Theravada (1) Sri Lanka: Buddhist Temples, Monasteries and Buddha Images Part 4

Buddhism with an Occasional Hindu God

Theravada Buddhism and the Pali Canon

Dharmachakra

Theravada (lit. "School of the Elders") is the oldest existing branch of Buddhism. For more than two millennia, Theravadins have preserved their version of the Buddha’s teaching in the classical Indian language of Pali.

The first Buddhist Council, held some 30 years after the death of Gautama Buddha (he died in either 483 or 400 BCE) adopted the oral testimony of two of his leading disciples to be the guiding scriptures of what would become the Theravada tradition. This testimony became known as the Pali Canon, traditionally described as the ‘Word of the Buddha’. For centuries it was preserved orally by Bhāṇakas (Pali: reciters), monks who specialised in the memorisation and recitation of a specific collection of texts.

During the 4th Buddhist Council in Sri Lanka around 29 BCE, the decision was taken to make a written version of the canon. For centuries the bhānaka tradition existed alongside the written word and there are still monks who memorise vast chunks of the scripture.

The internet does not know, or will not tell me, how many words the canon runs to (in any language) but published versions generally fill around 50 volumes - so not holiday reading, then.

How Buddhism Came to Sri Lanka

The Indian Emperor Ashoka the Great (ruled 268-232 BCE) sought to spread Buddhism throughout South East Asia. His brother (or maybe son) Mahinda converted the Sri Lankan king after they met at Mihintale near Anuradhapura in the north central part of the island (see map below)

Tradition states that Mahinda stood where I was standing to take the photograph while the king's position is marked by the white dagoba. The scene is benevolently overlooked by a modern Buddha statue.

The Upper Terrace, Mihintale, where Buddhism arrived in Sri Lanka

For a fuller version of the legend, see the Mihintale post. Suffice it to say here, Buddhism caught on and has been the dominant religion in Sri Lanka ever since.

Temples in Sri Lanka

70% of Sri Lankans self-identify as Buddhists, and although the nation’s constitution guarantees religious freedom for all, it reserves a special place for Buddhism.

Buddhist temples, of course, exist, but they are not as obvious a part of the landscape as they are in Myanmar, Laos or Thailand. Dagoba’s, on the other hand are everywhere, and important Buddha statues can be revered without the need for a surrounding temple.

Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Kandy, Sri Lanka's 3 former capitals
are the corners of the 'Cultural Triangle'

Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa

We spent our first two full days at two of Sri Lanka's former capitals, Anuradhapura (337 BCE - 11th century) and Polonnaruwa (11th-15th century).

There is an adjacent modern town of Anuradhapura, but both ancient towns are respectfully restored ruins. The dagobas are in good repair….

Thuparama Dagoba, Anuradhapura. The oldest dagoba in Sri Lanka, it allegedly enshrines the Buddha's left collarbone

….and the Buddha images are not just gawped at by foreign tourists. Sometime locals come to pray…

The 4th century Samadhi Buddha, Anuradhapura

… or leave offerings.

Gal Vihara (Stone Shrine) at Polonnaruwa with offerings

The Temple of the Tooth, Kandy

The Temple of the Tooth may be Sri Lanka’s most important temple, but from the outside it is disappointing.

The Temple of the Tooth, Kandy

After the Buddha’s cremation in 5th century BCE several body parts were allegedly rescued from the flames, including a tooth. A century later, with Buddhism declining in India, the tooth was smuggled to Sri Lanka wrapped in the hair of a princess.

For 2,000 years the tooth resided in the island’s capital, first at Anuradhapura, then Polonnaruwa and, since the 15th century, in Kandy. The link was broken when the British colonial administration moved the capital to Colombo in 1815.

Inside the Temple of the Tooth, Kandy

The gold casket containing the tooth is displayed only two days a month and is very rarely opened.

A Replica of the Casket of the Tooth, photographed in a different temple

Bella Sidney Woolf, a writer and sister-in-law of Virginia Woolf, saw the tooth in 1914 and described it as a ‘tooth of discoloured ivory at least three inches long – unlike any human tooth ever known.’ In 1597 a Portuguese traveller claimed it was a buffalo tooth. To express doubts about the relic’s authenticity is deeply offensive, so I will say no more.

Is the Tooth behind here? The Temple of the Tooth, Kandy

Lankatilake Vihara near Kandy

Lankatilake is one of three temples we visited in a morning from Kandy. Sitting on a rocky outcrop it was built in the mid-14th century.

Lankatilake

A great deal is known about the king who commissioned it, the minister charged with the work, the architect who designed it and many other details as they were chiselled into the surrounding rock in a lengthy Pali inscription.

Lynne, Lankatilake and the railed off Pali inscription (as seen on the 50 Rupee note)

Inside, is the main Buddha image with two attendants…

Main Buddha image, Lankatilake

…and also (sorry, no photograph) images of Upulvan, Ganapathi, Vibhishana and Saman.

These survivors from Sri Lanka’s Hindu past (Upalvan is an avatar of Vishnu) are still revered within Buddhism. Saman is associated across South East Asia with the rising morning sun and is considered a special protector of Sri Lankan Buddhism.

They provoke this digression:

Gods in Sri Lankan Buddhism

Gautama Siddhartha became the Buddha on achieving enlightenment, he never claimed to be god nor a messenger of god. Buddhism has no gods, it is mainly a philosophy, but is included as a religion because it answers one of the great religious questions: ‘What happens to us when we die?’

But people like gods. The Buddha himself is often treated as if he were a god, and in Theravada Buddhism particularly, vestiges of pre-Buddhist religions live on – the Great Nats in Myanmar, and Hindu deities in Sri Lanka.

The monks at ancient Anuradhapura had not only had sophisticated ways of dealing with bodily waste, they also had an image of Kubera, the god of wealth on every latrine. Each squatting, straining monk could look Kubera in the eye and know that money and greed were in their rightful place.

We have now met the Hindu Gods at Lankatilake and will arrive at Kataragama (also known as Kartikeya, Murugan and Subramanhya) immediately after Dowa Temple.

Dowa Temple, Bandarawela

Driving us south through the central highlands, just beyond Bandarawela,...

Southern Sri Lanka

... Ravi pulled over unexpectedly. 'Dowa Temple and a rock carving of the Buddha,' he said pointing to a track dropping into a small ravine.

Following the track, we reached a set of concrete steps leading down to a small temple. At the bottom we were met by the smiling guardian wielding a huge key.

Dowa Temple, Bandarawela

Unlocking the door, he let us into not so much a building as a cave temple. There were the inevitable statues, a reclining Buddha looking crushed beneath the bulging rock, and paintings on the walls and rocky ceiling. The Rough Guide rather snootily comments that the paintings are of no great merit, but I was impressed by their vigour - and their mere existence in this unlikely spot.

Reclining Buddha under the rock ceiling, Dowa Temple, Bandarawela

There was no entrance fee, only a sign requesting donations. A couple of hundred rupees seemed to delight the already cheerful guardian who insisted on photographing us with his key.

Us with the large key, Dowa Temple, Bandarawela

As we left he directed us up a rocky slope beside the temple. Without our shoes ascending the rough pebble-strewn rock was painful and at the top we could see nothing to explain why we had been sent up there. Disappointed, we turned to descend and found the Buddha, right in front of us.

Unfinished rock carved Buddha, Dowa Temple, Bandarawela

The temple and unfinished carving have not been precisely dated but are thought to be some 2,000 years old.

Kataragama

Kataragama is the name of both a small south-eastern town with a large shrine and the god to whom the shrine is dedicated. An avatar of Lord Murugan, Kataragama is a patron deity of Sri Lanka and Ravi said that when his travels took him there he liked to do Puja - if we did not mind. We didn't.

Outside the shrine, Kataragama

Kataragama is a Hindu god; Puja, the making of an offering, usually of food, is a Hindu practice. Ravi, however, is clear in his own mind that he is a Buddhist. And the shrine we were going to visit? Well, that has something for everyone - there is even a mosque.

From the car park we followed a wide avenue lined with stalls. At the last stall Ravi bought flowers and we all deposited our shoes.

Ravi buys flowers, Kataragama

Kiri Vihara was originally a 6th century dagoba but, as always in Sri Lanka, it has been rebuilt so many times its real age is anybody's guess.

Kiri Vihara, Kataragama

Ravi presented flowers to the dogaba’s Buddha image and insisted that we had a lotus blossom each so that we too could make an offering.

Lynne makes an offering at Kiri Vihara, Kataragama

From the dagoba an avenue of soft sand (our bare feet were grateful) led to a cloister surrounding the temple of Kataragama and two smaller temples.

Following Ravi into the cloistered enclosure, Kataragama

Inside the cloister Ravi went to acquire the offerings for his Puja while we looked around. After a while he re-appeared bearing a cardboard box containing among other things, flowers, a coconut and a pineapple. 'Coming for Puja?' he asked.

Puja queue, Kataragama

We joined the queue for Puja, a dozen people along the side of the locked temple. As the queue began to build a large and officious man came and hooked us and a couple of other Europeans out. Ravi had disappeared so we repositioned ourselves at the front of the temple and waited patiently. The same officious man soon moved us back and strung a rope across to keep us there. Lynne went to sit in the shade while I hung about unobtrusively, trying to look interested, but not entitled.

A bell started clanging and a group of monks processed from the adjacent monastery bearing something hidden but obviously holy. They disappeared into the temple, the door closed behind them and the Puja queue continued to wait.

Carrying something holy, Kataragama

Another group of monks processed across, one with his ears and mouth covered with cloth.

Monk with his mouth and ears covered, Kataragama

A red carpet was unrolled from the monastery to the temple and after several more processions I was beginning to wonder if Puja would ever start.

Something holy on a red carpet, Katagarama

My thinking was disturbed by a major clanging of bells. The doors were flung open and the queue lurched forward, though not far, it was a small temple and only a few could fit in. A different official with a more pleasant demeanour came over and beckoned me to follow him. I called Lynne over from her refuge in the shade and he led us back to the Puja queue. After the next clang and shuffle we found ourselves tucked in at the rear of the temple.

There was little to see inside the small, darkened temple. There were a few images, but whatever holy artefacts had been brought in during the processions remained covered. Most importantly, we were in, the only Europeans there, and we were duly thankful to Ravi whose hand was clearly behind it. Along with the faithful, we were blessed as holy water was sprinkled over all, then the priest went round smearing ash to everyone’s foreheads and finally we all received a gift of food, a small parcel of spiced dhal - much tastier than a communion wafer.

As we filed out our benefactor grabbed us and led us into the space between two temples and gestured that we should sit on the wall. He disappeared, returning moments later with a machete and two coconuts. At coconut stalls we always used the straws provided though many locals did not bother. There is a knack to drinking straight from the coconut, and if I had had that knack I would have spilt less on my shirt. As we finished Ravi arrived with a conspiratorial grin on his face and more fruit in his hand.

We shared some watermelon and a pineapple with Ravi and his friend and then, with juice still on our faces, reclaimed our shoes and retraced our steps through the complex.

Gangaramaya Temple, Colombo

The area has been settled for 2,000 years, and the name ‘Colombo’ was used by the Portuguese in 1505, but the city is an upstart compared with the ancient cities of the cultural triangle. Our day in Colombo coincided with Poya, the day of the new moon, when no alcohol is served, and the day before the National Day Holiday when everything closes. Colombo hardly had a chance to impress - but it does have a good temple.

Gangaramaya is hemmed in on a city street, so its architecture is hard to appreciate, and it was unclear why we entered through a collection of vintage cars.

Vintage cars, Gangaramaya temple, Colombo

But it has an elegant stupa….

Stupa, Gangaramaya Temple, Colombo

….and a large Bodhi Tree, grown from a shoot from the tree at Anuradhapura, itself grown from a shoot of the tree in Bodh Gaya in northern India under which the Buddha attained enlightenment. The devout circumnavigate the tree three times in a clockwise direction and make offerings of oil, incense, fruit or flowers.

Bodhi Tree, Gangaramaya Temple, Colombo

There is a museum with an eclectic range of exhibits. I liked the posters warning of consequences of evil-doing – the punishment for adultery is harsh indeed.

Warning poster, Gangaramaya Temple, Colombo

Outside an impressive series of panels describes the early life of the Buddha. His road to enlightenment had many twists and turns, and a prolonged fast was one of those twists. This gaunt image is a reminder that the Buddhist way involves moderation in all things. Over-eating is harmful physically and morally – but so is over-zealous fasting.

The Buddha after fasting, Gangaramaya Temple, Colombo

It seems appropriate to end this post with idea that Buddhism is about balance. To avoid being accused of hypocrisy, I acknowledge that I am (much) more inclined to over-indulgence than zealous fasting, but I understand the values of Buddhist moderation (or Aristotle’s Golden Mean) here, and in other aspects of life – even if I cannot always live up to it..

Buddhist Temples, Monasteries and Buddha Images

Part 1: Introduction
Part 2: Mahayana Buddhism
Part 3: Tibetan Buddhism
Part 4: Theravada (1) Sri Lanka
Part 5: Theravada (2) Myanmar
Part 6: Theravada (3) Laos, Cambodia & Thailand

Tibetan Buddhism: Buddhist Temples, Monasteries and Buddha Images Part 3

Tibetan Buddhism - not Just in Tibet

The Tibetan Tradition

Buddhism probably arrived in Tibet from India in the 8th century. That makes it part of the Mahayana tradition, but as it includes many tantric practices and elements of Vajrayana, it is often treated as a separate branch of Buddhism.

Tibetan Wheel

I offer the above paragraph in good faith; I believe it to be accurate but I admit to not understanding some of the words. I have, though, observed that in Tibetan Buddhism, as in Mahayana, Buddha images often come in threes, Bodhisattva Maitreya (the Future Buddha), the Buddha, and Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara (The Compassion Buddha). Bodhisattvas are important, as are fearsome images of guardians, but there seems less emphasis on Arhats. Like Theravada, Tibetan Buddhism has a strong monastic tradition. Only Tibetan Buddhists use prayer wheels, praying by rotating a wheel about a sacred text, and prayer flags where sacred texts blow in the wind.

Although Tibetan Buddhism has several independent branches, each having its own monasteries and leaders, they remain closely related. The Gelug (Yellow Hat) is the dominant school - not just in Tibet - and the most influential Gelugpa is the Dalai Lama.

Tibetan Monasteries

Tibetan Buddhism is not confined to Tibet, the map above shows the monasteries/temples covered in this post, though there will also be a surprise visit to Beijing. But I will start in the obvious place. We visited Lhasa in July/Aug 2005.

Tibet (officially the Xizang Autonomous Region, China)

Lhasa

Lhasa is an interesting city to visit. At 3,700m (12,000ft) most people suffer some effect of altitude; breathlessness, aching joints, sleep disruption or even a brief collapse. In midsummer the air is pleasantly warm though air-conditioning is not required.

Officially encouraged Han migration has resulted in half the 500,000 population being non-Tibetan. I deplore the destructive Chinese policy of squeezing the culture of ethnic minorities, though from an entirely selfish point of view, the Han presence - and the existence of a Nepali community - allowed us to eat well. Tibetans' own food never quite escapes the distinctive rancid flavour of yak butter.

The Jokhang Temple

The Jokhang Temple is the physical and spiritual centre of Lhasa. In summer the modest frontage on Barkhor Square was permanently semi-blocked by prostrating pilgrims. The interior was dark and the air dense with the smell of wood smoke and burning yak butter candles as devotees jostled to make their offerings.

Entrance to the Jokhang Temple, Lhasa

We escaped to the roof.

Lynne on the roof of the Jokhang Temple, Lhasa

The Potala Palace

From the Jokhang roof we looked across the Square to the dramatically sited Potala Palace the home of the Dalai Lama – though he has lived in exile since 1959.

The Potala Palace from the roof of the Jokhang Temple, Lhasa

Once you have acquired a ticket and turned many prayer wheels…

There are many prayer wheels to turn in Lhasa

…you have the freedom of the palace complex.

Inside the Potala Palace complex, Lhasa

The Drepung Monastery

Five kilometres outside Lhasa, Drepung is the largest monastery in Tibet. At its peak there were as many as ten thousand monks. There are now less than a thousand, and with tight Chinese control the monastery lacks the moral authority it once had, but when we visited in 2005 it seemed a thriving community.

Just Part of the Drepung Monastery Complex

It is a large complex on many levels on the side of Mount Gephel. Climbing from courtyard to courtyard up steps that were often more ladders than staircases was hard work. It was our second full day in Lhasa and the thin air took its toll. Lynne leaned against a wall to get her breath and then slowly slipped down to a seated position. Leaving her in the ticket office in the care of some solicitous and friendly monks....

Solicitous and friendly monks

...I continued alone.

Drepung Monastry

Sadly, she missed the hall full of monks chanting sutras.....

Chanting monks, Drepung Monastery

....the monk's prayer hall near the top of the complex...

Prayer Hall, Drepung Monastery

....and this view of a lone monk standing on a roof, surveying the world. A true son of Tibet, he stands behind the gold encased finials waiting for his kettle to boil.

Waiting for his kettle to boil, Drepung Monastery

As committed tea drinkers the Tibetans make the British look like amateurs. What I cannot understand, though, is why, once they have made a nice pot of tea they always stir in a dollop of yak butter. The advantage of yak butter is that never goes off, the disadvantage is that tastes like it has even when fresh.

Sera Monastery

At Sera monastery back in the city, the younger monks gather in a stony square two or three afternoons a week. The more senior monks test their juniors on points of Buddhist philosophy asking question in an aggressive if stylised manner.

Debating at Sera Monastery, Lhasa

I have heard that important as this once was, it is now just for tourists. Perhaps, but they entered into it with vigour and thought – and occasionally a little humour.

Mongolia

North from the Tibetan Plateau, across several hundred kilometres of dessert are the huge open grasslands of Mongolia, the least densely populated country in the world.

Buddhism was introduced to the nomadic empires of Mongolia in the 1st century CE though in time it faded into Shamanism.

In the early 13th century Genghis Khan united Mongolia and went on to rule the largest contiguous empire ever seen. It fragmented after his death, but his grandson Kublai Khan started out as ruler of most of Mongolia and northern China. By 1271 he had unified China and established the Yuan Dynasty. He introduced Tibetan Buddhism and monasticism into Mongolia, but after the demise of his dynasty in 1368, Mongolia again slowly relapsed into shamanism.

During the 16th Mongolian cultural revival Altan Khan, a warlord with an eye to reunifying the country made an ally of the Dalai Lama. Tibetan Buddhism returned to Mongolia and was reinforced by the Chinese Qing dynasty in the next couple of centuries.

Ulaanbaatar

In 2007 selecting the southern option of the Trans-Siberian Railway took us to Ulaanbaatar. Mongolians traditionally moved with the seasons, and Ulaanbaatar only settled on its present site in 1789. It is now home to 1.3 million, more than half the vast country’s population

Gandan Monastery

The first buildings of Ulaanbaatar’s Gandan Monastery were constructed in 1809. Buildings have come and gone, but the most impressive, the temple of Boddhisattva Avalokiteshvara was built in 1913.

Temple of the Boddhisattva Avalokiteshvara, Gandan Monastery

Gandan closed in 1938 as Mongolia's client government obediently followed Stalin’s anti-religious line. After the Second World War Stalin decided to make token acknowledgment of traditional cultures and religions across the USSR. The Mongolian government followed suit, reopening Gandan in 1948, though with many restrictions. Since the end of communism in 1990 all restrictions have been lifted, and there has been a resurgence of Buddhism.

(see Ulaanbaatar: Part 11 of the Trans-Siberian Railway)

Bürd Sum

Leaving Ulaanbaatar with a driver and local guide we drove 340 km to the Bürd Sum (district) of Övörkhangai Aimag (province) where we stayed with a local family. The first 50 km of the journey were on tarmac, the rest over open steppe. Övörkhangai is three times the size of Wales but the whole population would almost fit into the Principality Stadium.

(see Across the Mongolian Steppe: Part 9 of the Trans-Siberian Railway)

Shaman Shrine

Next day we visited Erdene Zuu. More driving across grassland brought us to a proper road. At the road junction was a shrine. Mongolian Buddhism has absorbed shamanism, and this is essentially a shaman shrine. We did the proper thing, which is to walk round it three times clockwise and placed a new stone on the top. Most passers-by contented themselves with a hoot on the horn.

A shaman shrine, Ovorkhangai Province

Kharkhorin, Övörkhangai Province

Ghengis Khan built his capital of Karakorum on the site of modern Kharkhorin in around 1220. Not being the settling down sort of guy, Ghengis soon moved on, though the city thrived for a while before being destroyed by a Ming army in 1388. Modern Kharkhorin is a major population centre, by Mongolian standards, with 13,000 inhabitants.

Erdene Zuu

The monastery of Erdene Zuu was built in 1585, using such remnants of Karakorum as were available. The boundary of the rectangular site is marked by 100 small stupas. 108 is the number of attributes of the Buddha, so either 8 stupas have been lost or somebody miscounted during the building process.

Erdene Zuu

The modern city of Kharkhorin sits under the black smoke in the distance - a rare example of Mongolian industry.

Stupas, Erdene Zuu

By the end of the 19th century there were over 60 temples on the site, but in 1939 most were destroyed by the communists.

Surviving Temple, Erdene Zuu

All the surviving temples are open to visitors.

Inside a temple, Erdene Zuu

In 1990 the site was handed back to the monks and Erdene Zuu became an active monastery again.

Monk taking a prayer wheel for a walk, Erdene Zuu

(see With the Mongolian Nomads: Part 10 of the Trans-Siberian Railway)

Buryat Republic, Russia

Our previous stop on the Trans-Siberian had been at Ulan Ude, the capital of Buryatia, one of the constituent republics of the Russian Federation. Buryats are ethnic Mongolians, and so Buddhists, but Buryatia has been Russian since the seventeenth century. Then, Inner and Outer Mongolia struggled under imperial Chinese rule while the Buryats traded with the incoming Russians and enjoyed comparative freedom and prosperity.

Ivolginsk Datsan

Before the Russian Revolution, there were hundreds of Datsans in Buryatia and thousands of monks, but by the 1930’s the Datsans had all been closed and the monks dispatched to the Gulags. In the 1940s Stalin decided it was time for more religious tolerance and so a Datsan was constructed at Ivolginsk, 30 km west of Ulan Ude. It opened in 1947 on a site carefully chosen by astrologers.

Ivolginsk Datsun, near Ulan Ude

The architecture and decoration of the Johkang Temple, Potala Palace and Drepung Monastery in Lhasa are almost identical. Gandan and Erdene Zuu are cut from similar cloth, but the main building at Ivolginsk, 3,000 km north of Lhasa, looks, unsurprisingly, less Tibetan and ever so slightly Russian.

The Temple at the Ivolginsk Datsun, near Ulan Ude

…but from some angles the Tibetan look predominates.

Tibetan style stupas, Ivolginsk, near Ulan Ude

Andre, our Christian European Russian guide was here when the Dalai Lama visited this outpost of his flock in the 1980s. He was very taken by his serenity and almost tangible charisma.

Prayer wheels, Ivolginsk Datsun, near Ulan Ude with Tibetan script (her right) and Mongolian script

(see Ulan Ude (1) Buddhists, Old Believers and an Enormous Head of Lenin: Part 6 of the Trans-Siberian Railway

China

Or, more accurately, China again as Tibet is part of China. Chinese Buddhism follows the Mahayana tradition, but that does not mean there are no ‘Tibetan pockets.’

Beijing

The Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959 over his disagreement with the Chinese authorities. He is a man of integrity and peace from whom the Chinese could learn much, but instead they regard him rather like the Americans regarded Osama bin-Ladin. It was not always that way.

Stupa, Beihai Park

Beihai Park, just north of Beijing’s centre was allegedly created by Kublai Khan. The stupa on the artificial island was built to commemorate the visit of a 17th century Dalai Lama to Beijing.

Stupa on the artificial island, Beihai Park, Beijing

(see Beijing (2): Xicheng and Beihai Park. Part 2 of Beijing, North Korea and Shanxi)

Yonghe Gong

The Yonghe Gong was our first ever Buddhist temple on out first ever visit to Beijing. It is a rare example of a Tibetan Temple in the Han heartland, though I doubt we realised that at the time.

It was built in 1649, as a residence for court eunuchs. It then became the palace of Prince Yong, who turned part of the complex into a lamasery when he became emperor in 1722. On his death in 1733 Tibetan Buddhists were invited to take over the whole site. Developments since then have produced buildings which mix Tibetan and Chinese styles.

Lynne at the Yonghe Gong

The temple complex survived the Cultural Revolution and re-opened to the public in 1981. One of the charms of the place is that after so many years of religious repression many would-be devotees do not seem sure of what they should be doing.

Uncertain worshippers, Yonghe Gong

The temple contains a remarkable 18m high statue of the Buddha carved from a single piece of sandalwood.

Maitreya Buddha carved from a single piece of sandalwood, Yonge Gong, Beijing

India

Buddhism has all but died out in the country of its birth, but it is still possible to see dramatic Buddhist temples

Kushalnagar, Karnataka

The Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government-in-exile live in Dharamsala in the extreme north of India. We have not been there, but in 2010 we visited the small town of Kushalnagar in the southern state of Karnataka - as far south of Lhasa as Ulan Bator is north - where the state government has settled 10,000 exiled Tibetans.

Namdroling Monastery

As well as the usual secular requirements of any settlement, there are two Gelugpa monasteries and the much larger Namdroling Temple which follows the Nyingmapa tradition from Eastern Tibet.

Namdroling Monastery, Kushalnagar, Karnatica

As can be seen both from the outside and the interior, Namdroling is well financed. It is known as ‘The Golden Temple’- and with good reason.

Interior of Namdroling - The Golden Temple, Kushalnagar

The temple looks typically Tibetan and even displays a trio of Buddhas - as promised in the introduction. July in Lhasa had been pleasantly warm but air-conditioning was unnecessary, people merely left doors and windows open and allowed in the fresh, if rather thin, air. At other times of the year it can be viciously cold. February in Kushalnagar was hot and humid (it is equally hot, though far wetter in the monsoon season) and the vegetation around the temple could not have been less Tibetan. Namdroling looked like an exotic transplant from a faraway land.

Namdroling, The Golden Temple, Kushalnagar

Buddhist Temples, Monasteries and Buddha Images

Part 1: Introduction
Part 2: Mahayana Buddhism
Part 3: Tibetan Buddhism
Part 4: Theravada (1) Sri Lanka
Part 5: Theravada (2) Myanmar
Part 6: Theravada (3) Laos, Cambodia & Thailand