Famous Temples in India

Architecture

The monastery is known for its murals and stucco sculptures carved on the wall just like Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra. The monastery complex comprises 9 temples, 23 chortens, a monk's chamber, and an extension that houses the nun's chamber. Some temples in the complex are regarded as earlier construction, while another group belongs to a later period. The temples in the first group include The Temple of the Enlightened Gods, The Golden Temple, The Mystic Mandala Temple/Initiation Temple, The Bodhisattva Maitreya Temple and The Temple of Dromton. Those included in the second group are The Chamber of Picture Treasures, The Large Temple of Dromton, The Mahakala Vajra Bhairava Temple and The White Temple. The monastery is located on a flat ground and spread over an area of 6300 sq meters in Tabo village, which is about 46 km from Kaza. The tourists can stay in Tabo village as it has many small hotels as well as homestays along with eating options that give tourists a more relaxing and comfortable stay.

The temples here house a priceless collection of manuscripts and thangkas (Buddhist scroll paintings), exquisite statues in stuccos, frescos, and murals depicting tales from the Mahayana Buddhist Pantheon. Assembly halls the important part of this complex, which showcases a four-fold figure of Vairocana, one of the five spiritual sons of Adibuddha, wall paintings that depict the life of Buddha, cave paintings, etc. The paintings in the Tabo monastery are amazingly preserved and are in great condition and this is the reason why tourists visit this place and catch a glimpse of the fine artwork. Facing the monastery, on the crags of a hillside are small cave-dwelling units that were used by monks of the higher-order for deep meditation sessions that stretched from weeks to months. Taking a look at these small caves, where one can barely sit in a crouched position, leaves one wondering about the strength of a human mind when it attempts to achieve the impossible.

Main temple - The main temple has an entry hall (Go Khang), followed by an Assembly Hall (Du Khang). At the western end of the assembly hall there is an apse (recessed area), which has a cella or shrine area (Ti Tsang Khang) with an ambulatory (Kor lam Khang) passage. The entry hall has pictures of Yeshe-O and his two sons Nagaraja and Devaraja, the founders of the temple, on its south wall. The temple has a new entry hall (Go Khang), which has paintings dated to the late 19th century or 20th century. The old entry hall, which originally formed the only part of the complex, has retained the paintings of 996 AD. The Vajradhatu mandala is seen in the New Assembly Hall after entering from the old entry hall where the main deity of Vajradhatu, Vairocana (height 110 cm), is shown seated on a single lotus throne on the back wall. The main iconographic deities here are the Vajradhatu and life-size clay sculptures with painted decorations complementing the main theme. The mandala also has 32 life-size clay sculptures of other deities that are embedded to the wall which merge well within the painted environment. The Protector Deity, Dorje Chenmo, originally known as Wi-nyu-nin, of the main temple, was venerated in this hall. The paintings are of very good quality with bright colors and are dated to the 15th or early 16th century. An inscription that brings out the details of the renovation works done is fixed to the right of the Vajrapasa image. The paintings are depicted in three sections with the central panel of the throne scene. The royal lama, Jangchub 'Od, who was in charge of the renovation, is painted here. On the left part of the composition, the great Sangha of Tabo monastery is depicted.

Three very large life-size sculptures are located on a raised platform within the shrine area of the temple. Each is flanked by a pair of painted goddesses. A seated Buddha figure sitting on a throne with the base sculpted with two lions facing each other is also seen; this is a partially restored image. The circumambulation of the temple performed by the devotees in a clock-wise fashion passes through the assembly hall. During this process, the narrative imagery on the south and adjacent walls, the pilgrimage of Sudhana, and on the north and adjacent walls, the Life of the Buddha are seen. The main temple (Tsug la Khang) has the main hall and main assembly area. It also contains many scriptures written on wooden planks, which are hung on the walls. The dark main temple room is lit by a small sky window and hence the room appears dark. In the inner vestibule, there are colorful frescoes of Buddhist and Hindu-Buddhist gods. Next to the vestibule is the small room where garments for the ritual dances are kept. The main hall at the center is studded with images, and at the center is a Buddha image in the Lotus position. This image is flanked on either side by divine figures. On the pedestals next to the main image are many more brass images of Lamas. Tapestries cover the walls, doors, columns, and paintings of various Buddha incarnations, starting with Siddhartha and that of the Panchen Lamas, give it a divine atmosphere. About 50 clay images and full-size busts of gods and demons are seen in the back wall of the main hall. The 108 holy scriptures are also part of the main hall display and weigh about 500 pounds.

Stupas - There are many stupas in the precincts of the temple complex of which four have paintings in its interior. Two of the stupas are dated to the 13th century, based on the paintings. A carved wooden lintel was also found in one of the stupas.