“The Union of Dharma and Polity” (chos srid zung 'brel）in the 14th Dalai Lama

Tsujimura, Masahide

What is the politics that the 14th Dalai Lama conceives? This question may seem to be premature. But, when we consider the Tibetan issue, which is tense in recent years, it should be helpful to look into the Dalai Lama’s own views on politics. The Dalai Lama changed the political system of Tibet from a pre-modern system, in which the Avalokitesvala incarnate rules, to a modern democratic system. However, he did not exclude religious elements from the political system, but rather changed to a political system based on “religion”(Tib. chos) as he conceived it. This is shown in the words, “The Union of Dharma and Polity” (Tib. chos srid zung 'brel). The Dalai Lama put a new construction on this word which represented the traditional Tibetan political system. In his interpretation, we can see the relation between religion and the modern democratic system of Tibet. Through analyzing the Dalai Lama’s interpretation of “The Union of Dharma and Polity, ” this paper intends to reveal that “compassion” as the wish for all sentient beings to be free from suffering connects “religion” and “modernity” in the politics of Tibet.

“The Union of Dharma and Polity” (chos srid zung 'brel）in the 14th Dalai Lama

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