The title ‘Dalai Lama’ is given to the spiritual leader of the Gelug (Yellow Hat) – the newest and the most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The Dalai Lama is considered a symbol of unification, representing Buddhist values and traditions. The Dalai Lama is considered to be a successor to a line of tulku, (keepers of knowledge/teachings), who are believed to be incarnations of the Bodhisattva; beings who refrain from reaching enlightenment out of compassion for those who cannot and are suffering as a result. Dalaiis derived from the Mongolian dalaivan gan or dalaiin Kan (ocean/great) and, in combination with the Tibetan word བླ་མ་ (master/guru), forms the title Dalai Lama, literally, master of the ocean or ocean guru.
Art, identity, and the business of belonging
On arriving at St Andrews from Eton College, Crispian Riley-Smith (MA 1989) was looking for a blank canvas – a chance to write his own story after a childhood surrounded … Read more