Tabo Monastery

Text and Photographs by Mr. Sachin Vaidya

Tabo's sanctity is next only to Tibet's Tholing Gompa. It was founded in 996 AD on the bank of the Spiti River by Rin-chen-Zang-po. It belongs to the Gelukpa order. It is the oldest among continuously functional Buddhist monasteries in India. The exquisite murals of the Monastery are famed all over the world and hence, the Monastery is called 'Ajanta of the Himalayas'. The Monastery is a World Heritage Site of UNESCO.  Tabo is located 364 km North East of Shimla in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Its altitude is 10,006 feet above sea level.

 

 

I visited Tabo Monastery for the second time during May 2014. Entry gate to Tabo Village was impressive.


 

The Monastery was on a side of the road. On other side of the road, there were caves where monks used to live during winters.

Following was the way to the cave shrine:

 


I had a bird's eye view of Tabo Village.



 

The cave shrine was very simple and there was nobody. Sanctum sanctorum was closed.





The views of mountains from the cave shrine were majestic.

 



 There were other caves in the vicinity.

 




The way to small caves was slippery and hence, I did not venture to explore them.

 


Tabo Monastery prohibited photography inside the temples.

An impressive stupa left its impression on the visitors upon entry in Monastery premises. Stupa is a Buddhist mound like structure containing remains of monk or nun.



A prayer wheel is always there in or around any Buddhist monastery.



A lion like statue was in the courtyard.



Tabo Monastery's exteriors were very simple.






Accommodation was available at monastery and private guest houses; we stayed at private guest house on the earlier night. After visit, it was time to say goodbye to Tabo Village.



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