URGELLING MONASTERY

Location: 5-km South of Tawang Town, Arunachal Pradesh
Built By: Urgen Sangpo
Restored By: Desi Sangye Gyamtso In 1699
Historical Significance: Tsangyang Gyatso, The Sixth Dalai Lama Was Born Here In 1683.

About 5-km to the south of Tawang Township stands the Urgelling monastery. It was first of the three monasteries built by Urgen Sangpo, the youngest brother of Terton Pempalingpa, the famous Treasure-Revealer. It was built sometime before the year 1489. It was here in 1683 Tsangyang Gyatso, the Sixth Dalai Lama was born.

Legends Related To The Birth Of Dalai Lama
He was the son of Lama Tashi Tenzin of Urgelling, a descendant of Terton Pempalingpa. His mother was Tsewang Lhamo, a Monpa girl hailing from a royal family of Bekhar Village. Royal mother experienced a few miracles before the birth of Tsangyang Gyamtso. One day in the first month of her pregnancy she was husking paddy in the stone mortar and to her surprise water started accumulating in the mortar. On another occasion, when she drank water at a near by place, milk started gushing out in place of water. Since then this stream came to known as "Oma-Tsikang" (milk-water).

In the course of time, she gave birth to a boy who was named Sangey Tenzin by his grandfather and Nawang Norbu by his father. It is said he would not drink his mother's milk for these day after the birth. One day when his face began to swell with an infection and he could hardly open his eye, two local diviners were summoned. They prescribed purifactory rite and said his name should be changed to Ngawang Gyamtso.

His recovery was credited by the regent to the intervention of the Dalai Lama's own guardian deity, Dorjee Dakpa. The grandfather dreamt that the child was constantly being protected by heavenly beings. The mother dreamt, as she took a rest from her weaving, that a great company had arrived to take him off. His parental grandmother dreamt of two suns shining in the sky.

It is also said that when the party from Tibet came to take him to Tibet, after establishing that he is the incarnation of the Dalai Lama, the boy was playing with his playmates at a place about a kilometer east of Urgelling Gompa. When he heard his mother shouting for his immediate return he with his finger wrote on a stone slab the words "Lama Kheno" (God Knows). These words got miraculously inscribed on the slab and are still standing on the slab.

Restoration Of The Monastery
After his enthronement, Desi Sangye Gyamtso, the regent entrusted Chong-gye Gonpo Rabten with the work of restoring and enlargement of the monastery in the year 1699. The new structure included a double storied main temple, and eight pillared assembly hall, a four pillared altar room, a two-pillared chapel of protective deities, a residential quarters for the sixth Dalai Lama, a Ka-gyur house, a chapel for the practice of new Tantra, a big courtyard with twenty pillars and twenty rooms for monks' quarters.

Destructed Through Invasion
Unfortunately Lajang Khan deposed the sixth Dalai Lama in 1706 ad in 1714 one of the Lajang Khan's forces sent against Bhutan invaded from the direction of Tawang. During this campaign, they destroyed the Dalai Lama's restored and enlarged monastery at Urgelling as an attempt to obliterate his memory.

Another version has it that the destruction of all Nyingnapa Gompas including Urgelling was carried out by Sokpa Jomkhar, a Mongolian warrior who was averse to non-Gelugpa sect. Whatever the reason may be for its destruction, all valued possession of Urgelling monastery like scriptures, statues and other objects were made to Tawang Monastery. It was during this time that the Ka-gyur written out in gold and silver was received by Tawang monastery. Today there is only a modest temple present at the site.