Dalai Lama

The Dalai Lama /ˈdɑːlaɪ ˈlɑːmə/ (US), /ˌdælaɪ ˈlɑːmə/ (UK) is a monk of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest of the schools of Tibetan Buddhism founded by Je Tsongkhapa. The Dalai Lama title was created by Altan Khan (Shunyi Wang of China) in 1578. The 14th and current Dalai Lama is Tenzin Gyatso. The Dalai Lama has always been an important figure of the Gelug tradition. Although finding dominance in Central Tibet, the Dalai Lama has been an important figure beyond sectarian boundaries. The Dalai Lama figure is important for many reasons. Since the time of the Fifth Dalai Lama his personage has always been a symbol of unification of the state of Tibet, where he has represented Buddhist values and traditions. The Fifth Dalai Lama was granted by the Shunzhi Emperor of China a golden seal of authority and golden sheets for the exercise of leadership over Buddhism under the heaven. The Dalai Lama is considered to be the successor in a line of tulkus who are believed to be incarnations of Avalokiteśvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, called Chenrezig in Tibetan. The name is a combination of the Mongolic word dalai meaning "ocean" (coming from Mongolian title Dalaiyin qan or Dalaiin khan, translated as 'Gyatso' in Tibetan) and the Tibetan word བླ་མ་ (bla-ma) meaning "guru, teacher, mentor