The Dalai Lama, the Panchen Lama, and the Karmapa Lama are the three highest figures in Tibetan Buddhism, representing parallel institutions that have intermittently been at odds with each other throughout their history. And China, seeking to tighten its grip on Tibet, has worked to control the traditional process of finding the reincarnation of any senior lama that passes away.
达赖喇嘛，班禅喇嘛和噶玛巴是藏传佛教最重要的三个人物，三者职能相对平行，但历史上也时有摩擦。而希望进一步巩固西藏统治的中国则不遗余力地操纵所有高级喇嘛圆寂后寻找转世灵童的传统程序。