Published by: World Tibet Network News, Tuesday, July 2, 1996

By Phyllis Fang

TABO, India, June 30 (Reuter) - Tens of thousands of Buddhist pilgrims and tourists gathered on Sunday at a remote Himalayan monastery in northern India to watch Tibet's god-king the Dalai Lama perform an ancient Buddhist rite.

A baritone chant led by the Dalai Lama, accompanied by the rhythmic clash of traditional cymbals, began the Buddhist kaalchakra (wheel of life) ceremony at the Tabo monastery, 1,000 years old and one of the most revered Buddhist monasteries.

"India and Tibet have an uncommon relationship and we share the Himalayan region," the Dalai Lama told the gathering. "Preserving the rich cultural tradition as part of your heritage will become extremely important."

Tabo monastery, located at an altitude of about 3,050 metres (9,200 feet) in an isolated valley in Himachal Pradesh state, began 15 days of celebrations on June 20 to mark its 1,000th anniversary.

A sprawling complex with nine temples scattered across the barren, desert-like valley, Tabo is considered the world's second most sacred Buddhist monastery after Tholing in Tibet.

Police officials said some 23,000 people attended Sunday's ceremony, one of the most religiously significant initiation rites in Buddhist tradition.

Yangchin (eds:one name), an 82-year-old woman from Kaza village in Himachal Pradesh, said she had received the kaalchakra three times, once in 1983 when the Dalai Lama first performed the ceremony at Tabo.

"I come to the kaalchakra so I can get rid of all the wrongdoings and follow a good path," she said.

The Dalai Lama, 60, has been living in exile in India's Himalayan town of Dharamshala with thousands of his followers since an abortive uprising in 1959 against Chinese rule.

Monks, tourists and tribal villagers in traditional shawls and pearl and coral jewellery sat for more than four hours under a tent listening to the Buddhist spirtual leader's teachings.

Tsuyoshi Okubo, a 29-year-old artist from Nagasaki in Japan, said he had recently started learning about Buddhism and decided to participate in the ceremony.

"Just seeing the Dalai Lama at this 1,000-year-old monastery was so spiritual. The whole kaalchakra experience is so breathtaking," Okubo told Reuters. "I don't have words to express it."

The 1989 Nobel peace prize laureate was scheduled to return to Dharamshala, located some 170 km (100 miles) west of Tabo in Himachal Pradesh, on Wednesday, officials said.

REUTER