Devotees throng Tawang Monastery to pay respects to sacred relics of Shakyamuni Buddha

Over 31,000 devotees and visitors thronged the Tawang Monastery in Arunachal Pradesh over seven days to pay their respects to the sacred relics of Shakyamuni Buddha, as an exposition concluded on Saturday, marking the end of its first leg in the Himalayan state.

The sacred relics arrived in Tawang on October 31 from the National Museum in New Delhi before being transported to Bomdila by the Indian Air Force on November 8 for the next phase of the exposition. They will remain open for public darshan at TGL Monastery (Lower Gompa) until November 13.

After Bomdila, the sacred relics will be taken to the Golden Pagoda in Namsai, where devotees can seek blessings from November 14 to 20. They are scheduled to be taken back to the National Museum on November 21.

The initiative is part of the Union government’s efforts to promote India’s Buddhist heritage and strengthen cultural and spiritual ties with Buddhist communities across the world.

The exposition was organised by the Union ministry of culture in collaboration with the Arunachal Pradesh government and the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC).

Chief minister Pema Khandu ceremonially received the relics on their arrival in Tawang in the presence of Union culture and tourism minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.

A steady stream of Buddhist monks and devotees from Tawang and neighbouring areas thronged the seven-day event.

Khandu inaugurated two exhibitions at Tawang Monastery. The first, titled ‘Unearthing the Sacred Piprahwa: The Story of the Holy Buddha Relics and Their Discovery’, organised by the IBC, traced the discovery of the Piprahwa relics in 1898.

The second exhibition, ‘Crossroads of Dhamma: Classical Legacies, Living Art, and Anthropological Perspectives’, curated by the National Museum, showcased Buddhism’s historical, artistic and cultural legacy.

An international conference, titled ‘Buddhism: Dissemination in the Himalayan Region and Beyond’, at the Kalawangpo Convention Centre was held on November 2. Buddhist scholars, religious leaders and representatives from other countries discussed the spread and preservation of Buddhist teachings and heritage.