Panchen Erdeni Chos-kyi-rgyal-po, also known as Panchen Rinpoche, blesses residents in Panam county, Shigatse, in the Xizang autonomousegion, on Friday. Panchen Rinpoche, who is a member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, vice-president of the Buddhist Association of China and president of the association's Xizang branch, began a five-day trip to Shigatse starting Nov 20, during which he visited three monasteries.