A “change of clothing” is how the Dalai Lama spoke of death in a recent New Yorker profile of the Tibetan religious leader.
As a Buddhist, the Dalai Lama is more philosophical about the end of life. “I visualize death every day,” he told the magazine — though the article goes on to suggest that this is “a practical matter”. Traditionally, a young boy is appointed the next Dalai Lama, but lately he’s been “musing aloud that he might be reincarnated as a woman, or that Tibetans might vote on whether the Dalai Lama should continue at all.”
One nation is very concerned with the Dalai Lama’s next move. His Holiness says, “some Chinese… created a rumour: ‘Dalai Lama is suffering from cancer, only a few months left!” Happily, the Dalia doctors disagree with the Chinese, saying the 60 year old will live even longer. The Dalai Lama jokes, “But it seems the Chinese know more about my condition.”