Tabo, Himachal Pradesh, IndiaTabo : Altitude - 3280 mtrs ; 10800 ft
Tabo is a charming small town, a borderline between a village and a town.
Villages here are very small – typically, about 200 people. Tabo is bigger than that and so it must qualify as a town ! Most travelers to Tabo skip staying here and move on to Kaza, the district headquarters which is about 60 kms away. I didn’t know Tabo would be so pretty, but I opted to stay here for a night as Tabo is at 3200 mtrs while Kaza is at 3800 mtrs and I am obsessed with acclamatisation and avoiding AMS. What an excellent choice it turned out to be.
The Tabo Monastery is the oldest monastery in the region. It was set up by a Buddhist King Yeshe O'd in 996 AD. It has been renovated multiple times, the last of which has led to a new monastery. Splendid wall paintings decorate the walls. The monastery also runs the Sekong School where some 300 children study there now.
The morning prayer session at the Tabo monastery is at 6.00 AM. I got up at 5.30 AM in sub zero temperatures to go there. Today it was an individual prayer session and not the group chanting that is often more absorbing to the layman. As it’s a monastery, there are basically young (very) monks and a few old supervisors.
Boys will be boys everywhere. The littler ones tried their best to play truant or gossip, leading to constant reprimands from the master. A few teenage monks however recited with obvious fervor. I don’t think its a good idea to push boys as young as 7 or 8 into a monastery, but then who am I to judge. An interesting experience.
Tabo is very pretty. And really cold. The mercury hit a low of minus 4 deg today. I am swathed in woolens. I am staying at a charming small hotel and as is my experience in remote cold parts, the people are incredibly warm.
Apples abound here too. This is the mainstay of the economy apart from tourism. My hotel owner has an apple orchard himself and very kindly gave me a kilo of picking straight from the tree to take home.
Usha
2018-10-04
Hi Ramesh, drive safely. I did not know a place like Tabo existed. These villages are so clean, perhaps because the human density is so low. I guess in these regions poverty is of a different kind, and hence children are left in monastries at such an young age.
Sandhya Sriram
2018-10-04
I guess it’s a bit similar to Gurukul of the past... kids go at a very early age to learn but also because parents can’t afford to keep them. Only that the education may or may not secure their future.
Suja
2018-10-04
I saw some such monasteries with young monks near Darjeeling too. Poverty and austerity go hand in hand don't they, as do austerity and the lives of monks. How many rich kids become monks I wonder? How many rich young men in the peak of their lives become Sanyasis? I knew one. He was about 30 I think, not rich but 'middle class'. He decided to give away all his earthly possessions to become a sanyasi. I've always wondered about what happened to him... Tabo seems fascinating, I'm really enjoying reading of your travels!
indigoite
2018-10-04
@Usha - Thank you. The tradition here seems to be to give one son (usually the second) to priesthood. Similar to our own tradition in the past.
indigoite
2018-10-04
@Sandhya - Yes, it is similar to a Gurukul, but they don't do this out of financial compulsions. The tradition here still is that one son in the family becomes a monk.
indigoite
2018-10-04
@Suja - Here, its is a family tradition, but you are right - the more wealthy tend not to do this. Tabo is really very quaint.
Anne in Salem
2018-10-06
Taking a few days to catch up. The scenery so far has been breathtaking. Your choices of hotels and homestays have been most successful. Can't imagine the driving - a different kind of stress than your usual. I'm enjoying every vicarious kilometer.
indigoite
2018-10-07
@Anne - Yes, these places have ben beautiful. I am experienced in driving in such conditions and so it is not as stressful as it might be for others unused to it.
Vinod
2018-10-08
Beautiful! How are managing he food in this trip..
indigoite
2018-10-08
@Vinod - No problems with food. This is after all India ! Roti sabji, Momos, Maggi, Rice - everything is available.