A fascinating look at the mystery surrounding the identification of reincarnated spiritual masters. Even the most casual contact with the culture, politics, or religion of Tibet and the surrounding region brings outsiders face to face with the institution of reincarnate spiritual masters. In a tradition that is both uniquely Tibetan and genuinely Buddhist, past masters are identified as small children, installed in their predecessor's monastery in a ceremony called enthronement, and educated to continue the work of their former incarnation. This custom has provided a principal source of spiritual renewal for Himalayan Buddhists for the past thousand years. The introduction places the subject of reincarnate meditation masters within two major contexts: in the activity of bodhisattvas, the highly realized beings who vow to return to the world in order to help others; and in the modern Tibetan society, where the reappearance of past, masters is both perfectly natural and profoundly moving. Part one features an interview with Tai Situpa Rinpoche, a contemporary | Enthronement by Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Taye, Paperback | Indigo Chapters