A Brief Biography of Tenzin Gyatso the Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet

Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, is the spiritual and temporal leader of the Tibetan people. He was born to a peasant family on July 6, 1935 in a small village called Taktser in northeastern Tibet. His Holiness was recognized at the age of two, in accordance with Tibetan tradition, as the reincarnation of his predecessor the 13th Dalai Lama and thus an incarnation of the Bodhisattva (Buddha) of Compassion, Avalokiteshvara.

His name was then changed from Lhamo Dhondrub to Tenzin Gyatso. "Dalai Lama" is derived from Mongolian and means “Teacher Whose Wisdom Is As Great As the Ocean.” It is an honorary title bestowed by the Mongolian prince Altan Khan in 1578 on Sonan Gyatso, the third head of the Gelukpa school of Tibetan Buddhism in.

The Dalai Lama fled his homeland after the Chinese takeover of Tibet in 1959. He is known the world over as a great spiritual leader and a tireless worker for peace. In 1989 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. He resides in Dharamsala, India where he has established the Tibetan Government-In-Exile.

His Holiness often says, “I am just a simple Buddhist monk--no more, no less.”

To learn more about His Holiness, please go to his website at www.dalailama.com