Tak-Tsang Gompa or T Gompa: As serene as it gets

The name means tiger’s den, but it is a Buddhist monastery located in the high altitude of the Eastern Himalayas in Western Arunachal Pradesh. Everything about it is peaceful. The place is so  quiet that the only sound you can hear is that of the wind blowing and your heat beating.


It is believed that this Buddhist monastery was hallowed by the visit of Guru Padma Sambhava in the 8th century. Legend has it that the guru meditated here in a cave for sometime.


Today, this place is such that you feel like meditating literally anywhere in its campus. The bitter cold winds coming by the nearby mountains make you cringe, but in spite of it you feel a warmth in this place. When I was exploring this place, I only found a monk who was so busy meditating that he hardly noticed my presence. His meditation had a lot of power in it and tons of passion too. I was so moved by him that I think I will definitely go back to him and be his disciple. May be, I will learn something from him.


The Tak-Tsang Gompa (Gonpa) or T Gompa is located close to Sangetsar Lake (also known as Madhuri Jheel) and is located at an altitude of about 12,500 to 13,000 feet. As with most Buddhist monasteries, the T Gompa is also situated on the top of a hillock and by a cliff.


It is about 40 kilometers from the town of Tawang and takes about 2 hours to drive to T Gompa from Tawang. The route is fairly simple. From Tawang, one heads on the road to Bumla pass. At Y junction, a road to the left leads to Sangetsar Lake and from Sangetsar lake, it is a steep uphill climb for about 15 minutes.


I have had a fair share of Buddhist monasteries in India across Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh and I have to say that this place is definitely very different. There is something special about it.


May be, it is the Himalayan remoteness. May be, it is the feeling of true peace. I really don’t know and I will definitely one day return to this place to find out more.

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Jaswantgarh War Memorial, Nuranang, Arunachal Pradesh

A great pit stop enroute to Tawang would be the Jaswantgarh war memorial located at Nuranang, about 25 kms from Tawang. This war memorial, set in scenic terrain just below the Sela pass commemorates the bravery of the martyred Indian soldiers of the 1962 Indo-China war. 


This war memorial stands in memory of rifleman Jaswant Singh Rawat, Mahavir Chakra Awardee (Posthumous) of the 4th Battalion of Garhwal Rifles Infantry Regiment. Jaswant showed his valor by fighting and holding the invading Chinese back for 72 hours all alone during the 1962 India-China war and remained at his post at an altitude of about 10,000 feet before succumbing to an enemy bullet during that bloody winter war. The post that he held to repulse the Chinese troops has been renamed Jaswant Garh in recognition of his valor and sacrifice.



This temple-like Jaswantgarh memorial has a garlanded bronze bust of Jaswant Singh, a portrait of the war hero and his belongings including the Army uniform, cap, watch and belt. The Garhwal Rifles are today deployed on India’s western borders, but the unit makes it a point to keep at least half a dozen personnel here to take care of Rawat as if he were alive. He is served bed tea at 4:30 am, breakfast at 9 am and dinner at 7 pm. Five Army soldiers are at his service round the clock. There are no chores to be done. Life couldn’t be more comfortable for ‘Baba’ Jaswant Singh Rawat, but for the fact that he is no more.


These soldiers not only serve Baba. They render yeoman service for travelers along the hazardous portion of mountain terrain. Besides coming to rescue of travelers in trouble, they run a snack store where they serve tea, coffee and delicious samosas and pakoras to refresh the tired tourists, charging a nominal price that goes to upkeep of the war memorial. It is quite a special moment to encounter such a heroic saga of someone who has made the supreme sacrifice to protect our motherland.

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Jeep Track inside Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary

Eaglenest Wildlife sanctuary is a brilliantly dense forest. Slightly nippy weather, views of snow capped Himalayan peaks and the chirps of the various birds make the experience even more amazing. And if you happen to be here in the fall season, then you can be prepared to be overwhelmed by the vibrant fall colours.



In this case, I took this photo while walking on the jeep track inside Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary in Western Arunachal Pradesh, North East India. Personally, I like the dark outline of the curving jeep track against the dense Eaglenest forest dressed in fall colours.

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Tribal Houses from Dirang Dzong

While I was at the Himalayan hill station of Dirang, I visited some of their tribal settlements. And the most famous and easily accessible one is the Dirang Dzong.


The Dirang Dzong is a tribal area that is built on one side of the Dirang river and is just a couple of kilometres from the main Dirang market. In fact, it is on the road from Tezpur to Tawang.


The Dirang Dzong or locally known as the Dirang basti is just a normal rustic residential colony. But, the special thing about this tribal colony is its architecture.

 
Their stone and wooden houses are quite unique. They use the stone for foundation and the wooden structure for the roof and walls. Apparently, this method of building is quite efficient in handling the bitter cold weather of the Himalayas.


Further, they had a classic or should I say antique look about them that made me take notice of them. Their colours, the structure and the design were very interesting.

 
The Dirang Dzong is definitely worth a visit if you are planning a trip to Dirang in Western Arunachal Pradesh. The sight of these houses against the Eastern Himalayas and the Dirang river below is quite an interesting sight.

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Sangti Valley–A Valley in Heaven!

Sangti valley is not well known to the outside world. In fact, very minimal tourist infrastructure exists here. But, in my mind, this is the place to be if you are looking at holidaying in a heavenly hill station.


Let me help you visualize Sangti Valley…Surrounded by the towering ranges of Eastern Himalayas, blessed with pleasant weather round the year with maybe some light snowfall in the winter months, covered with fruit orchards (kiwi fruit, apple, apricot, orange), dotted with pristine forests and meandering fast hill rivers and home to a very interesting culture and tradition.

 
And it is also home to the black necked cranes who come to the fields of this valley every winter. Sangti valley is situated about 15 kilometres from Dirang, which is on the Bomdila - Tawang highway of Western Arunachal Pradesh in North East India.

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