Thupten Gyatso
Thupten Gyatso, the Thirteenth Dalai Lama (1876–1933) was the immediate predecessor of the current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, and one of the most important and long-lived in the lineage of Dalai Lamas. He ruled during a period of political upheaval which saw him forced into periods of exile from 1904 to 1909 and 1910 to 1913. His teachers included Tertön Sogyal who travelled to Lhasa on several occasions to grant him teachings and empowerments.
Biography
Born near Samyé Monastery in 1876, Thupten Gyatso was recognized as the Dalai Lama in 1878 and enthroned at the Potala Palace in 1879. He assumed political power in 1895.
Further Reading
In Tibetan
- Thupten Jampa Tsultrim Tendzin, lhar bcas srid zhi'i gtsug rgyan gong sa rgyal ba'i dbang po bka' drin mtshungs med bcu gsum pa chen po'i rnam par thar pa rgya mtsho lta bu las mdo tsam brjod pa ngo mtshar rin po che'i phreng ba (The Wondrous Garland of Precious Gems: A Brief Summary of the Ocean-Like Life and Liberation of the Thirteenth Incarnation of the Incomparably Gracious Lord of the Victorious Ones, the Crowning Ornament of All Samsara and Nirvana Including the Heavens), published by Sherig Parkhang, 1998
In English
- Sir Charles Bell, Portrait of a Dalai Lama: The Life and Times of the Great Thirteenth, Wisdom Publications, 1987.
- Glenn H. Mullin, Path of the Bodhisattva Warrior: The Life and Teachings of the Thirteenth Dalai Lama, Snow Lion Publications, 1987.
- Thomas Laird, The History of Tibet—Conversations with the Dalai Lama (London: Atlantic Books, 2006), chapter 10 'The Thirteenth Dalai Lama, 1876-1933'.
- Tsering Shakya, 'The Thirteenth Dalai Lama, Thupten Gyatso (1876-1933)' in Martin Brauen (ed.), The Dalai Lamas: A Visual History, Serindia, 2005