The Tawang district is located at the north-west of the state of Arunachal Pradesh in India. The sixth Dalai Lama, Tsangyang Gyatso, was born in Tawang. Tawang is situated at 10000 ft ASL, NORTH WEST PART OF ARUNACHAL PRADESH.It is the hottest tourist spot now a days. ... This article explains the meaning of area as a physical quantity. ... To help compare orders of magnitude of different geographical regions, we list here surface areas between 100,000 km² and 1,000,000 km². ... Arunachal Pradesh (अरुणाचल प्रदेश) is an Indian state. ... Tsangyang Gyatso, (Wylie transliteration: Tshang dbyang Rgya mtsho), (1683 – November 15, 1706) was the sixth Dalai Lama. ...

Geography and Administration

Tawang town; the famous Tawang monastery can be seen in the background

Tawang borders the Line of Actual Control between India and China on disputed Indian-administered territory, as part of Arunachal Pradesh. From China's point of view it is considered as part of the Cona County of the Tibet Autonomous Region. It also shares another international border with Bhutan, and a district border with West Kameng. Image File history File links Self taken picture. ... Image File history File links Self taken picture. ... Line of Actual Control is the current border dividing Indian and Chinese occupied territory on the western part of India after the 1962 Sino-Indian War. ... Arunachal Pradesh (अरुणाचल प्रदेश) is an Indian state. ... The Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) (Tibetan: བོད་རང་སྐྱོང་ལྗོངས་; Wylie: Bod-rang-skyong-ljongs; Simplified Chinese: 西藏自治区; Traditional Chinese: 西藏自治區; pinyin: ), is a province-level autonomous region of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC). ... tribes follow [[Donyi- The largest of these, the Monpa, who form 7% 25,000) of the peoples population, ar Buddhist by religion. ...

It roughly lies between the latitude 27 º 45’ N and the longitude 90º 15’ E on the Northwest extremity of Arunachal Pradesh. Elevations range between 6,000 to 22,000 feet, and inhabitants are found in lower altitude, where they enjoy a cool temperate climate. Arunachal Pradesh (अरुणाचल प्रदेश) is an Indian state. ...

The district is administer by the current MP, Shri Jorbom Gamlin. Tawang district is further sub-divided into the Lumla, Jang and Tawang sub-dividsions. The district itself has 3 principal monasteries as well.

People

Most of the people, which includes the Monpa, Takpa and the Tibetans, are Tibetan Buddhist by religion. Pre-Buddhist Bön and Shamanist influence is also evident. Festivals that include Losar, Choskar, Torgya and Ajilamu are held annually. The Dungyur is also celebrated in every three years of the Torgya. Both the Dungyur and Torgya festivals are celebrated at the premises of the Tawang Monastery with traditional gaiety and enthusiasm. Tibetan Buddhism, (formerly also called Lamaism after their religious gurus known as lamas), is the body of religious Buddhist doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and the Himalayan region. ... Bön has typically been described as the shamanistic religion in Tibet before the arrival of Buddhism in the 7th century. ... A shaman doctor of Kyzyl. ... Losar is the Tibetan word for new year. ...

Economy

Most of the tribes depend on agriculture for a living. Owing to its cold weather, farmers breed yak and sheep herds, although in lower altitudes crops are planted as well. Binomial name Bos gruniens Linnaeus, 1766 Subspecies The yak (Bos grunniens) is a long-haired humped domestic bovine found in Tibet and throughout the Himalayan region of south central Asia. ...

History

Prior to the construction of the Tawang monastery, Tawang was traditionally inhabited by the Monpa people, who reigned the Mon kingdom that streches from Tawang right up to Sikkim. The Mon kingdom was later absorbed into the control of neighbouring Bhutan and Tibet. The Monpa (门巴) are an ethnic group in the Peoples Republic of China, with a population of 50,000, centered in the districts of Tawang and West Kameng. ... Sikkim is a landlocked Indian state nestled in the Himalayas. ... Tibet (older spelling Thibet; Tibetan: བོད་, Bod, pronounced pö in Lhasa dialect; Chinese: 西藏, pinyin: XÄ«zàng or 藏区 ZàngqÅ« [the two names are used with different connotations; see Names section below]) is a region in Central Asia and the home of the...

The Tawang monastery was founded by the Merak Lama Lodre Gyatso in 1681 in accordance to the wishes of the 5th Dalai Lama, Nagwang Lobsang Gyatso, and has an interesting legend surrounding its name, which means "Chosen by Horse". Tawang then came under direct control from Tibet until February 12, 1951, when Major R Khating of the Indian Army evicted Tibetan administrators.

After India severed Tawang off from Tibet, it was not until 1962 when Chinese troops occupied Tawang during the Sino-Indian War, destroying portions of the monastery. After the voluntary withdrawal of Chinese troops, Tawang was once again under the control of India. Tibet (older spelling Thibet; Tibetan: བོད་, Bod, pronounced pö in Lhasa dialect; Chinese: 西藏, pinyin: Xīzàng or 藏区 Zàngqū [the two names are used with different connotations; see Names section below]) is a region in Central Asia and the home of the... The Sino-Indian war was a short border war between India and the Peoples Republic of China (PRC), the worlds two most populous countries, which took place in late 1962. ...

The Tawang district broke off from the West Kameng district in 1984. Today, Tawang serves as a center for tourist attractions, thanks to the reserved beauty of the Tawang monastery. tribes follow [[Donyi- The largest of these, the Monpa, who form 7% 25,000) of the peoples population, ar Buddhist by religion. ...

Attractions

Tawang Monastery

Founded by the Mera Lama Lodre Gyasto in accordance to the wishes of the 5th Dalai Lama, Nagwang Lobsang Gyatso, The Tawang monastery of the Gelugpa sect is the largest Buddhist monastery in India. The name Tawang means Chosen Horse. It is also known in another Tibetan name known as Galden Namgey Lhatse, which means a true name within a celestial paradise in a clear night. The Geluk (dge lugs) School was founded by Tsongkhapa (1357-1419), Tibets best known religious reformer and arguably its greatest philosopher. ... A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. It had subsequently been accepted by...

Located at an elevation of 10,000 feet (3,300m) in the district capital, Tawang, it is home to more than 600 Lamas. It has also a houses the Parkhang library. A collection of the 400-year-old Kangyurs which consists of 110 volumes with 400-500 pages in each bundle in addition to invaluable manuscripts. The lamas would get ready on ceremonial occasions for their dances and prayers. Dances and ceremonial celebrations are held in the courtyard, the most important of which is held on the night of Buddha Purnima. Other large collections include the Sutras, Tangym, Sungbhum, old books and other manuscripts, both handwritten and printed, many of them in gold. The collection has a total of 850 bundles. Lama can refer to: the Tibetan word for religious teacher (like the Sanskrit term guru) see Tibetan Buddhism. ...

It also houses a small printing press, which is meant for printing books to literate monks for religious services and their own education. The most fascinaing part is or the assembly hall - a three-storied building housing the temple and the 8.3-m high Golden Buddha. A stone image of the Buddha. ...

Unfortunately, Ligdan Khan deposed the sixth Dalai Lama in 1706 and sent an army in 1714 to invade Bhutan from Tawang. During the campaign, they destroyed the Dalai Lama's restored and enlarged monastery at Urgelling as an attempt to obliterate his memorials.

The Tawang monastery is 3 storey high and occupies an area of 140 square metres and houses 65 residential buildings in addition to the library. It is renovated in 1997 by the Dalai Lama. The 14th and current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso (born 1935) The 13th Dalai Lama, Thubten Gyatso (1876-1933) In Tibetan Buddhism, the successive Dalai Lamas (taa-lai bla-ma) form a tulku lineage of Gelugpa leaders which trace back to 1391. ...

Other attractions

In addition to the Tawang monastery, the town has a Handicrafts Center, which was started to promote the small-scale industries for local handicrafts. The center has a fine range of woolen carpets and shawls amongst other things. People may also purchase rather inexpensive but good chubbas and shoes.

External links

• Tawang District Government Website
• Legendary beginnings about the Tawang monastery
• Buddhism adds richness to the paradise of Tawang