Tawang: 3 Legends surrounding India’s largest monastery
Are you familiar with Tawang? Yes, it’s a hilly town in India’s north-eastern-most state Arunachal Pradesh that shares its border with China. In fact, recently, Tawang has been the centre of the long-anticipated Indo-China clash restoring its earlier reputation.
What reputation? Well, for starters, it’s a border town only 16 kilometres south of the Line of Actual Control with China. Next, it has a whooping elevation of more than 10000 feet, making it one of the highest towns in India, not to forget it’s an ideal tourist spot thanks to its breath-taking mountainous views along the Tawang Chu river. Wait, we are missing out on the most important thing about Tawang. It’s home to India’s largest monastery, that also happens to be one of the world’s biggest and tallest monastery. We are talking about the Tawang Monastery or Gaden Namgyal Lhatse (in Tibetan). The local name literally translates to “the divine paradise of complete victory.” It is three-storeyed high with 65 residential buildings in the premises including a grand library that contains old Buddhist scriptures such as Kangyur and Tengyur. Wondering when it was built? Well, there are three legends surrounding it. Let’s get to them, one by one.
A horse chose the location of the monastery
The most popular theory surrounding the establishment of the Tawang Monastery is that it was founded by a Buddhist monk named Merak Lama Lodre Gyatso in 1680-81 according to the wishes of the fifth Dalai Lama Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso. But guess what, none of the men selected the location of the monastery. Okay, so what happened? Well, legends have it that unable to decide upon a place for the monastery, Merak Lama had retired into a cave and prayed for divine intervention. But when he came out, he realised that his horse was missing. When he went looking for the animal, he found it standing on top of the Tana Mandekhang Mountain, where he commissioned the monastery to be built. Interestingly, the name Tawang means “chosen by horse.”
A treasure hunter named the monastery
Just like its location, the name Tawang also has a legend associated with it. Turns out, after the monastery was built, a Buddhist treasure hunter named Terton Pemalingpa was visiting the site for work. When he was disappointed having found nothing to his taste, he took shelter in the monastery. Now, back then, the place didn’t have many employees, which is why when two young travellers wished to be initiated into the monastery, Pemalingpa stepped up and gave them a rite of passage as monks. He named them Tamdin and Wang respectively. This resulted in the name Tawang.
A goddess resides in the monastery
Apart from Lord Buddha himself, legends believe that the Tawang Monastery is the home to a female deity named Palden Lhamo who is equivalent to the Hindu goddess Kali. In fact, like Devi Kali, Lhamo too is black in colour, with flaming eyes and dons a dress made of tiger skin and garland of skulls around her neck. Not only that, a moon disc like that on Lord Shiva is found on top of her head. Legends also have it that she was originally a consort of a demon king of Lanka who practised human sacrifice. However, Lhamo was against this evil act and fled to Tawang and found respite in the non-violent principles of Lord Buddha.