Buddha By Chance

BUDDHA BY CHANCE

Our unexpected encounter with a hidden Buddha began one cold, windy morning as three ladies and one Army officer, set out in a roaring Gypsy with soaring spirits to see Khaltse town, some 95 km from Leh. It could hardly be called a town given that the “market” comprised a few locals selling packets of dried apricots, and high street was two audio-video shops!

          The town’s deserted look was, of course, largely due to the fact that most shopkeepers down shutters for the winter months. Who would keep a business open only o the off chance that a few intrepid Army wives may find their way there in the off season anyway?! Nevertheless we were all a trifle disappointed as we expected to see more on our sightseeing that morning.

          On the way back, however, we spotted a long winding road on our left with a board announcing ‘Temisgam’ on it. There was also a Doordarshan transmission tower which indicated that there would be some people staying in that place – whatever it was! We presumed it was a village.

          The road somehow seemed to beckon us. So, like true wives of soldiers, we decided not to give up so easily and not to let the morning be a total waste. Without giving it a second thought, we told the driver to take the turn to neverland! The initial 1 km of the drive was truly picturesque – rugged rocky mountains with sheets of ice on some slopes and Buddhist prayer flags dotting landscape. As we drove further, with not a soul in sight, the outside chill slowly crept into our hearts as well… Where on earth was our derring-do taking us?

          A little further on, though, we saw a giant prayer wheel on our right and stopped to take a closer look at it. Legend has it that turning the prayer wheel once is like saying a prayer to God. While turning the intricately decorated wheel, I prayed to God for this adventure to bear fruit. And it was answered pretty quick!

          Close to the prayer wheel there was a monastery and we could see hundreds of clean shaven monks basking in the mellow sun. all of them were no more than teenagers and looked at us like curious puppies confronted by a strange sight. We definitely had the same quizzical expression when we saw these youngsters in ascetics’ robes. We started on our way again and went on for what seemed like forever. When we were almost about to give up, we saw a huge wall to our right, which looked like the ruins of an old fortress. A further steep climb later we came to an old dilapidated building atop a flight of stairs.

          The building seemed to be a Buddhist temple, a gompa. The verandah outside had beautifully painted walls which depicted Lord Buddha and the White Goddess Tara Devi. And I felt like Harry Potter while opening the huge wooden doors with big brass knockers – not knowing whether I would be faced with witches, wizards or Muggles!

          The doors opened up into a very dark room, and we were squinting for a few minutes trying to see what was inside. There was nothing but an oil lamp burning inside and a large figure of some sort in navy blue, but we could not figure out what the figure or stature really was. It did not seem like the complete body of any god or goddess.

          Slowly our gaze went up skywards and we were completely dumbstruck. What we were staring at was the statue of a 10-ft tall brass Buddha in a sitting pose with arms folded and whose head and shoulders were going through the roof! The statue was so tall, that only the feet and legs were 6 ft high! It struck us that what we had discovered was an old Gompa of Temisgam village!

          And what a magnificent treasure to behold it was, in this sleepy little village in interior Ladakh! All round the Gompa were glass cupboards which held ancient scriptures on Buddhism. As we gazed at the grand Buddha, the priest appeared and told us that the Gompa was 500-years old. We learnt that a monastery adjoined the gompa and there was a new temple too.

          The new gompa was as wonderous as the old one. Everything seemed to be made of gold - or at least covered in it. There was a foot-high statue of Lord Buddha in gold along with a gold lamp and other items of worship, encased in a glass cabinet. The walls on either side had gold engraved murals of religious scriptures. The Gompa also had a thanka from the ceiling to the floor, made of golden brocade and hand painted with gold ink.

          I was stunned to see so much gold around me which was relatively unprotected. Except for the glass cabinet which was locked, there was no tight security. I guess the villagers do not expect any outsiders to come sightseeing. The priest told us that it is customary to go around the temple once before leaving, as is the custom in Hindu temples.

          We followed him and took one complete round of the temple which also had numerous prayer wheels all along the periphery. We enjoyed truning each one and proceeding to the other. I have never said so many prayers to Goad at one go! He must have been very pleased with me that day!

          As we returned to the vehicle, lots of young boys who were studying in the monastery came outside to see the “strangers”, as intrigued by us as we were by them. In our impromptu interaction we learnt their greeting “Jule” (pronounced julay) meaning hello as well as goodbye. And that’s exactly what we said to each one of them and waved as we drove off.

          Back home I had a very curious feeling of contentment and well-being after our chance meeting with the Buddha, his young followers and the beautiful gompa hidden off the beaten track. How providential that we decided to forge ahead to Tmisgam when Khaltse seemed a deadend. I know now what voyages of discovery feel like: just follow your heart and you know you will never go wrong!