaded by a mob, bombarded with stones and set on fire. Although Dr Thubten and his family managed to escape with minor injuries, a monk who was with them was hospitalized with severe head injuries. Dr. Thubten, a respected Tibetan teacher with 33 years of service, now lives in reduced and difficult conditions in Delhi. The reason for the hostility against Dr. Thubten is that he had criticized the exile government’s new policy regarding Dorje Shugden.

The Dorje Shugden Society was also advised to take the case to the highest court in India, because the new direction of the exile government obviously violates the Indian law of freedom of religion. Although all the necessary documents for such a case have been prepared, no serious measures have been taken – presumably out of respect for the Dalai Lama.

Thus, it came as no surprise that after the murder of the director of the School of Dialectics, the exile government made great efforts to directly incriminate the leading monks of the Dorje Shugden Society, in the hope of eliminating their obstinate opposition. Although the details of the murder remain unclear, a connection to the Dorje Shugden Society could not be proved. The exile government has nevertheless been successful in influencing worldwide media to such an extent that the worshippers of Dorje Shugden are described as “violent fundamentalists who are after the blood of the Dalai Lama”.

The paradox of the story: The teacher and two assistants of the Dalai Lama, as well as all of those who made the Dalai Lama’s escape out of Tibet possible, and most of the Khampa guerrillas who gave up their lives to create a safe path to India for the Dalai Lama, were worshippers of Dorje Shugden. How can these people be said to be the ones endangering the Dalai Lama’s life?

A Conflict with a Solution

This conflict was started by the Dalai Lama. It can be ended by him at any time, if he grants his people unlimited freedom of religion. Up until now, the Dalai Lama has done nothing to settle the dispute. The exile Tibetans are dependent on the good favor and support of the west. However, if the western media recognized and accurately represented the current behavior of the Tibetan exile government, many of those who are currently in positions of power might lose their influence.

Influences in Tibetan Exile

At the age of 16, His Holiness the Dalai Lama became responsible for the politics of a Tibet which had already been occupied by Chinese troops. Of his two teachers, it was Trijang Rinpoche in particular who instructed His Holiness not only in religious matters, but also in political procedure and conduct. Many of the speeches made by His Holiness the Dalai Lama up to the late 70′s were composed with the advice and help of Trijang Rinpoche.

In old Tibet, political matters were in the hands of the nobility. After the successful escape from Tibet, it was these families in particular who established settlements, schools and political representation in foreign countries.

Gyalo Dondrub, the Dalai Lama’s elder brother, used the new situation in exile to gain more influence than had previously been possible for him. Phala, Surkhang and Yuthog, experienced nobles from the old Tibet, achieved great benefit for the Tibetan people in exile. They, however, stood in the way of Gyalo Dondrub’s striving for increased power. In the mid 60′s, the Dalai Lama’s brother succeeded in setting public opinion against Surkhang and Yuthog, who were thus forced to leave India and move to Taiwan. Phala was assigned representation in Switzerland and thereby lost his direct influence in India. In order to gain further influence, Gyalo Dondrub also had to break the close contact between Trijang Rinpoche and the Dalai Lama. This may have been the purpose of his attempt to marry the Dalai Lama to an American woman.

Oracles and Deities

Another person who sought influence in exile was the Tibetan state oracle. The flight from Tibet had been successful thanks to the oracle of Dorje Shugden. The Dalai Lama, therefore, exhibited an increasingly strong connection to this deity, which thereby limited the power and significance of the state oracle.

Tibetan Buddhism recognizes various types of deities. Supramundane deities are aspects of Buddha who generally cannot be contacted directly. Worldly deities are beings invisible to humans, yet nevertheless have a close connection with this world and with the fate of mankind. Some of these help humans; others hurt them. Their perceptive faculties regarding past, present and future are higher than those of ordinary humans. By means of oracles, such deities can be contacted.

An oracle is a human being whose body can be used by a supramundane being appearing in the aspect of a worldly deity, or by a worldly deity. The deity puts the mind of the human into an unconscious state and then uses the body of this human to provide consultation. One can imagine the great benefit humans can derive from such a deity if the deity is a powerful being in complete control of the oracle’s body, and is a being with perfect perception of situations and developments and solely driven by the desire to help humans to achieve a wholesome life. If the deity is less powerful and the mind of the oracle remains active during consultation, then it is uncertain who speaks: it may be the deity, but it may also be the ordinary human being. Moreover, if the deity or still active oracle is motivated by selfishness, then its responses will hardly be of use to humans and can be the source of tremendous disturbance to a society.

In Tibet there were hundreds of oracles with deities of varying quality. The Tibetan state oracle (Netchung) was said to have been a shamanic deity that was overcome by the Indian master Padmasambhava and then forced to protect Tibet. Many decisions in Tibet’s history have their source in statements by the state oracle. Sometimes the advice was beneficial; at other times it was fatal. When the British army marched towards Lhasa at the time of the 13th Dalai Lama, the state oracle was consulted. The British, under Lieutenant-Colonel Younghusband, had no intention to attack the Tibetans. The state oracle however advised, “Now the time has come to destroy the enemy.” The Tibetan army attacked, suffered extensive losses and was defeated within a few hours. The 13th Dalai Lama was very displeased with the state oracle and forbade further prophecies for a long time.

Dorje Shugden is considered the incarnation of the Master Dragpa Gyaltsen, who appears in the form of a worldly deity. Dragpa Gyaltsen and the 5th Dalai Lama were masters of similar rank at Drepung Monastery, although Master Dragpa Gyaltsen enjoyed far greater popularity and renown than the 5th Dalai Lama. The chief minister of the 5th Dalai Lama is said to have murdered Dragpa Gyaltsen in 1656 out of jealousy, unable to accept a possible rival to his own protégé. Master Dragpa Gyaltsen took rebirth in the form of the deity Dorje Shugden with the purpose of protecting the teachings of Buddha in general, and in particular the teachings of Master Je Tsongkhapa.

There exist several oracles of Dorje Shugden. Through his oracle of Panglung Monastery, Dorje Shugden gave precise instructions for the escape of the Dalai Lama in 1959. Panglung Rinpoche, the head lama of Panglung Monastery, is now a teacher at the University of Munich, and the oracle of Panglung now lives in Taiwan.

Oracles in the Exile Government

In the 70′s, the state oracle gained increasing influence over the decisions of the Dalai Lama. Repeated prophecies were made that Tibet would gain its independence within a few years. The predicted time has since long passed, but Tibet’s independence has not been achieved. It is known that the uprising of the Tibetans in Lhasa in the eighties took place as a result of the advice of the state oracle. The consequences were devastating, as many Tibetans lost their lives, and nothing was gained. The recent conflict concerning the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama is also attributed to the state oracle, who advised that the identity of the boy be announced before he was brought out of Tibet and into safety.

The state oracle blames its failures on Dorje Shugden: “Everything would have occurred as I predicted if Dorje Shugden had not prevented it.” These statements seem to be taken seriously by the exile government and this may be the actual source of such phrases as, “The worship of Dorje Shugden damages Tibetan matters.”

Oracles have played a role in Tibetan history for a long time. Their influence, however, has never been as dominant as now in Dharamsala.

Those Surrounding His Holiness the Dalai Lama

In recent years, three further oracles have joined the state oracle. In addition to Gyalo Dondrub, the narrow circle around the Dalai Lama seems to consist of more and more people attempting to use the Dalai Lama merely for their own selfish purposes. This development has been noticed with great concern within the Tibetan community. On July 15, 1997, a Tibetan went on hunger strike in order to draw attention to the dangers posed by those surrounding the Dalai Lama. It was said that groups of Tibetans were forming in Dharamsala with the intention of violently opposing the actions of those Tibetans who disagree with the present policies of the Tibetan government.

Source: www.schettini.com

A CNN video explains how the Dalai Lama relies on spirit oracles for political advice on Tibet and China, for instance, with the State Oracle of Tibet in Dharamsala.

Dalai Lama asks Spirit Nechung for Political Advice

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Nechung’s advice on Tibetan affairs has been sough by HH Dalai Lama for hundreds of years.