Tabo Monastery

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Location
Tabo Monastery is situated in Tabo village in Spiti valley of Himachal Pradesh.

The Buddhist Pilgrimage
Tabo valley in Spiti holds a special place in the hearts of Buddhist. The land of Tabo is very holy for Buddhists, as it houses many ancient and new monasteries. The mythical city dates back to 996 AD, year of Fire Ape, as per Tibetan calendar. Tabo is also refered as "Ajanta of the Himalayas". The Tabo Monastery is actually a complex, encompassiing many small Gompas, monasteries and temples. The world famous ancient monastery, located on the bank of river Spiti, offers a valuable window to Tibetan culture. There are a total of nine shrines, which were constructed and renovated between 10 th & l5th century AD. The most important amongst these shrine is Dukhung. Here 33 stucco images of Buddha, Bodhisatvas gods and goddess surround the central. figure of Vairochana. The walls are decorated with beautiful paintings, as old as the monastery. The life of Sakyamuni Buddha is also elegantly depicted here. The gompa also contains wooden images and a precious library of ancient manuscripts.


The Temple Interiors
When the Tabo Monastery was designed, it was built according to the concept of the Mandala, in its outer as well as its inner structure. The main temple, Tsug Lhakang was at the centre of the complex. The central statue of Saravid Vairochana was kept at the centre along the east west axis, placed in the central spot of the surrounding 32 statues and the Mandala around him. This provided the statue central most position, not only in temple, but also in whole complex. The 33 deities of the cycle of Tabo´s Vajradhatu Mandala are the symbols of special moments in the meditation process. The five fold mandala expresses a particular system of cosmic evolution. The Supreme Buddhas, the Dhyanibuddhas or Tathagatas surrounding Vairochana are depicted in the four pure colours: red (Amitabha), yellow (Ratnasambhava), green (Amoghasiddhi) and blue (Akshobhya), symbolically expressing the lines of cosmic evolution of a buddhist monk.

The Nine Temples
The Temple of the Enlightened Gods (Tug-Lha-khang):
This is also known as the assembly hall (du-khang) and is quite the core of the complex. This has a vestibule, an assembly hall and a sanctum. The central figure of this hall is the four-fold figure of Vairocana, one of the five spiritual sons of Adibuddha (primordial Buddha).

The Golden Temple (Ser-khang):
Once said to have been layered with gold, this temple was exhaustively renovated in the 16th century by Senge Namgyal, ruler of Ladakh. The walls and ceilings are covered with outstanding murals.

The Mystic Mandala Temple (dKyil-kHor- khang):
The temples has huge paintings of Vairocana, surrounded by eight Bodhisattvas. Here the initiation to monkhood takes place.

The Bodhisattva Maitreya Temple (Byams-Pa Chen-po Lha-khang):
The temple has an image of the Bodhisattva Maitreya, over 6 mtr high. The temple has a hall, vestibule and sanctum. The array of murals within also depicts the monastery of Tashi-Chunpo and Lhasa's Potala palace.

The Temple of Dromton (Brom-ston Lha khang):
A small portico and long passage leads to its hall. The doorway is intricately carved and the inner walls are covered with murals. It lies on the northern edge of the complex and is regarded to have been founded by Dromton, an important disciple of Atisha, durind 10th century AD.

The Chamber of Picture Treasures (Z'al-ma):
This is a kind of an ante room attached to the Enlightened Gods temple. It is covered with beautiful paintings of the Tibetan style.


The Large Temple of Dromton (Brom-ston Lha khang):
The second largest temple in the complex, this has a floor area of over 70 sq mtr, while the portico and niche add another 42 sq mtr. The front wall has the figure of Sakyamuni flanked by Sariputra and Maha Maugdalayana. The outer walls depicts Buddha and Guardian Kings.

The Mahakala Vajra Bhairava Temple (Gon-khang):
This enshrines the protective deity of the Galuk-pa sect. Fierce deities fill the room and it is only entered after protective meditation. At times it is called the 'temple of horror'.

The White Temple (Kar-abyum Lha-Khang):
The walls of this temple are also adorned leaving a low dado for the monks or nuns to lean against.

Reaching Tabo
Tabo can reached by road from Manali and Shimla. From Manali, Tabo is around 250 Km, and takes around 12 hours. Shimla is 365 kms from Tabo, and it takes more than a day to reach Tabo from Shimla. One can also reach Kullu by air, and take up the roadways to reach Tabo, which is 295 kms from Kullu.