七、尊重和保護宗教信仰自由
VII. Respecting and Protecting Freedom of Religious Belief

中國憲法規定，宗教信仰自由是公民的一項基本權利。在今天的西藏，多種宗教并存，既有藏傳佛教、苯教，也有伊斯蘭教、天主教等。在藏傳佛教內部，還存在不同教派。經過民主改革，西藏廢除了政教合一制度，實行政教分離，恢復宗教的本來面目。多年來，中央政府和西藏自治區政府，充分尊重公民的宗教信仰自由權利，各種宗教、各個教派都平等地得到尊重和保護，正常的宗教活動和宗教信仰依法受到保護。
The Constitution stipulates that freedom of religious belief is one of citizens' fundamental rights. Today's Tibet is home to various religions, such as Tibetan Buddhism, within which exist different sects, Bon, Islam, and Catholicism. After democratic reform, Tibet put an end to theocracy, separating politics from religion and so restoring the latter's true significance. For years, the central government and the local government of Tibet Autonomous Region have fully respected citizens' right to freedom of religious belief, and given equal attention and protection to all religions and sects to ensure normal religious activities and religious beliefs are protected according to law.

宗教活動得到尊重和保護。目前，西藏有各類宗教活動場所1787處，住寺僧尼4.6萬多人。西藏自治區和7個地市均設有佛教協會，中國佛協西藏分會辦有西藏佛學院、藏經文印經院和藏文會刊《西藏佛教》。藏族和其他各少數民族都按照自己的宗教傳統過宗教生活，進行社會宗教活動。在西藏自治區，各大宗教的各種傳統節慶活動正常進行，大型宗教活動如轉神山神湖活動、薩噶達瓦節、展佛節、跳神節、朝覲等40多種群眾性重大宗教節慶活動得以保護和繼承。信教群眾家中幾乎都設有小經堂或佛龕。每年到拉薩朝佛敬香的信教群眾達百萬人次。在西藏到處可以看到善男信女懸掛的經幡，以及堆積的刻有佛教經文的嘛呢堆。各大寺院內常年擠滿了磕長頭、轉經、朝佛的信教群眾。西藏信教群眾享受開展正常宗教活動的充分自由。為滿足不同信教群眾的宗教需求，目前西藏還有清真寺4座，天主教堂1座。這些宗教也依法得到了尊重和保護，依法依規開展正常宗教活動，與其他宗教平等和諧相處。
Religious activities are respected and protected. Currently, there are 1,787 sites for different religious activities in Tibet, and more than 46,000 resident monks and nuns. Tibet Autonomous Region and seven cities all have Buddhist associations. The Tibetan branch of the Buddhist Association of China has set up the Tibetan Buddhist Institute, the Tripitaka Scripture Printing Lamasery, and the Tibetan Buddhism journal in Tibetan language. Tibetan and other minority ethnic groups lead their religious lives and carry out religious activities according to native traditions. In Tibet Autonomous Region, religious festivals are celebrated in the same way they always were. They include more than 40 major religious activities, such as pilgrimages to holy mountains and lakes, the Saga Dawa Festival, the Buddha Exhibition Festival, and the Lamaist Devil Dance Festival, all of which are protected and inherited. Almost all religious believers have scripture halls or shrines at their homes. Each year, millions of pilgrimages to Lhasa are made. In Tibet, prayer flags and mani stones are seen everywhere. All major temples are full of believers prostrating themselves before Buddha, spinning prayer wheels and paying homage to Buddha. Tibetan people enjoy full freedom in their conduct of religious activities. To meet the religious needs of different believers, Tibet has four mosques and one Catholic church. These religions are also respected and protected according to law and coexist in harmony with other religions.

藏傳佛教文化得到尊重和保護。中央和西藏自治區政府始終把藏傳佛教文化作為中華民族傳統文化的重要組成部分，一直以來給予有效保護，不斷加強對宗教典籍的收集、整理、出版和研究工作。中央政府支持4000多萬元，組織上百名藏文專家，歷時20余年，完成了對藏文大藏經《甘珠爾》《丹珠爾》的校勘出版。20世紀90年代以來，藏文《中華大藏經·丹珠爾》（對勘本）《藏漢對照西藏大藏經總目錄》《因明七論莊嚴華釋》《慈氏五論》《釋量論解說·雪域莊嚴》等陸續整理出版。已經印出《甘珠爾》大藏經達1490多部，還印出大量藏傳佛教的儀軌、傳記、論著等經典的單行本，供給寺廟，滿足僧尼和信教群眾的學修需求。宗教研究機構、高僧、學者的有關佛教專著，如《貝葉經的整理、研究》《西藏拉薩現存梵文貝葉經的整理》《西藏宗教源流與教派研究》《活佛轉世制度》《郭扎佛教史》《西藏苯教寺廟志》《中國藏傳佛教寺廟》《西藏佛教寺院壁畫藝術》等，都正式出版發行。
Tibetan Buddhist culture is respected and protected. The central government and the local government of Tibet Autonomous Region have always regarded Tibetan Buddhist culture as an important component of traditional Chinese culture, offering protection and reinforcing the collection, compilation, publication, and research of religious classics. The central government set a budget of more than 40 million yuan for the revision and publication of the Tibetan Buddhist canons Kangyur and Tengyur, a 20-year project entailing the efforts of more than 100 Tibetan experts. Since the 1990s, the Tibetan-language Chinese Tripitaka - Tengyur (collated edition), A Tibetan-Chinese General Catalogue of the Tibetan Tripitaka, A Commentary on Tshad-ma sde-bdun, Five Treatises of Maitreya, and Annotations on Pramanavarttika Karika - the Solemn Snowland have been successively compiled and published. More than 1,490 copies of Kangyur have been printed, and the ritual procedures, biographies, and treatises on Tibetan Buddhism have also been published to meet the study demands of monasteries, Buddhist monks and nuns, and lay believers. Treatises on Buddhism written and published by religious research institutes, eminent monks and scholars, such as Collation and Research of Pattra-leaf Scriptures, Collation of Sanskrit Pattra-leaf Scriptures Extant in Lhasa, Studies of the Origin and Development of Religions and Religious Sects in Tibet, Reincarnation System of Living Buddhas, History of Buddhism by Guta, Records of Tibetan Bonist Temples, Records of Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries in China, and The Art of Murals of Buddhist Monasteries in Tibet have been published.

寺廟得到維修和保護。20世紀80年代以來，國家每年都撥專項資金和黃金、白銀等用于寺廟的維修、修復和保護。20世紀80年代以來，中央政府累計投入14億多元對西藏文物和重點寺廟進行了大規模維修。國家資助專款670萬元、黃金111公斤、白銀2000多公斤及大量珠寶，修復了五世至九世班禪靈塔祀殿。為修建十世班禪靈塔祀殿，國家一次就撥專款6620萬元、黃金650公斤。1994年，國家又撥款2000萬元，繼續修復甘丹寺。從1995年開始，中央財政通過國家重點文物保護專項資金，對西藏布達拉宮、羅布林卡、薩迦寺等列入國家重點文物保護單位名單的寺廟維修與保護予以積極支持。
Temples are maintained and protected. Since the 1980s, the state has allocated funds, gold, and silver to maintain, renovate and protect temples. More than 1.4 billion yuan has been spent on restoring Tibetan cultural relics and refurbishing key monasteries. A total of 6.7 million yuan, 111 kg of gold, 2,000 kg of silver, and a large amount of jewelry has been used to renovate stupas and prayer halls from the Fifth Panchen Erdeni to the Ninth Panchen Erdeni. The state budget to build these for the 10th Panchen Erdeni was 66.2 million yuan and 650 kg of gold. In 1994, the state allocated another 20 million yuan to renovate Ganden Monastery. Since 1995, the central budget has given active support to the maintenance and protection of monasteries listed as state key cultural relics units, such as the Potala Palace, Norbulingka and Sakya Monastery.

活佛轉世有序進行。活佛轉世制度作為西藏宗教特有的信仰和傳承方式，得到國家和西藏自治區各級政府的尊重，國家制定出臺了《藏傳佛教活佛轉世管理辦法》。1995年，西藏自治區按照宗教儀軌和歷史定制，經過金瓶掣簽，報國務院批準，完成了第十世班禪大師轉世靈童的尋訪、認定以及第十一世班禪的冊立和坐床。據最新統計，西藏現有活佛358名，其中60多位新轉世活佛按歷史定制和宗教儀軌得到認定。
The Living Buddha reincarnation is proceeding well. The Living Buddha reincarnation is a succession system unique to Tibetan Buddhism, and is respected by the state and governments at different levels of the autonomous region, the state having issued the Measures on the Management of the Reincarnation of Living Buddhas of Tibetan Buddhism. Through traditional religious rituals and historical conventions like drawing lots from a golden urn, in 1995 Tibet Autonomous Region sought out and identified the reincarnation of the 10th Panchen Erdeni, and conferred and enthroned the 11th Panchen Erdeni, with the approval of the State Council. Tibet now has 358 Living Buddhas, more than 60 of whom have been confirmed through historical conventions and traditional religious rituals.

藏傳佛教僧人學經制度不斷完善。自治區制定出臺《辦好西藏佛學院分院的意見》《西藏佛學院學銜授予辦法（試行）》，在北京和拉薩分別建有中國藏語系高級佛學院和西藏佛學院，作為藏傳佛教高級宗教人才培養基地，系統招收培養藏傳佛教教職人員。西藏60多座各教派寺廟開辦有寺廟自辦的學經班，完全按照傳統習慣進行宗教學修和學位學銜的考核晉升。2005年開始，每年在北京中國藏語系高級佛學院舉行藏傳佛教“拓然巴”高級學銜考試和授予儀式，在大昭寺和拉薩三大寺進行格西“拉讓巴”學位考試。截至目前，已有84名學經僧人獲得了格西“拉讓巴”學位，46名僧人獲得了中國藏語系高級佛學院“拓然巴”高級學銜。
The system whereby Tibetan Buddhist monks learn sutras is improving since the autonomous region issued the Opinions on Building a Branch of the Tibetan Buddhist Institute and Methods of Awarding Academic Ranks in the Tibetan Buddhist Institute (trial). The China Tibetan Language High-level Institute of Buddhism has been set up in Beijing, and the Tibetan Buddhist Institute in Lhasa. Both recruit and train senior Buddhist teaching personnel. More than 60 monasteries of various sects in Tibet have their own sutra learning classes, and teach and confer degrees according to tradition. Since 2005, senior academic ranks examinations and degree conferring ceremonies have been held each year at the China Tibetan Language High-level Institute of Buddhism in Beijing, and degree examinations unique to Gelug held in Jokhang Temple and the three major monasteries in Lhasa. So far, a total of 84 monks have received senior academic titles in Lhasa and 46 in Beijing.