File photo: The Dalai Lama in 2012 — not the Dharamshala Tenshug ceremony.
The 14th Dalai Lama attended a Tenshug long-life prayer ceremony at the Main Tibetan Temple in Dharamshala on Wednesday, drawing an estimated 5,000 devotees from India, Nepal, Brazil, Mexico and beyond, ANI reports. The ceremony was jointly organized by the Norbulingka Institute, the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA) and the Nepal Tibetan Lhamo Association.
According to the Central Tibetan Administration, the sun shone brightly in a clear blue sky as the Dalai Lama arrived at the gate of his residence on his way to the Tsuglagkhang, the Main Tibetan Temple, where prayers for his long life were to be offered. Representatives of the three patron groups greeted him just before the gate. As he reached the edge of the courtyard, he stepped down from the golf cart in which he had been riding and walked to the temple.
He was welcomed by Tashi Shölpa dancers as well as dancing snow lions and yaks who performed to the sound of singers and the beat of drums, the Central Tibetan Administration reports. Rich garlands of flowers hung from the canopy overhead, and the traditional red carpet up the center of the yard was decorated with auspicious symbols painted on red cloth. At the foot of the temple, he paused to watch another group of dancers whose performance was particularly energetic before taking his seat on the throne.
The Tenshug ceremony is a traditional Tibetan Buddhist ritual in which devotees offer prayers for the long life of their spiritual teacher. The 91-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who turned 91 on July 6, continues to draw large crowds in Dharamshala, the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile, where devotees pray for his good health and continued guidance.
Photo: Christopher Michel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons