Choosing the next Dalai Lama is unlike selecting almost any other leader. There is no election or inheritance. Tibetan Buddhists believe that after a Dalai Lama dies, he can be reincarnated as a child, who is then identified as his successor.

The tradition stretches back more than 500 years. Gendun Drup, now recognized as the 1st Dalai Lama, lived from 1391 to 1474, although he never held the title during his lifetime. The title “Dalai Lama” was first given in 1578 to Sonam Gyatso, the 3rd Dalai Lama, and his two predecessors were recognized retroactively.

The current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is the 14th. In 2025, he confirmed that the institution will continue after his death and said responsibility for recognizing his successor belongs to the Gaden Phodrang Trust, the organization associated with his office.

Traditionally, senior Tibetan Buddhist figures look for religious signs that may lead them to the child believed to be the reincarnation. Possible candidates can be tested, sometimes by seeing whether they recognize possessions belonging to the previous Dalai Lama. The current Dalai Lama was identified through such a search when he was two years old.

Finding the 15th Dalai Lama, however, could become politically contentious. The Chinese government claims authority over the recognition of major Tibetan Buddhist reincarnations and says the next Dalai Lama must be approved by Beijing. The current Dalai Lama rejects China's authority over his succession.

The result could be extraordinary: two people could eventually be presented as the 15th Dalai Lama, one recognized through the process authorized by the current Dalai Lama and another recognized by the Chinese government.

A centuries-old tradition of finding a reincarnated spiritual leader could become an international dispute over who has the authority to decide who the next Dalai Lama will be.