evidence: He said that after His Holiness left Tibet in 1959, he gave his first teaching in exile at Tawang 55 years ago. The people of Tawang had decided to present an award to him to mark the event. The trophy, made of silver, is formed of a lotus to represent His Holiness’s compassion, a globe to represent his worldwide activities, and topped by a Dharma wheel. [...] The Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Kiren Rijiju, quoted His Holiness’s often saying that Indians were the gurus while Tibetans were the chelas or disciples, "But," he said, "His Holiness is the world’s guru. We need his blessings." [...] "Today, we have Ganden Tri Rinpoche and Sharpa and Jangtse Chöjeys, two Ministers from Karnataka, and esteemed representatives from Arunachal Pradesh here among us. The Mön people have close spiritual links with Tibet. The Arunachal government wants to commemorate the 55th anniversary of my first teaching in Tawang. I’d like to thank them."