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Tawang Monastery, (Arunachal Pradesh)

 

The most important place of tourist attraction in Arunachal Pradesh is the Tawang Monastery or Gompa, also called the Golden Namgyel Lhatse. It is believed to be 400 years old, the oldest in the world and controls 17 Gompas in the region.

A magnificent edifice of Buddhist history, culture and religion, this monastery was constructed in the 17th century by a man called Mere Lama. Monpas believe that Mere Lama was born at Kipti, a small village in the vicinity of Tawang. Mere became a Lama or a Buddhist priest at a young age and embarked on a career of praying and meditation. The monastery is the fountainhead of spiritual life of the followers of the Gellupa sect of the Mahayana school of Buddhism. The Tawang monastery is associated with the Torgva festival which is held in the eleventh Monpa month called the Dawa Chukchipah (i.e Dec – Jan as per the Buddhists.)

  

The Tawang monastery, bearing close resemblance to Tibetan structures, is a three storeyed, fortified monastery over 140 square metres high which houses the temple and the 8 mtr high gilded statue of Lord Buddha. The gompa is designed to house six hundred monks in addition to nunneries for housing the nuns. It is believed that though the Dalai Lama declined to accept Mere Lama’s invitation to bless the gompa in person after its completion, he drew a tangkha, or a holy scroll, with his own blood. The scroll was then encased in silk and kept hidden in the main altar. Since then the scroll has been looked upon by the people as their protective deity.

The Tibetan influence here is unmistakable with the elaborately painted wooden windows and other motifs. 

A must visit is the craft centre which produces very fine woolen carpets of colourful designs and masks. The monastery attracts scholars and pilgrims from all over the world. Religious life in Tawang centres round the monastery where young boys from the surrounding villages are taught the Buddhist way of life.