Bomdila Monastery, Arunachal Pradesh, India

Mahayana Tradition, 20th century.

Bomdila Monastery dates to the year 1965. It owes its inception to the 12th reincarnate of Tsona Gontse Rinpoche, who built the monastery before his death in the year 1966. It is a replica of the Tsona Gontse monastery at Tsona in the southern Tibet.

Bomdila Monastery. Photo: Jaishri Doshi.

Location

Bomdila is the headquarters of West Kameng district in the state of Arunachal Pradesh in India. It has an average elevation of 2415 meters.

History

Bomdila monastery is also known as the Gentse Gaden Rabgyel Ling monastery. The 13th reincarnation of Tsona Gontse Rinponche (1967 - 2014) renovated the monastery by including a large main prayer hall, which was blessed by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in 1997.

Features

The Gompa comprises a prayer hall, a temple of the Buddha and residential quarters for the monks.

Buddha Statue in the prayer hall. Photo: Ayananta Sarkar.

Festivals

The monastery follows the Mahayana school of Buddhism and celebrates festivals important in a Buddhist's life.

• Losar is celebrated to mark the beginning of the Tibetan New Year. This festival lasts 15 days, and prayers are offered along with hoisting of the prayer flags.

• Saka Dawa, held on the fourth month of the lunar calendar, marks the day of the Buddha's enlightenment.

• Torgya is another major occasion celebrated for three days in the eleventh month of the lunar calendar to celebrate the victory of good over the evil.

• Dukpa Tse-Shi, observed in the 6th month according to the lunar calendar honors the first sermon delivered by the Buddha.

• Lhabab Duechen festival marks the incarnation of the Buddha in His Shakyamuni form, celebrated on the ninth month of the calendar.

Travel

Despite its rough roads and tough climatic conditions, Bomdila is well connected with Guwahati (264 km), Tawang (167 km), and Tezpur (162 km). One should be aware of the landslides while traveling by road.

The nearest airport is in Tezpur (Assam) where buses and taxis are available. The closest railway station is Rangapara Railway station (Assam) which is around 145 km away from Bomdila.

Sources

• https://en.wikivoyage.org/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bomdila_Monastery
• http://cpreecenvis.nic.in/Database/Bomdilamonastery_3596.aspx
• http://www.buddhist-temples.com/buddhist-monastery/arunachal/bomdila.html

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