The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
Gonjang, Enchey and Rumtek Monasteries
 |
| Prayer Wheels at the Rumtek Monastery against the backdrop of the hills... |
It
was noon, and
lunch was on our mind. “Let’s take a quick look around and leave” was our only
thought as we stepped inside. The hum of chanting voices filled the monastery,
and we stood, mesmerized, at the sight of rows of monks saying their afternoon
prayers.
All thoughts of lunch forgotten, we sat down and just listened,
oblivious to the world outside. The chants went on and on, and I was reminded
of the Veda chanting in temples. The rhythmic chant was so soothing and
reassuring, we lost track of time. Then, some of the monks lifted their varied
types of trumpets and horns, and the sounds reverberated through the hall, a
fitting finale to the divine experience. And that is what I shall always
remember of our visit to the Gonjang Monastery in Gangtok.
 |
| Figures over the entrance of the Gonjang Monastery |
This
was the second monastery we had visited in Sikkim, and this experience was just as divine, just
as memorable, as the first one we visited – the Pemayangtse
Monastery in Pelling, which I have already written about, here.
Over the next couple of days, we visited two more monasteries, both in Gangtok.
The
Enchey Monastery
is located atop a hillock, and commands a wonderful view of the Kanchenjunga.
The uphill walk from the entry was made easier by the prayer wheels which lined
the path. Samhith was so busy trying to turn each and every one of them, he
almost forgot to complain about having to walk!
 |
| The Enchey Monastery |
This
monastery,
built like a Chinese Pagoda, was completely deserted when we visited, probably
because it was afternoon, just after their prayer session. It was, therefore
incredibly peaceful inside, and really cool, considering the harsh afternoon
sun. We were wary of disturbing the peace, and didn’t even try to explore, but
just sat for a while and came out.
 |
| Windows of the Enchey Monastery |
Every
monastery we
had visited so far had been interesting, but we rued the lack of information. For
laymen like us, who knew little about Buddhism, and even less of Tibetan
Buddhism, there was nothing which explained the meanings of the paintings, or
the names of the deities. We wished there was someone who could tell us more.
Then,
on our last day in Sikkim, we visited the Rumtek Monastery, and there, the first
thing we noticed, was a board announcing “Guides Available”! It was almost as
if someone up there had heard our wish! The chap at the ticket counter was
taken aback, when, even before asking for the ticket, I asked for the guide!
 |
| Monks and guards at the Rumtek Monastery. A dispute between two sects has led to the army being posted here! |
A young
man standing nearby smiled and came forward, asking me to buy the ticket, assuring us that
he was the guide. Over the next hour or so, he took us around, showing us the
highlights of the monastery, telling us about the concepts and ideas, and patiently
answering our many questions.
 |
| Shankar deep in discussion with our guide |
I was
most fascinated
by the concept of the Wheel of Life or the Bhavachakra, which
adorns the front wall of each monastery. We had seen it before, but having it
explained made all the difference. The idea of the three poisons – attachment,
ignorance and aversion – leading to actions, or karma, which eventually lead to
suffering, and being caught in the wheel of life, is a concept not too different
from Hinduism. That this wheel can be escaped, and that we can attain
enlightenment, is certainly a very Buddhist idea, and we had an interesting discussion,
right at the entrance of the monastery.
 |
| The Wheel of Life |
On
the outer walls
of the main monastery, we were surprised to see a painting of Ganesha.
Interestingly, we learnt that the Karmapa, during the construction of this
monastery, had a vision of Ganesha removing the obstacles which came in the way,
and ordered the painting of Ganesha along with the four other guardian deities
who adorn these walls.
 |
| Rumtek Monastery |
Inside, the massive idols of Mahakala and
Mahakali, which are taken out during festivals reminded me of our ‘utsava
vigrahams’! (Photography isn’t allowed inside, so no photos, sorry). A beautiful
painting of the Buddha adorns a wall, and near it stands an imposing, ten feet
tall statue of the Sakyamuni Buddha. The painting, we were told, originally
stood in place of the idol, and the eyes were painted by the Karmapa himself! Around
them, in niches, stand one thousand small statues of the Buddha, representing
the arrival of 1000 Buddhas in this era. The throne of the Karmapa takes centre
stage. After all, this is his seat. And all around are religious texts – the sacred
scrolls which are the commentaries of the Buddha’s teachings, translated from
Sanskrit to Tibetan, and also commentaries on these teachings. It is surely the
importance and veneration accorded to these texts which adds to the allure of
the monasteries!
 |
| A painting of the Rumtek Monastery on one of the entrance walls |
Our guide
then led us to
the hill behind, where we visited the Golden Stupa, housing the relics of the
Sixteenth Karmapa. It was here that we learned of the four schools of Tibetan
Buddhism, and that we had so far visited monasteries of two schools – the Pemayangtse
Monastery as well as the Gonjang and Enchey Monasteries belong to the Nyingma order,
which is the oldest school of Tibetan Buddhism, while the Rumtek Monastery
belongs to the Karma Kagyu school, and is the main seat of the Karmapa (the
head of the order) in Sikkim. There are two other schools, which we have yet to
learn more about, and hopefully will have the opportunity soon!
 |
| Buddhas painted on the outer walls |
One thing
is for sure,
the monasteries of Sikkim have whetted our appetite for knowledge, and we are
now eager to explore more monasteries!
Information:
- Gonjang Monastery is located 6 Km from Gangtok. We stopped at the Monastery while driving down from the Gangtok Zoo to the Bakthang Falls.
- Website: http://gonjangmonastery.org/
- Enchey Monastery is located near the TV tower, about 3 Km from the city centre.
- Rumtek Monastery is located about 24 Km from Gangtok.
- Website: http://www.rumtek.org/
- Our guide at Rumtek was Monay Rai, an enthusiastic young man, who very patiently and exhaustively discussed Buddhism with us. You can write to him at monayrai@yahoo.com or call him on +91 8343072702
Beautiful monasteries. Glad to know more about them.
ReplyDeleteThank you Niranjan!
DeleteLoving the series and absolutely love the photographs. We are planning a trip to Sikkim soon and I have a question ... can you please tell me the condition of the roads? I assume we will have to take cars or jeeps, hence the question.
ReplyDeleteThanks.
Thank you Sharmila! The roads arent all that good, but you can take a car. It is best to hire a vehicle from Sikkim itself since outside vehicles arent allowed everywhere. Small cars will work for tours in and around Gangtok, but bigger vehicles will be needed for other trips... such as Nathu La, or trips to North Sikkim.
DeleteThanks for sharing information on Rumtek Monastery. It is one of the most beautiful and popular monasteries in Sikkim.
ReplyDelete