The Dalai Lama

"A simple Buddhist monk." That's the answer you'd receive if you were ever fortunate enough to ask Tenzin Gyatso what he considered himself to be. Quite a humble response from someone who is often referred to as his holiness, the wishful filing gem, or simply the presence by Tibetans. You see, that simple Buddhist monk is the 14th Dalai Lama. Now you may not be too familiar with exactly what that means, and no it does not in any way have to do with the llamas that spit. In short, the Dalai Lamas are the manifestations of the Bodhisattva (Buddha) of Compassion who chose to be reincarnated to serve the people, and indeed helping people is exactly what his holiness the Dalai Lama sets out to do. As I continue, I'd like to discuss with you several topics, such as how the discovery of the current Dalai Lama came about, some of the major events that have taken place since coming into full power, as well as the recognition that the Dalai Lama has received for his achievements over the course of his reign. I'll begin with how the discovery of the current Dalai Lama came about. On December 17,1933 the 13th Dalai Lama passed away at the age of 57. The Tibetan Government was confronted with the task of searching for and discovering a child in whom the Buddha of Compassion would incarnate. The current Dalai Lama was born into a peasant family on July 6th, 1935, in a small village called Taktser in north eastern Tibet. His Holiness was recognized at the age of two as the reincarnation of his predecessor the 13th Dalai Lama. In 1935 the Regent of Tibet went to a sacred lake that for centuries was believed by Tibetans to hold visions of the future. The Regent had a vision of three Tibetan letters, Ah, Ka, and Ma, followed by a picture of a monastery with roofs of jade green and gold, and a house with turquoise tiles. In 1937 high lamas and dignitaries carrying the secrets of this vision were sent to all parts of Tibet in search of the place that had been seen in the