Mysore and More

A few days back I took a train from Bangalore to Mysore and spent a day enjoying the sights and sounds of the town where I had lived as a child. The most impressive piece of architecture there is clearly the Mysore Palace. There are several palaces in Mysore. So remember to ask for the one inside the fort.  It is home to the Wodeyar dynasty which ruled this erstwhile princely state from 1399 till 1947, when India became free. The architectural style of the palace is commonly described as Indo-Saracenic, and blends together Hindu, Muslim, Rajput, and Gothic styles of architecture. It is a three-storied stone structure, with marble domes and a 145 ft five-storied tower. But Mysore was only a brief stopover. The real attraction was further – Little Tibet.

Just a short drive from Mysore is the village of Bylakuppe. It is an inconspicuous detour off the main road. The town is called Kushalnagar that can be best described as Little Tibet. The town is home to the Namdroling Monastery which has over 5000 Tibetan monks and nuns.  I have seen a piece of Tibetan culture in the town of Dharamsala in the hills of Himachal Pradesh in June 2007 when I met the Dalai Lama.

I stop a monk to ask questions. He is in a hurry but chooses to humor me. “The Namdroling monastry built in 1963 is officially called Thegchog Namdrol Shedrub Dargyeling. We follow the Palyul line of the Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism.” He is getting late for his prayers and scurries off with a breathless apology. I follow him to the main prayer hall of the Padmasambhava Buddhist Vihara popularly known as the Golden Temple among locals. It is a somber atmosphere. The dimly lit hall has some impressive statues of the Buddha. Rows and rows of monks are seated with their scriptures opened in front. At the sound of a gong, there is pin drop silence. The prayers begin. The sound of the collective voices produces a hum that reverberates in the dome of the hall.  I am distracted by the beautiful paintings of Tibetan myths on the wall. (Download  this photo for your desktop)

Namdroling Monastery hosts several ceremonies. Of particular interest are Tibetan New Year (Losar), the timing of which approximately matches Mardi Gras in the West. The monastery hosts traditional Lama Dances, oversize Thankga hanging from the sides of its buildings, as well as solemn processions throughout the monastery grounds spanning approximately two weeks. Don’t miss the scenes from Tibetan mythology painted on the walls of the main prayer hall. Some Tibetan myths say the original being was the “uncreated blue toad of turquoise”; some say it was a tigress. In some stories, creation comes from the killing of a primordial being by a young hero, sometimes, especially in Ladakh, named Gesar, whom Buddhists would see as an incarnation of Avalokiteshvara. Finally, there are indigenous myths that see creation as coming from the struggle between the powers of light (“Radiance”) and those of darkness (“Black Misery”). In this model, the black lord creates all that is anti- existence out of a cosmic egg, while the white lord creates all that is good.

If you have not visited Tibet, a visit to Namdroling is recommended.

Enjoy this video

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Download a photo of the Dalai Lama with a prayer written in his own handwriting or paste this link in your browser

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29537061@N05/4273459452/sizes/o/

Read the post written after my meeting the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, India click here or cut and paste this link in your browser

http://abhijitbhaduri.com/2007/07/meeting-the-dalai-lama/

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