Dalai Lama Escape

In the given passage the Dalai Lama is described in his flight from Lhasa to Yatung in order that he is not captured by the invading Red Chinese army.
This essay concerns the thoughts and discussions on the Dalai Lama by two disparate groups of people. These are the Americans and of course the Tibetans who worship him as a God-King. It must be noted here that the Tibetans believe that the Dalai Lama is literally a reincarnation of the original Buddha. We must also keep in mind that the source of the passage is an American magazine written in 1951 and so everything we read is seen through this lens as the magazine is aimed at a mainly American audience.
The Dalai Lama is described in the article as a young hero being forced to flee from his ancient home by an implacable foe. The text seems both formal and romantic as when describing the “wind-swept Tibetan tableland” (Life Magazine, 23 April 1951) and the “picturesque guards” (ibid). It continues by talking of the young man on his white horse being “heralded by long trumpets” (ibid). This old fashioned, rather overblown language is being used to paint a picture long loved by American readers – one of long held tradition.
The awe that the Dalai Lama is held in by the Tibetans is shown in the text when it refers to his being served traditional yak-butter tea in his own “gold and silver fitted porcelain cup” (ibid). Also, at every stop he blesses white scarves for his many followers. These are traditionally held to show the deepest respect. The Dalai Lama in return leaves money for the helpers at each tea stop. The article tries to show that the Dalai Lama is genuine when describing his spending an hour in solitary meditation. He is also shown to be humble in slipping quietly out of his palace at the unseemly hour of two in the morning.
To western eyes it might seem strange that the Tibetans believe the Dalai Lama to be discovered by a “host of mystic signs” (ibid) such as rainbows and particular cloud formations....