Dalai Lama turns 90, gets global support in challenge for Beijing

Thousands of monks and followers gather at Dharamshala temple to mark the occasion

- 

DHARAMSHALA, India - The spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, the Dalai Lama, turned 90 on July 6 after a week of celebrations by followers during which he riled China again and spoke about his hope that he would live beyond 130 and reincarnate after dying.

The Nobel laureate is regarded as one of the world's most influential religious leaders, with a following that extends well beyond Buddhism, but not by Beijing, which calls him a separatist and has sought to bring the faith under its control.

Fleeing his native Tibet in 1959 in the wake of a failed uprising against Chinese rule, the 14th Dalai Lama, along with hundreds of thousands of Tibetans, took shelter in India and has since advocated a peaceful "Middle Way" to seek autonomy and religious freedom for Tibetan people.

Dressed in his traditional yellow and burgundy robe, the Dalai Lama arrived at a temple to smiles and claps from thousands of monks and followers who had gathered on a rainy morning in the small Indian hill town of Dharamshala, where he lives.

He waved and greeted them as he walked slowly to the stage with support from monks.