Beijing has spoken loud and clear: the next reincarnation of the Dalai Lama will be in China, and approved by the Chinese Communist Party. Tibet, however, has been silent. "That's just the way it is," the monk told us. "That's the reality."

The choice of a successor to the Dalai Lama, the spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhists, is a matter of major interest not only for millions of followers of his religion, but also for China, India, and the United States,