The Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, turned 90 on Sunday. About 7,000 people including monks and his followers gathered at a temple in the northern Indian town of Dharamshala to celebrate the occasion.

The Dalai Lama turned 90 on Sunday surrounded by thousands of followers, who thronged the Himalayan town of Dharamshala, where the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism has been living in exile since fleeing Chinese rule in Tibet in 1959.

The 14th Dalai Lama has celebrated his 90th birthday and marked the occasion with a long-awaited announcement about the future of the Tibetan Buddhist spiritual tradition. On Wednesday, His Holiness announced via video message that the institution of the Dalai Lama would continue after his death.