DHARAMSHALA – Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, expressed his aspiration to live beyond the age of 130, shortly after detailing his succession strategy by announcing plans to reincarnate following his death.

The Dalai Lama, poised to celebrate his 90th birthday this Sunday, shared these thoughts during a special ceremony held by his followers, dedicated to prayers for his extended life.

“Thus far, I have been able to serve Buddha dharma and the people of Tibet effectively, and my hope is to live past 130 years,” the Dalai Lama stated to the thousands of followers assembled on Saturday in Dharamshala, a northern town in India.

Dharamshala has been the Dalai Lama’s home in exile since 1959 after he fled Tibet in the wake of a failed uprising against Chinese rule. Since then, he has sustained Tibet’s aspirations for greater autonomy under Chinese Communist Party rule and mobilized Tibetans inside and outside China.

On Wednesday, the Dalai Lama said that he intends to reincarnate, paving the way after his death for a successor to take on a mantle stretching back 500 years. Tibetan Buddhists believe the Dalai Lama can choose the body into which he is reincarnated.

That announcement ended years of speculation that started when he indicated that he might be the last person to hold the role.

The Nobel Peace Prize-winning spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhism also said that the next Dalai Lama should be found and recognized as per past Buddhist traditions, while stressing that his office will lead the search.

China views the Dalai Lama as a separatist and has insisted that only Beijing has the authority to approve his successor.

Meanwhile, the exiled Tibetan community of more than 20,000 people in Dharamshala is gearing up to celebrate the Dalai Lama’s birthday on Sunday. His followers have put up giant posters and billboards across town, as tens of thousands of people are expected to attend the event, including Buddhist leaders of various sects and followers from across the world.

Barbara Weibel, a U.S. citizen who has been following Buddhism for more than 30 years, said she “had to be here for this.”

“I want this long life ceremony to keep him alive as long as possible,” she said.