A Textual Study of The Post and Rank of "Khutukhtu" in Tibetan Buddhism (China TIbetology vol !

" Among Mongolian and Tibetan high-ranking Buddhist monks, the Khutukhtu is second only to that of the Dalai and the Panchen. There have, ho ever, been various inter!retations of the ord khutukhtu, its linguistic origin, and connotations. "n this essay, therefore, " e#!ound on the !reliminary te#tual research " have made into $uestions regarding the origin of the ord %khutukhtu,% its course of evolution, and s!ecific meaning hen %Khutukhtu% became the !ost and rank title for certain Mongolian and Tibetan high-ranking Buddhist monks. &n the &rigin and 'volution of the ord %Khutukhtu% "n general, academic circles are agreed that %khutukhtu% is a Mongolian ord, although there are also those ho believe it to be Tibetan, and others that it is of the Manchu language. (or e#am!le, the definition in )olume " of the %*ei+ang Tong+hi% ,A -eneral .istory of /-Tsang0 is1%(otu, (utu and (otou are all ine#act transliterations of the Tibetan ord 2khutukhtu2 ,ho-thogthu0%. The %Tibetan-3hinese Dictionary,% com!iled by the Teaching and 4esearch 5ection on the Tibetan *ritten 6anguage, of the 7orth est institute for 'thnic Minorities, maintains that %khutukhtu% is a ord from the Manchu language. Prior to the i8th century, there occurred a common !henomenon among the various ethnic minorities living on the grasslands of7othern 3hina of borro ing ords from one another2s languages. *hen analysing the ord2s etymology, the root of the ord %khutukhtu,%is %khutu,% and it first changes to %khutukh,% and finally to %khutukhtu.% "n ancient Turkic there is a ord, %khutu92that means%good fortune% or%ha!!iness%. The%kutadghu,% in %Kutadghu Bilig,% the original title of the classic /ygur e!ic !oem, %.a!!iness and *isdom,% ritten in the llth century, came from %khutukh%: hich as translated into the 3hinese ord %fu% ,good fortune, or ha!!iness0. The note in 3hinese for the ord %khutukhei tai% in )olume """ of the Mongolian annals, %The Mongolian 5ecret .istory,% ritten in ;<=>, as%fuyou% ,%having good fortune%or %!ossessing ha!!iness%0. The root of the ord%khutukhei% is %khutukh,% and either %tai% or %tu% in Mongolian means %have% or %!ossess%. "t is therefore clear that both %khutu%and %khutukh% ere commonly used in ancient Turkic, /ygur, and Mongolian, and shared the meaning, %good fortune% or %ha!!iness%, The ord, %khutukhtu%, in ancient Mongolian originally meant%having good fortune% or %!ossessing ha!!iness,% and later, after the s!read of Buddhism to Mongolian areas, it became the title of a !ost and rank for Mongolian and Tibetan high-ranking Buddhist monks. The change in function of this ord has since been a source of interest to later generations. *hen consulting dictionaries on cultural, historical, and Buddhist terms, the ord, %khutukhtu,% is easily found. "ts definitions vary, ho ever, and can be narro ed do n to three main inter!retations1%saint%, %longevity% and %incarnation%as the connotations e#!ressed by the ord %khutukhtu% differed according to various socio-historical !eriods, and different cultural environments. As already established, the original meaning of the ord-root %khutukh% is %good fortune% or %ha!!iness%. "n the Mongolian language, certain ords and e#!ressions often combine %khutukh% and another main ord, as in%7asunkhutukh,% hich is made u! of2nas% ,lifes!an0 and %khutukh.% %7asunkhutukh%can therefore be literally translated as meaning %ha!!y longevity,% ith the meaning %good ishes for a long life.% The e#!ression, %khutukh% is therefore not a Buddhist term, but a Mongolian ord in common use to e#!ress good ishes. As %khutukh% and %nas% combine to create another ord meaning %longevity,% the ord %khutukh% as translated in dictionaries com!iled by the le#icogra!hers of modern times, such as %The Three-in-&ne Mongolian-3hineseManchu Dictionary%< and the %Mongolian-3hinese Dictionary%8 as meaning %,a long0 life-!an.% "t might be that these ere the main sources of historical data used as a basis by contem!orary dictionaries for inter!reting the !ost and rank title of Mongolian and Tibetan high-ranking Buddhist monks, %Khutukhtu% as %longevity% or %a long life and eternal youth.%

*ith the s!read of Buddhism to Mongolian areas, the ord, %khutukhtu,% began to form an indissoluble association ith Buddhism. As is idely kno n, in the middle of the i8th century, the sa-skya-!a, a Tibetan Buddhist sect, established relations ith the ?uan Dynasty and on the ?uan rulers2 trust and faith. "n the Mongolian language, the Tibetan ord %v!hags-!a92the res!ectful form of address for the fifth leader of the 5a-skya 5ect, as translated as %khutukhtu,% and the %v!hags-!a% as called %Khutukhtu v!hags-!a% or %v!hags-!a Khutukhtu%. .ence the ord %khutukhtu% became a Buddhist term ith a ne connotation, and could be translated into the Tibetan ord %v!hags-!a% or the 3hinese ord%sheng+he% ,saint0. %Tibetan Buddhists often !recede or follo the names of ancient Buddhist masters, Buddhas, or dharmas and sangas, ith this ord to signify their nobility and venerability.%= Mongolian Buddhists also used the ord in this ay The earliest record of a Buddhist monk2s name being !receded by %khutukhtu% is an inscri!tion on the overhead !agoda !ro@ection s!anning the road at the Auyongguan Pass, hich as inscribed %v!hags-!a% in the Mongolian scri!t in ;8=B. "t recorded1 %*hen the sacred and !ure Buddhist !agoda as com!leted, e ere honoured to invite the 'm!eror%s tutor, Khutukhtu Arnandha 5ri Badhara 6ama, to, carry out the blessing and consecrating rites ...%B The term %v!hags-!a% !receding the title of each Buddhist sutra in the -an@ur in Tibetan as translated as %Khutukhtu% in the Mongolian -an@ur, hile in the 3hinese %3ontents of -an@ur% it as translated as %sheng% ,holy, sacred0. "n addition, in Tibetan language Buddhist scri!tures, ancient "ndia as called the %v!hags-!a yul,% meaning %the sacred !lace%, and it as translated into Mongolian Buddhist scri!tures as %khutukhtan nu orin% hich meant %the land of khutukhtu.% "n all cases, the ord%khutukhtu% !receding a !erson2s name, or a !lace name, or the title of a Buddhist sutra, means %sacred% or %holy% Many scholars have, therefore, inter!reted the ord %khutukhtu%as meaning%saint,% hich, although undoubtedly close to its meaning, still does not e#tend to its original meaning of a !ost and rank ithin Mongolian and Tibetan Buddhism. The original meaning of %KhutukhtuCC as a Post and 4ank During the ?uan and Ming Dynasties, the title %living Buddha% as the only one that related to the belief in reincarnation inherent in Mongolian and Tibetan Buddhism. Although the ord %khutukhtu% e#isted, it as solely used to !recede names of certain !ersons, !laces, and Buddhist sutras, to signify due reverence. *hen, then, did the ord %khutukhtu% begin to be used as a !ost and rank title for living Buddhas and high-ranking monksD According to accounts of the ?ello 5ect2s ,-e-lug-!a2s or Dgec-lugs!a2s0 e#!ansion into Mongolian areas, contained in Mongolian language history books, such as %The Biogra!hy ofAltan Khan, %and %The &rigin and Develo!ment of Mongolia,% it as in the year of the 4ed Mouse ,;BEF0 during the latter !art of the id century, that the head of the Turned Mongols, Altan Khan, sent a mission to Tibet inviting 5onam -yatso to give lectures and !ro!agate the ?ello 5ect in Mongolian areas. &n the fifteenth day of May ,according to the traditional 3hinese calendar0 in the si#th year ofMing em!eror 5hen+ong2s reign ,;BEG0 5onam -yatso met Altan Khan in 3ha!u$iyal ,?anghua0 Tem!le in Hinghai, and follo ing the old conventions, they !resented each other ith honorific titles. "Following the old practice of exchanging honorific titles between the Buddhist Maste rs and their benefactors, all of the high-ranking and lower-ranking 'noyan's ('official s' in Mongolian) headed by the ost excellent !rince "har a, as well as all of the be nefactors, headed by the #han, honoured the $ll-knowing, %is %oliness the "alai &a a, and presented hi with the epithets of 'acred (a)radhara ((a)ra-holder) 'ayinco khtu Buyankuu "alai, and the gold seal* +he title Man)usri #hutukh was presented to the reincarnated li,ing Buddha "onkor &

a a, and the title Maitreya #hutukhtu was presented to the reincarnated li,ing Budd ha 'ona -rags-pa &a a*". +his arked the start of the practice of presenting th e title "#hutukhtu" to reincarnated li,ing Buddhas* $ccording to the abo,e-cited historical record, while presenting 'ona -yatso with the honorific title '$ll-knowing (a)ra-holder, %is %oliness the "alai &a a,"$ltan #han also presented the reincarnated li,ing Buddha, "onkor &a a, with the title Man)usri # hutukhtu, and presented the reincarnated li,ing Buddha 'ona -rags-pa &a a with t he title Maitreya #hutukhtu* +he titles ""alai &a a" and "#hutukhtu" were, therefore, conferred by the head of the +urned Mongols $ltan #han in May of /012, which was earlier than the granting of the honorific titles of "!anchen Bogdo" and "!anchen 3r deni" 4hen the ter "khutukhtu" beca e a granted title to Mongolian and +ibetan li,i ng Buddhas and high-ranking onks, new connotations, beyond those of "ha,ing good fortune5'and "possessing happiness," and "saint," attached to this word* 6n "+he Biog raphy of $ltan #han" the "alai &a a, the Man)usri #hutukhtu, and the Maitreya #hutu khtu were )ointly called "the +hree #hutukhtus headed by the "alai &a a"* $lthough n o record has been found of $ltan #han awarding 'ona -yatso the title of #hutukht u, the honorific title '$ll-knowing (a)ra-holder, %is %oliness the "alai &a a" granted by $ltan #han to 'ona -yatso ne,ertheless akes clear that the "alai &a a had at tained the highest acco plish ents in his practice of exoteric and esoteric Buddhis , and beco e a 7ualified "8cean -uru" (the greatest Buddhist Master)* +his was the highest honorific title for a Buddhist onk in the Mon golian and +ibetan areas* Mongolian Buddhist circles regarded the highest leader of th e 9ellow 'ect as "the incarnatdon of the $,alokites,ara Bodhisatt,a", and called hi "#hutukhtu "alai &a a"or "Bodhisatt,a #hutukhtu (a)ra-holder "alai &a a"1, which eant that 'ona -yatso had achie,ed the le,el of#hutukh, or Bodhisatt,a* +o be pre cise, he was the incarnation of the $,alokites,ara Bodhisatt,a, who had been reinca rnated into an ordinary hu an being for the purpose of doing good works, with co p assion, in the secular world, and extricating all li,ing creatures fro isery by practi cing Buddhist "har as* 6t is noteworthy that $ltan #han preceded the granted title "#hutukhtu" with the ter s "Man)usri"or "Maitreya" : when he first presented the t wo #hutukhtus with their respecti,e honorific titles* +he 'anskrit word "Man)usri" an d its Mongolian transliteration, ean Bodhisatt,a of 4isdo , and Maitreya in 'anskrit and Mongolian transliteration is the na e of the Future Buddha (the Mongolian people therefore also call Maitreya "Maitreya Buddha")* +his eant that the reincarnated " onkor &a a had attained the le,el of #hutukh of Man)usri Bodhisatt,a (Bodhisatt,a o f 4isdo ) and was the incarnation of the Man)usri Bodhisatt,a: while the reincarnate d 'ona -rags-pa &a a had attained the le,el of #hutukh of the Maitreya Bodhisat t,a (future Buddha) and was the incarnation of the Maitreya Bodhisatt,a* $part fro the #hutukhtu "alai &a a, another leader of the 9ellow 'ect was the !anchen #hu tukhtu, "+he !anchen &i,ing Buddha was regarded as the reincarnation of the Buddha of Boundless &ight"+he #yirong #hutukhtu, who later beca e a fa ous &i,ing Buddha of high status in the +ibetan region, was also entioned in "+he Biography of $ltan #han" and was called"the #yirong #hutukhtu 6ncarnation of the (a)ra !ani*" +he 'ans krit word "(a)rapani" and its Mongolian transliteration eans "the Bodhisatt,a with ( a)ra %ands*" +he religious status of a #hutukhtu as the incarnation of a Buddha or a Bodhisatt,a was, of course, higher than that of an ordinary li,ing Buddha* (iewed fro this angle, the eaning here of "khutukh" in Buddhist doctrine was actu

ally"the (preordained) result of #ar a"* +he word "khutukh" fre7uently appears in "+ he Biography of$ltan #han", for exa ple; "'utras by which one can rapidly achie,e t he khutukh to beco e Buddha of 'atisfaction," "%owe,er, it is possible to find a sho rtcut to achie,ing the #hutukh to beco ing a Buddha*" Mr* <urungga, 800=68, in his tr anslation of "+he Biography of $ltan #han" into >hinese, translated "khutukh" as "gu o" (the result through #ar a), for exa ple; "'utras by which one can 7uickly achie,e the 'guo' (M)to beco e the Buddha of 'atisfaction," "%owe,er, it is possible to find a shortcut to achie,ing the 'guo' of beco ing a Buddha*" 6n the "9e-shes !an-)o's Buddhist %istory" written in Mongolian?, "the result through #ar a of beco ing an $r hat" and the "9uliu =esult by #ar a" were both translated into Mongolian as eanin g"the $rhat #hutukh" and "the 9uliu #hutukh*" 6n "+he 8rigin and "e,elop ent of Mon golia" the sentence "(he) achie,ed the #hutukh of beco ing Buddha" occurs twice, an d is both ti es translated into >hinese as"%uo Fo "ao" ("achie,ed the acco plish en ts to beco e a Buddha)* 6n the >hinese translation of the book, carried out during th e years of 3 peror -ao@ong's reign in the Aing "ynasty, and in "+he Bew +ranslatio n of '+he 8rigin and "e,elop ent of Mongolia' with >ollation Botes," translated by " orunatib -MflBl00), and in"+he %istory of Mongolian and +ibetan Buddhis ," it is point ed out that; "$ la a with the greatest achie,e ents and the ost satisfactory Bud dhist "har a was called #hutukhtu*"/C 6 think this was ost coincident with the origin al eaning of the granted title of #hutukhtu, and exactly expressed the real intentio n of$ltan #han, when he first conferred the honorific title of #hutukhtu on the "onk or &a a and 'onata -rags-pa &a a* 6t should not be forgotten that there are polyse ants in any ethnic group's spoken a nd written languages* For exa ple, the definitions of the >hinese word "dao" 8%) in the ">i %ai" (8cean of words) dictionary a ount to /D entries* Bearing this in ind, how any different eanings are expressed by the Mongolian word"khutukhtu" in diff erent historical periods, and different cultural cli ates, fro ancient ti es to the pr esentE +he greatest interest generated by this word, howe,er, is its specified ean ing "achie,ing the acco plish ents to beco e a Bodhisatt,a" or "achie,ing the acco plish ents to beco e a Buddha"* >haracteristics of +itles -ranted to Buddhist %igh-ranking Monks during the Aing "y nasty +here were ,arious ranks and honorific titles issued to Buddhist high-ranking onks in the Mongolian and +ibetan regions during the Aing "ynasty* $part fro that of "alai &a a and !anchen, there were, in descending order of pre cedence, #hutukhtu, Bo ihan, #henpo, "roi)i, 'tate +utor, "hyana Master, and so on, which could be broadly classified into two kinds; post ranks, and honorific titles* $cc ording to the "Fixed 6nstitutions of the !ost =anks and %onorific +itles such as #hut ukhtu" in the "6 penal =egulations 3nforced by the >ouncil of 3thnic Minority $ffair s;" '$ll #hutukhtu, Bo ihan, !andita, #henpo, and "roi)i are post ranks, and 'tate +u tor and "hyana Master are honorific granted titles* 4hile it is allowed that a #hutukh tu ay be awarded the title of 'tate +utor, or "hyana Master concurrently, none o f the #hutukhtus is allowed to occupy any other rank, such as Bo ihan, !andita, #he npo, or "roi)i concurrently: and a 'tate +utor cannot concurrently be a "hyana Mas ter*" +aken literally, there was no rank of !rince of "har a (chos-rgyal, in +ibetan)* 6n M

ongolian, howe,er, Bo ihan eant "!rince of "har a" and "3rdeni Bo ihan" eant "th e !rince of "har a of -reat +reasure*" "uring the Aing "ynasty "Bo ihan" was the ost fre7uently granted post rank* $ccording to records in the "6 perial 6nstitutions, "ecrees, and =egulations of the -reat Aing "ynasty," in the fifty-eighth year of 3 peror 'heng@u's reign(/1/?); "+he Bo ihan of propagating the 9ellow 'ect was con ferred on the "raya #hutukhtu by the 6 perial >ourt, and the Bo ihan of 3rdeni for propagating the 9ellow 'ect was conferred on the >ha do #hutukhtu" 6n the twent y-fourth year of 3 peror -ao@ong's reign(/1D?); '$ccording to the 3 peror's instruction, the "e o #hutukhtu was granted the title, -reat (irtue Bo ihan >o anding the 9ellow 'ect:" in the thirty-fifth year of 3 pe ror -ao@ong's reign; "4ith the 3 peror's per ission, the =a-dreng =wa-sgreng #hutukhtu was granted t he title $rchi en Bo ihan following the con,ention of the preceding generation's #hut ukhtu*" 6n addition, in the fifty-fourth year of 3 peror -ao@ong's reign; "+he #yirong #hutu khtu*** was granted the honorific title ofBiligtu Bo ihan*"%ere, the rank of Bo ihan w as not only conferred on certain #hutukhtus, but also called a "title,"which was an o b,ious discrepancy in the stipulations of the "=egulations 3nforced by the >ouncil for 3thnic Minority $ffairs*" "uring the Aing "ynasty there was another granted title cal led "'a adhi !akshi*" 6n the fifty-first year of the 3 peror -ao@ong's reign, the 3 peror instructed that; "+he Bo ihan Bgawang >hule "e o conducts hi self prudently, and studies the sutras diligently, and has, since the +ibetan "ga,-ldan $bbot #hutu's enthrone ent, assiste d the "alai &a a in anaging his daily affairs, and has hence en)oyed a good reputati on for propagating the 9ellow 'ect: we therefore appoint hi to the post of "rasa for anaging the "alai &a a's seal-affixing affairs, and confer on hi the title, 'a adhi !akshi of !ropagating Buddhis *" "+he 'anskrit word "sa adhi" eans "cal ed itation" and "!akshi" is a Mongolian word eaning " aster*" "'a adhi !akshi" was th erefore interpreted as eaning "Meditation Master" or ""ing 'hi") in >hinese* +he gr anted title, "'a adhi !akshi" has not been found in any other historical records, alth ough in the Ming and in Aing "ynasties there did exist the >hinese granted title, ">ha n 'hi"), which also eans " aster of cal editation*" +he syste of reincarnate li,ing Buddhas in +ibetan Buddhis was instituted by the #ar a-ka-gyu-pa (#ar a-bka,-brgyud), a sub-sect of the #a-gyu-pa 'ect* +he 9ellow 'ect began officially to adopt the syste of reincarnate li,ing Buddhas in the iddle of the /.th century, when 'ona -yatso, the third "alai &a a, was on the th rone* &ater, howe,er; "$s the 9ellow 'ect prohibits its onks fro arrying and ha ,ing children, and has always depended on reincarnate li,ing Buddhas to resol,e the p roble of succession of onastic group leaders, the syste finally beca e 7uite ra pant* 8wing to the ,ast distribution and uni,ersal practice of the syste on the one hand, and since there are di,ersities of high-ranking and lower-ranking li,ing Buddha s on the other, it is difficult to ake clear the exact total of 9ellow 'ect &i,ing Bu ddhas, and so far we ha,e not carried out such statistical work*"

6n order to counter the pheno enon whereby the syste of reincarnate li,ing Buddha s was getting out of control, the "6 perial 6nstitutions, "ecrees, and =egulations of the -reat Aing "ynasty" stipulated that; "4hen any of the #hutukhtu in ,arious places, or any of the existing -reat &a as p asses away, a search for, and identification of his reincarnation ("hubilehan") is allow ed, but it is not allowed to seek and identify the hubilehan fro a ong ordinary la a s that ha,e died who were abbots of s all onasteries, not well-known, and who w ere ne,er pre,iously reincarnated*"/F +he authority to grant the post and rank of # hutukhtu, which afforded a high position a ong li,ing Buddhas, was held by the 6 peri al >ourt, or was in the hands of the "alai and the !anchen: and all #hutukhtus' na e s were recorded in archi,es kept by the >ouncil for 3thnic Minority $ffairs* '$part fro the "alai and the !anchen, there were also the "e o #hutukhtu-eightee n people in total, and twel,e 'habloons, who could all be reincarnated, that registere d with the >ouncil for 3thnic Minority $ffairs* 4hen the Aing i perial court granted the post and rank title of #hutukhtu, its ain c riteria was the onk's contributions towards propagating Buddhist "har a and his na tural gifts* +he 7uestion as to which Buddha's or Bodhisatt,a's reincarnation he was not stressed* +hus, "#hutukhtu" gradually beca e the granted post rank and honorific title of a &i,ing Buddha, and also a sy bol of religious and secular pri,ilege* 6n +ibet these high-ranking #hutukhtus were 7ualified to take up the post of regent* "uring t he Aing "ynasty the su total of original #hutukhtus ne,er decreased, owing to their reincarnation fro generation to generation, while new #hutukhtus were continuously granted, so, the su total of old and new continued to increase* "+he total of Mongolian and +ibetan #hutukhtus a ounted to one hundred and fifty-e ight people* +he onastery where a #hutukhtu resides always recei,es excellent trea t ent fro the i perial court*"/D $ ong the ultitude of Mongolian and +ibetan #hut ukhtus, those with the highest position were the "alai, the !anchen, and the 8uter Mongolian <ebtsun "a pa* Bext were the resident #hutukhtus in Bei)ing, and third we re those residing at their places in the pastoral areas* +he ter s "hubilehan" in Mongolian, ""rul-gu" (sprul-sku) in +ibetan, "huashen" (incar nation) and "huofo" (li,ing Buddha) in >hinese, relate closely to the post and rank titl e of #hutukhtu, but there are differences* 8wing to linguistic differences, these ter s and that of "khutukhtu" are often confused* 6n, for exa ple, the ""ictionary of = eligious +er s" co ipiled by =en<iyu (chief editor) "khutukhtu" is taken to be the Mo ngolian transliteration of the +ibetan word ""rul-gu," which eans "incarnation*" +he +ibetan word ""rul-gu" eans" incarnation," while the Mongolian word "hubilehan" can be literally translated as "incarnated (body)," which is e7ui,alent to the eaning "hua shen" in >hinese* 6n short, the ter s "hubilehan" in Mongolian, ""rul-gu" in +ibetan an d "huashen" in >hinese all ean, in conte porary 3nglish, "soul boy reincarnating his p redecessor," and thus all express the sa e concept* 4hen a &i,ing Buddha passes a way he is reincarnated into a hubilehan, and only after a hubilehan has been sought, f ound, and the &i,ing Buddha he has reincarnated identified, (since the fifty-fourth y ear of 3 peror -ao@ong's reign, a hubilehan's identification has been decided by dra wing lots fro a golden urn), can he be called a hubilehan*

%e is not called a li,ing Buddha until his enthrone ent, and it is only when he has ou nted the throne and the title of hubilehan has been officially cancelled that he is 7uali fied to be a li,ing Buddha, and succeed his predecessor's post and rank* For exa ple; "+he &cang-kya #hutukhtuts hubilehan*** was granted the title of 'tate +utor as ha d his predecessor "/. $s to the 7uestion of "the official cancellation of the word 'h ubilehan' in the case of a #hutukhtu and other li,ing Buddhas," the"=egulations 3nforc ed by the >ouncil for 3thnic Minority $ffairs" stipulate; "+he "alai &a a and !anche n are of the orthodox school of +ibetan Buddhis * +he <ebtsun "a pa #hutukhtu initi ated the pledging of allegiance, and did deeds of erit and acco plish ent in the earl y period after the founding of the Aing 3 pire* 4hen any of these three people is r eincarnated, the chancellor presents a e orial to the e peror, and sends the i peri al en,oy specially authori@ed by the e peror to his place to look after his enthrone ent affairs, and it is on the day that he co es to his throne that the word 'hubileha n' registered in the >ouncil's record is officially cancelled* 4hen any of the eight peo ple a ong the &cangkya #hutukhtu, the "ga,-ldan $bbot #hutukhtu, the Min-gyur #h utukhtu, the #yirong #hutukhtu, the =na -kha #hutukhtu, the $-kya #hutukhtu, the &ha-kor #hutukhtu, and the >hahantarhan #hutukhtu, and also the resident #hutukhtu s in Bei)ing, passes away, the word 'hubilehan' on record should be cancelled officiall y on the day the hubilehan co es to Bei)ing and has an official audience with the e peror* 4hen any of the #hutukhtus, Bo ihans, !anditas, #henpos, "rol)is, etc*, in ,ari ous pastoral areas is reincarnated and the hubilehan has reached the age of eighteen years old, the word 'hubilehan' on record will be officially cancelled after the report, which has been ,erified by the chancellor and the league (prefecture) head, has been sub itted to the >ouncil for 3thnic Minority $ffairs* >ancellation of the word 'hubilehan' without the per ission of the >ouncil is not allow ed, otherwise, the unauthori@ed personnel concerned will be se,erely punished*"/1 6t i s therefore ob,ious that "khutukhtu" cannot be interpreted as ""rul-gu" in +ibetan, or "huashen" (incarnation) in >hinese* >an it, then, be interpreted as "li,ing BuddhaE" $s already entioned, the use of the appellation "li,ing Buddha" began to be populari @ed during the Ming "ynasty, and later referred to reincarnated la as in general, wh o "know atters both past and future," but"khutukhtu" specifically refers to those a ong li,ing Buddhas who; "***are aware of Buddhist kar a through their natural gifts and wisdo , and co e to the world as hubilehans, respecti,ely reincarnating their pr edecessors: "and who do good works with co passion in the secular world and try h ard to extricate all li,ing creatures fro isery by practicing Buddhist dhar as: and who thus were granted the post and rank title of #hutukhtu because of their outsta nding contributions to propagating Buddhis * 6t is not, therefore, appropriate to e7ua te the "khutukhtu" with the "li,ing Buddha" in the full sense*

By; #iciyelfu