Of monks, monasteries and
mountains.
 It is a rather long and
arduous road journey which one has to undertake to reach the
lofty heights of Tawang. Starting the plains of Assam, the trip
takes one through mountains, jungles, mists and such places
of historical interest as Tenga, Bomdila and the famous Sela
Pass. All these places were household names during the 1962
conflict.
In one is lucky, in season one can
have the unforgettable experience of seeing whole
mountain sides ablaze with the colour of blooming
rhododendrons, the landscape looking like the
canvas of a Celestial Impressionist Artist gone
berserk with his bright colours. Colour
variations are provided by the wide range of
orchids growing wild and the silvery water of the
mountain stream which flows along the road for
quite some distance.
 Tawang is situated at the
towering height of over 10,000 ft. It is famous for its 350
years old Mahyana Buddhist Monastery, one of the biggest monasteries
in India. The Monastery was founded by a monk, Mera Lama,
who was a contemporary of the fifth Dalai Lama. Before the
establishment of the Monastery, Tawang was a centre of Tantric
religion. The tribals - mainly Monpas - were divided into
various religious sects and it was only after the Monastery
came up that the bulk of the population converted to Mahyana
sect, and Buddhism was developed in the area.
Tawang
Monastery, known as the ‘Galden Namgyal
Lhatse’, looks like a well - defended
fortress guarding the entire range of the
surrounding mountains. The flag atop the
Monastery can be seen from many mountain tops of
the East Himalayan Ranges.
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Fastfacts
Access
Tawang is 340 km. from Tezpur, the nearest airport. It is
180 km from Bomdila. Arunachal Pradesh, and Assam State
Transport buses ply between Tezpur and Bomdila. From Bomdila,
bus services of Arunachal State Transport and Anchal Samity
are available for Tawang. Taxis can also be hired from Tezpur
and Guwahati.
Accommodation
There is a Circuit House and a few small hotels
at Tawang.
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 The oil - lamp - lit main
hall of the Monastery is the prayer room and also the place
where religious functions and traditional folk dances are performed
by the monks as a part of religious rituals. The ‘Parkhang’
hall houses the library which contains rare hand written and
block - printed manuscripts of sacred books like ‘Tangym’,
‘Kangyur’ and ‘Sungbhum’. The rare specimens
of Buddhist literature include 108 gold - embossed manuscripts
of the ‘Teaching of Lord Buddha’ and 225 volumes of
the explanations of Buddha’s teachings covered with specially
designed moth - proof silk adorned with paintings.
The monastery - complex is
a great repository of fabulous Buddhist
artifacts, paintings and sculptures. The
buildings are covered with the finest specimens
of sculptures, carvings and paintings, including
an 18 ft. statue of Lord Buddha.
The
spread of Buddhism started in Tawang with the
arrival of monk Padmasambham in middle of the
eighth century and it still remains one of the
most important centres of religious teaching with
one of the largest lamaseries in Asia.
Lofty
Tawang, surrounded by loftier mountains, is an
ideal mirror of the Monpa and Buddhist cultures,
making the long journey well worth the effort.
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