An Auction in London Highlights the Truth on the Reincarnation of Dalai Lamas

Bonhams auctions the collection and archives of Sir Basil Gould, a British diplomat who was there when the 14th Dalai Lama was enthroned in 1940.

By Lopsang Gurung

April 30, 2025

Painter Kanwal Krishna in his later years (from Facebook) and his 1940 portrait of the 14th Dalai Lama (from Bonhams’ auction catalogue).

Tibetans who access the Internet freely via VPN are interested in an auction at Bonhams in London scheduled for June 4. The URL is being passed by word of mouth from one Tibetan to another, and the Chinese authorities have promptly blocked the auction’s site.

Why does an auction in London scare the CCP? The answer is that it documents how, traditionally, the reincarnations of deceased Dalai Lamas were identified. No consultation with the Chinese authorities, no “Golden Urn” (do not believe Wikipedia, which is often manipulated by “friends” of Beijing), no lottery between various candidates (a system only used in the 19th century for the 11th Dalai Lama and to confirm the 12th, who had already been selected through traditional methods).

Sir Basil Gould with the Tibetan Prime Minister Lonchen Langdun in 1936. Credits.

Bonham’s auction is about the collection and archives of Sir Basil Gould (1883–1956), a British diplomat who served in Tibet, in various missions and positions, between 1912 and 1940. He was there when the current 14th Dalai Lama was enthroned in 1940. 

It was a stroke of genius to ask a gifted Indian painter, Kanwal Krishna (1910–1993), to come to Lhasa and record the events in his paintings. Now, these historical paintings are auctioned together with several documents from Gould’s private archive and works of art he collected in Tibet.

Kanwal Krishna painting the portrait of the Nechung oracle in 1940, and the finished portrait (from Facebook).

Gould noted that the enthronement was preceded by a careful search that began soon after the 13th Dalai Lama died. Following Tibetan customs, various signs and omens led high lamas to the remote village of Taktser in the northeastern Amdo province of Tibet, where they found young Lhamo Dhondup, the Dalai Lama’s birth name. 

The search party performed several tests, including prompting the child to identify items belonging to the former Dalai Lama, which he is said to have done successfully.

Kanwal Khrishna, “A Blessing from the Dalai Lama” (1940). From Bonham’s auction catalogue.

The auction is an opportunity to celebrate the 14th Dalai Lama, who will turn 90 on July 6, and to remember that it was not the Chinese government that recognized him as the reincarnation of his predecessor—no matter how much propaganda and fake news it spreads today.

Source: bitterwinter.org