《達賴與班禪:藏傳佛教轉世制度中的「本土佛」》 The Dalai and Panchen Lamas: "Indigenous Buddhas" in the Tibetan Buddhist Reincarnation Tradition
Lawrence K Wang
Knowledge Commons (Lakehead University) October 23, 2026 DOI: 10.17613/wzwsa-nz369 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Historical analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Buddhism |
| Key points | Argues that the Dalai and Panchen Lama reincarnation lineages developed gradually within Tibetan religious, monastic, educational, and political settings rather than being inherited fully formed from Indian Buddhism, and that they may be approached in a comparative sense as Tibetan "indigenous Buddhas" whose localization emphasizes compassionate return and institutional continuity rather than posthumous deification. The author contends the values most deserving of preservation are compassion, wisdom, education, responsibility, religious freedom, and peaceful dialogue rather than the sacralization of personal authority. |
Abstract
Wang, Lawrence K. 王抗曝 (2026). The Dalai and Panchen Lamas: "Indigenous Buddhas" in the Tibetan Buddhist Reincarnation Tradition《達賴與班禪:藏傳佛教轉世制度中的「本土佛」》。Evolutionary Progress in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics. Lenox Institute Press, Massachusetts, USA. 8(10I), 55 pages. ABSTRACT: 達賴喇嘛與班禪喇嘛是藏傳佛教格魯傳統中最具影響力的兩個轉世世系。依藏傳佛教信仰,達賴喇嘛被尊為觀世音菩薩的化現,班禪喇嘛被尊為阿彌陀佛的化現;歷史研究則顯示,「達賴喇嘛」稱號在十六世紀授予索南嘉措後追認前兩世,「班禪喇嘛」世系於十七世紀以羅桑卻吉堅贊為核心確立,並追認其前世。本文由佛教三身、化身與菩薩乘願再來的思想出發,說明西藏轉世祖古制度並非印度佛教既有的完整組織,而是在藏地宗教、寺院、師徒教育與政治環境中逐步制度化。十三世紀噶瑪巴世系通常被視為較早形成的正式轉世傳承;其後制度傳入各宗派,既有男性,也有女性祖古。 本文尊重信仰,但不把信仰命題偽裝成可由歷史學證明的事實;同時也不以世俗史學否定信徒的宗教經驗。文章分析尋訪、辨物、預言、占卜、師長認證、寺院教育、坐床與金瓶掣籤等程序,並指出轉世制度既保存法統,也可能牽涉寺院資產、地方權威與國家政治。本文主張,達賴與班禪可在加引號的比較意義上稱為藏地「本土佛」,但其本土化道路不是漢地常見的「死後成神」,而是「乘願再來、制度承續」。最值得現代社會保存的,不是對個人權位的神化,而是慈悲、智慧、教育、責任、宗教自由與和平對話的延續。 本文亦以作者走訪甘肅、陝西、內蒙古與新疆時所見的歷史碑刻為生命書寫線索。碑刻記憶引出皇朝、藏傳佛教與邊疆治理的問題,再由制度年代與學術文獻加以核證。這種由親歷出發、回到史料求真的方法,使個人生命史與公共宗教史在文中相遇。關鍵詞:達賴喇嘛;班禪喇嘛;祖古;活佛;轉世制度;觀世音菩薩;阿彌陀佛;格魯派;噶瑪巴;金瓶掣籤;神聖本土化;宗教與政治;世界和平;生命書寫; ABSTRACT: The Dalai and Panchen Lamas are two of the most influential reincarnation lineages in the Geluk tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Within Tibetan Buddhist belief, the Dalai Lamas are revered as emanations of Avalokiteśvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, and the Panchen Lamas as emanations of Amitābha Buddha. Historical scholarship, meanwhile, traces the title "Dalai Lama" to its conferral upon Sonam Gyatso in the sixteenth century, with two predecessors numbered retrospectively, and the institutional formation of the Panchen lineage to the seventeenth century around Lobzang Chokyi Gyeltsen, likewise with earlier incarnations retrospectively recognized. Beginning with Buddhist teachings on the three bodies of a Buddha, emanation, and the compassionate return of bodhisattvas, this study explains that the tulku institution was not inherited as a fully formed organization from Indian Buddhism. It developed gradually within Tibetan religious, monastic, educational, and political settings. The thirteenth-century Karmapa lineage is generally regarded as an early formal reincarnation lineage; the institution later spread across traditions and includes both male and female tulkus. The study respects faith while distinguishing religious claims from historically verifiable facts, without dismissing believers' religious experiences. The article examines search procedures, recognition of objects, predictions, divination, confirmation by teachers, monastic education, enthronement, and the Golden Urn. It shows how reincarnation institutions preserve lineage continuity while also becoming connected with monastic property, local authority, and state politics. In the comparative sense indicated by quotation marks, the Dalai and Panchen Lamas may be approached as Tibetan "indigenous Buddhas." Their path of sacred localization differs from the posthumous deification common in Han Chinese popular religion: it emphasizes compassionate return and institutional continuity. The study argues that the values most deserving of preservation are compassion, wisdom, education, responsibility, religious freedom, and peaceful dialogue, rather than the sacralization of personal authority. The study also draws on the author's memories of historical inscriptions encountered during visits to Gansu, Shaanxi, Inner Mongolia, and Xinjiang. These recollections prompt questions about imperial rule, Tibetan Buddhism, and frontier governance, which are then examined through institutional chronology and scholarly literature. Personal experience thus provides the starting point for an inquiry that brings life writing into dialogue with public religious history. KEYWORDS: Dalai Lama; Panchen Lama; tulku; living Buddha; reincarnation institution; Avalokiteśvara; Amitābha; Geluk; Karmapa; Golden Urn; sacred localization; religion and politics; world peace; life writing
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on buddhism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental balance and well-being: Building bridges between Buddhism and Western psychology. | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience | 1995 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist and Psychological Perspectives on Emotions and Well-Being | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Too Early to Tell: The Potential Impact and Challenges—Ethical and Otherwise—Inherent in the Mainstreaming of Dharma in an Increasingly Dystopian World | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From self to nonself: The Nonself Theory | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |