Tayul

TAYUL

This gompa above the village of Satingri has the biggest statue of Padma Sambhava and his two manifestations as Singhmukha and Vajravarahi. The statue is 12 feet tall. The gompa houses the library of Kangyur. Thankas in the gompa depict various episodes from the life of Lord Buddha. Tayul gompa written in Tibetan as Ta - Yul means chosen place. It is one of the oldest Dugpa sect monasteries in Lahaul. One Dugpa lama, Serzang Rinchen of the Khan region of Tibet, founded this monastery in the beginning of the 17th Century. There is a story about how this place was chosen for construction of a monastery. Lama Serzang while making the meritorious circumambulation of the holy peak Drilburi spotted a small glade in the juniper forest above Kyor and Tashikyang villages on the opposite side of the valley. He then told his fellow pilgrims, 'Look, over there, that is a suitable and auspicious place for a gompa'. Thus the building of the gompa began to take shape. This monastery houses an extremely expensive 'mani' wheel, by turning it the minds of the sentient beings to open to the compassion of the Lord. This 'mani' wheel is reputed to be 'self-turning' on auspicious occasions. According to the lamas this wheel last turned on its own in 1986. After almost a century a Ladakhi, Tulku Tashi Tanphel of the Tagna monastery renovated and extended the building of this gompa. He decorated the walls with murals, made giant size stucco images referred to the above and brought in the Narthang edition of the Kangyur from Tibet.

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