Panchen Lama makes rare visit to Lhasa

20-year-old Panchen Lama visited the Jokhang Temple, the most renowned monastery in Lhasa built by Chinese emperors of Yore, today and offered prayers, official Xinhua news agency reported on Saturday.

His TRIP is seen here as politically significant as this is his first visit to the Tibetan capital after the 2008 deadly riots there. China had accused Dalai Lama of instigating violence.
Official media here beamed pictures of Panchen Lama, whose original name is Gyaltsen Norbu, being received with full religious honours by crimson robed monks in Lhasa.
This is a rare visit, as according to Xinhua, the young monk spends most of his time learning Buddhism in Beijing.

Historically Panchen Lama, regarded as the second in command to Dalai Lama lives in Tashilhunpo Monastery in Shigatse, Tibet's second big city.He arrived at the temple and was greeted by lamas dressed in crimson robes, holding Tibetan incense, prayer flags and "hada", a long, scarf-like white silk used by the Tibetans for blessings.

The Panchen Lama visited major halls of the temple, paid homage and presented hadas to the statues of Buddhas, the report said.

He led a 30-minute sutra chanting ceremony, where he and more than 100 lamas prayed for the prosperity and stability of the country and a bumper harvest.The ceremony was followed by a head-touching ritual to bless the lamas.

The Panchen Lama arrived in Lhasa on Friday for a series of Buddhist activities.
The Jokhang Temple, which houses a life-sized statue of Buddha Sakyamuni as a 12-year-old, is often the first stop of his Lhasa tour.

It was before this statue that he was selected as the reincarnation of the 10th Panchen Erdini in November 1995, through the traditional method of drawing lots from the golden urn. He was then six years old.