IV. Search for the soul boy
In 1994, search for the soul boy entered a crucial stage.
On February 24, the leading panel on the search work sent three teams to visit secretly Tibet, Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan (Tibetan-inhabited areas in China) to find the soul boy. They were looking for bright, healthy, smart boys who were born in 1989, 1990, or 1991.
The first group led by Living Buddha Bilong went to Qinghai, Gansu and Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan Province; the second led by Geqin headed for east Tibetan Changdu prefecture, Tibetan prefectures in Yunan Province, and Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan; the last group led by Gajin searched in Shanna, Nagqu prefectures and Lhasa in Tibet.
The search area for the soul boy covered more than two million sq km with stretching snow-capped mountains, criss-crossing rivers and vast pastures. Weather in those areas was mostly cold, and the air rarefied. All those made the trips hard. Besides, to pick up the authentic reincarnation from numerous boys was like picking up a needle in a bottle of hay.
The searchers launched an extensive investigation into intelligent boys born during the 1989-1991 period. They wrote down their birthdays, extraordinary behaviors, temperaments of their parents and family backgrounds; also recorded were the location of the boys' hometown, shape of their houses, and landscapes near their hometown, for instance mountains and trend of rivers, etc.
The eminent monks narrowed down the searching scope based on the information collected, plus images observed while watching lakes, and results of divination.
The first search went for 54 days, during which over 40 counties were visited, and 18 extraordinary boys were documented.
In September of the same year, the second search started. A team led by Gaqin paid a secret visit to north Tibetan Nagqu and the city and counties of Lhasa; another led by Bilong visited Shanna and Nyingchi prefectures. The search took more than 30 days, and another seven boys were found.
To make the result accurate and impartial, the leading panel sent the eminent monks to cross-visit documented boys. The third visit lasted for over 20 days, during which the monks carefully checked the intelligent boys one by one.
After three secret interviews, 28 remarkably perspicacious boys were chosen from 46 candidates. By synthesizing information collected from lake-observing, interviews, divination, results of the boys' identifying the late Panchen's personal belongings, the Tashilhunpo lamas and leading work panel selected seven highly possible boys and five likely ones who are yet to be verified. At last, three finalists with most distinctive brilliance were singled out to join the draw-lot-from-a-gold-urn ceremony.
Lhari County in Nagqu Prefecture in Tibet is the birthplace of the 11th Panchen Erdeni Gyaincain Norbu. The county is seated at the foot of a snow-capped mountain covered with cypress. There are two more snow-capped mountains nearby. In Lhari's vicinity there is a clear lake, by which seated a small buddhist pogoda and a lamasery.
The scenery of Lhari resembled images the lake-observers had seen in the holy lakes. The Living Buddha Gongtangcang from Gansu Province once had a dream, in which he and the 10th Panchen were riding horses. Gongtangcang asked the master where they were heading for, and the latter replied home. The two rode across a pasture and reached a river. The Panchen crossed the river on his horse first, and said on the other side to Gongtangcang: I'm home, come on over. Seeing across the river a mountain covered with woods with a Tibetan house underneath and a lake, Gongtangcang got off his horse and waded through the river, but woke up the moment he set foot in the cold water.
Later, it was generally believed that 10th Panchen delivered the dream to Living Buddha Gongtangcang as an indication of his reincarnation's birthplace, which was exactly Lhari.
Gyaincain Norbu was born on Februry 13, 1990, the year of snake (October 19, the 17th year of Earth and Ox according to Tibetan calander). Born in March 1969, Gyaincain Norbu's father Soinam Chaghba was a county cadre of Lhari. The mother Sanggyai Zhoima was born in June 1963, and worked in a bookstore. Both the parents were from ordinary grazing families.
Sanggyai Zhoima was only eight months and ten days pregnant when she gave birth to Gyaincain Norbu. She recalled that on the day of the boy's birth a white poodle went from nowhere into her yard and wouldn't stop yelling. Sanggyai Zhoima's first born, a boy, threw pebbles at the dog to chase it away. However, the dog refused to leave, and Zhoima's belly hurt every time the boy hit the dog. She then asked the boy to let go and stopped hitting the dog. At dusk Zhoima gave birth to a boy with fair skin, fine features and dark, shinny eyes. Zhoima's father, a lama, and thought the boy resembled a Buddha, thus named him Gyaincain Norbu, which means in Tibetan "victory streamer of gods."
Several months after Gyaincain Norbu's birth, a little bird dazzling as a peacock hovered over his house and rested on the roof, which locals regarded as an auspiciou sign.
There was another time when Sanggyai Zhoima left the boy who was then eight-month-old to a teacher's nurse for custody. The teacher accidentally found a Tibetan character pronounced "ah" formed by the lines of the boy's tongue. The character stands for Buddha in Tibetan Buddhism, and is deemed sacred.
On the same night, Sanggyai Zhoima had a dream, in which she toured the fairyland with the goddess White Tara. The beauty of monasteries and halls she saw were beyond description. In the dream the goddess handed her Gyaincain Norbun and then vanished. On hearing this, a living Budhha of a local monastery came to visit. After observing the boy closely, he told Sanggyai Zhoima in an earnest way that the boy was probably an incarnated high-ranking Buddha. The mother was told to dress the boy neatly, feed him with clean food, and take good care of him.
Just after Gyaincain Norbu began to talk, a family guest teased him by asking, "what is your name?"
The boy replied with a smile, "I'm Panchen."
The guest couldn't keep his mouth shut, and marveled, "the boy is miraculous!" The news soon spreaded, and Gyaincain Norbu was considered an extraordinary boy from then on.
Several years after, searchers from the Tashilhunpo Monastery arrived at Lhari County following indications of lake observation and divination. They soon learned about Gyaincain Norbu. To their repeated observation, the boy was extremely brilliant, had solemn and gentle temperament, fine features and a healthy body. The searchers also noticed that Gyaincain Norbu had a favor for religious wares, and always posed as if he was blowing a shell trumpet or delivering a sermon. He also liked to lay hands upon his brother's head to "bless" him.
The searchers casually asked Gyaincain Norbu who was playing with his brother: "what is you name?"
Gyaincain Norbu raised his head, saying, "My name is Panchen Erdeni."
"Do you have a monastery?"
The boy smiled. "Of course, it's Tashilhunpo."
In September 1994, a high-ranking lama Gaqin Bianna visited Sanggyai Zhoim's home as an ordinary guest. He found that the Tibetan character "tsa" he discerned while observing the lake was in the name of Gyaincain Norbu's father. The monk was in his 70s, and had a seriously nearsighted eye. He bended down toward the child, who said unexpectedly: "I know you." Another time the searchers were having dinner in the boy's home, during which Gyaincain Norbu picked up a wooden bowl of a monk, saying, "I have a similar one in Tashilhunpo."
After comprehensive consideration, the monks generally agreed that Gyaincain Norbu was qualified to attend the draw-lot-from-a-gold-urn ceremony, and considered him the most likely one to be the reincarnation of the late Panchen. As it turned out as expected, at the draw-lot-from-a-gold-urn ceremony held at the Jokhang Monastery in Lhasa, Gyaincain Norbu was chosen by Sakyamuni Buddha.
