In the book The Forgotten Gods of Tibet: Early Buddhist Art in the Western Himalayas, published in 1997, authors Peter van Ham and Aglaja Stirn wrote about Tabo Monastery‘s Tsug Lhakhang: “Unfortunately many of the paintings, especially in the lower register, are badly damaged. In fact the northern wall has a large area where nothing except for the grey wall can be made out. Some of these gaps were painted over in recent times–enhancing the impression of the high artistic merit of the old paintings since these newer additions only show a mediocre level of execution.”
Perhaps this may be an example (see image below). Notice how the figure to the left of the central Buddha is stylistically so different from the one on the right. As a trained fine arts painter as well as decorative painter, I must agree with authors van Ham and Stirn.
Stylistic inconsistency in repainted figure on left, Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
This below example of stylistic continuity is what the above example should look like.
Stylistic consistency in these three figures, Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
Here is a view of a comparable original painting on the left and the one in question on the right. Stiff and simplistic in appearance, the repainted one bears little resemblance to the refined and delightfully detailed original.
An example of original painting on left and repainted version on right, Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
Here, above the doorway, is another example of repainting in the chevron border and the two figures underneath.
Repainted areas in Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
Presented above are only a couple of examples. In person onsite at Tabo’s Tsug Lhakhang, one finds upon scrutiny numerous incidences of such inpainting and overpainting. I fear that if this kind of “restoration” continues, over time, the temple’s extraordinary original murals will be obliterated rather than preserved. That would be an immeasurable loss for India, art history, and world posterity.
Experience the interior of Tabo Monastery’s Tsug Lhakhang by watching this video walk-through here.
Tabo Monastery is under the protection of the Archeological Survey of India, but it is unclear to me who is doing the painting.
The book Architectural Heritage: Ladakh by The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage, published in 2003, says it is often the monastics who do not realize the need for proper conservation, being more concerned with the religious content of the murals and not the art historical significance.
“In the great temples, the execution of wall paintings is carried out by monks and scholars whose canonical knowledge is profound…Most wall paintings are done on perishable mud plaster, and as these begin to disintegrate, these are either removed to draw fresh paintings or retraced and retouched to maintain their vibrancy and freshness. This way it is sometimes painful to witness a ruthless operation in which centuries old paintings are lost along with the structure by eager lamas to construct new structure and, consequently, draw another set of wall paintings…As soon as the walls begin to crack, or paintings fade, they are at once repainted.”
While it appears that at times the goals of Tabo Monastery and Archeological Survey of India may be at cross-purposes with one another, there seems to be great effort for mutual respect. After all, Tabo is a functioning Tibetan Buddhist religious site. At the same time, it is a rare Indo-Tibetan historical site under ASI’s charge. The question is, how are these two establishments proceeding forward?
Repainting, however, is only one of the man-made challenges to the preservation of Indo-Tibetan murals. There are also issues involving structural changes to historical buildings (see this earlier post regarding repairs to the roof of Tabo’s Great Assembly Hall), vandalism, and the effects of tourism, to name some others. Then there are the natural challenges such as wet conditions caused by snow or rainfall, and movement caused by earthquakes.
Partial repair and rudimentary inpainting in the Thousand Buddhas inner wall of Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang inner sanctum, Spiti, India
I heard that it’s possible ASI may have applied for UNESCO World Heritage status for Tabo Monastery. In terms of conservation and preservation, this would be wonderful if it were to come about! I understand that the Ajanta Caves in Southern India, which contain stunning, well-preserved, ancient Buddhist paintings as old as 2nd century B.C.E., is a World Heritage site.
Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang, with meditation caves in the cliffs beyond, Spiti, India
Six-o’clock morning puja for the recently deceased beloved abbot at Tabo Monastery was quite beautiful. I wasn’t fully awake for it, and drifted through listening to each monk use his voice artfully to express himself through prayer. Very nice. I found out later from a lama that while they all learn the basic rhythm, it is up to each individual monk to say the prayer as he wishes. In other words, they all chant the same prayer, but some go out and come in on certain parts, using their voices to inflect sound, create variety, meld, or syncopate, etc.
Afterwards I was able to do some documenting at Tabo today! Limited time, however, permitted only doing the interior of the Tsug Lhakhang, the Great Assembly Hall. I was thrilled because it was the most significant temple in terms of its Vajradhatu mandala arrangement and my research project.
Experience the interior of Tabo Monastery’s Tsug Lhakhang or Main Assembly Hall by watching this video walk-through.
Entering the Great Assembly Hall from its antechamber, Tabo Monastery
Wow, what a place! Dark and dramatic, with rays of light coming in through small ceiling windows, shining brilliantly on the main altar and then fading out towards the periphery of the assembly hall. I was stunned by the large number of statues and paintings to feast my eyes on! In a space that envelopes you in semi-darkness, it took some time to realize that just about every inch of wall and ceiling had been richly decorated.
With over a thousand years of continuous use as a meditation hall, I soaked in the sense of countless generations of monks who have spent their days here in peaceful meditation. I tried to fathom the devotion that Tabo’s Tsug Lhakhang has seen and sheltered. The overall impression is that of quiet yet teeming spiritual beauty.
Founded in 996 C.E. by the Guge (Western Tibet) king Yeshe O’d, the temple and statues are viewed clockwise in a Buddhist kora or circumambulation.
According to scholars, Kashmiri artists were responsible for the refined style of the statues and paintings. At the time, Buddhism had flourished in Kashmir and the region’s art was aesthetically sophisticated in expression and detail. Most of the art was executed circa 1042 C.E. during the renovation of the interior by Jangchub O’d, Yeshe O’d’s grand nephew.
The main altar features a gilded Vairocana. What a sight this tantric deity is with its larger-than-life four bodies, seated back to back, its serene faces looking out in the four cardinal directions. Distinctly Indian features include Indo-style trousers, painted red palms, procession carriage structure, and naga/garuda mount at top.
There are 32 multi-colored, graceful clay sculptures of Vairocana’s associated deities that line the assembly hall walls in Vajradhatu mandala order. Each is seated on a lotus pedestal, and cantilevers out of an attached sculpted halo background. Situated above eye-level, the figures look kindly and seem to lean towards you. Surrounding these deities on the wall are elaborate, colorful fresco paintings—scenes of Prince Sudhana’s pilgrimage and Buddha’s life on the lower frieze area; buddhas, bodhisattvas, other tantric deities and Bon goddesses in the upper area.
Clay statues of tantric deities in Vajradhatu mandala arrangement, Tabo Monastery
Sudhana’s pilgrimage on lower frieze, Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang. Much of it is too deteriorated to see clearly.
Guardian deity at far left, painted buddhas and bodhisattvas on upper areas of Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
Vairocana statue, main altar, Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang, Spiti, India Distinctly Indian features include Indo-style trousers, painted red palms, procession carriage structure, and naga/garuda mount at top.
View of gilded Vairocana statue from inner sanctum, Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang, Spiti, India
Detail of gold Vairocana, Tabo Monastery Great Assembly Hall altar, Spiti, India
Tabo’s Main Assembly Hall, and in fact, the whole monastic complex was originally built according to a mandala concept as set forth by the Sarva-tathāgata-tattva-samgraha Tantra, practically a literal translation of it which distinguished this monastery. To the practitioner, therefore, Tabo’s interior and exterior order symbolized his sacred inner and outer realities. (More on this topic in previous post But Wait, A Bit About Mandalas.)
“The main temple, Tsug Lhakhang, was at the center of the whole complex. The center of the temple was also the center of the compound along the east-west axis, having its major statue, Saravid Vairocana, placed in the central spot [now moved to the altar] not only of its surrounding 32 statues but also of the whole complex….Later additions have diluted the concept, but temples from Tabo’s heyday, together with stupas or chorten, form a simple but clearly visible mandala in the architectural layout-plan.” (The Forgotten Gods of Tibet: Early Buddhist Art in the Western Himalayas by Peter van Ham and Aglaja Stirn. See also this book for excellent descriptions and further details on Tabo’s iconography)
Vajradhatu mandala arrangement of Vairocana and 32 associated deities, Tabo Monastery, Spiti, India.
Above is the floor plan of the Main Assembly Hall showing the Vajradhatu mandala arrangement of the Five Buddha Families: Vairocana, Amitabha, Amoghasiddhi, Akshobya, and Ratnasambhava, with their associated deities. These represent aspects of Buddha-nature that guide a practitioner to attain enlightenment according to the lower yoga tantras. Tibetan Buddhists today generally practice highest yoga tantra or Annutarayoga.
Side view of Vairocana statue, main altar, Tabo Monastery, Spiti, India. The statue is built in the tradition of an Indian procession carriage, used for carrying the god around the temple or outside for blessing.
For photography and viewing, I came prepared with flashlights. Thank goodness they were fully charged, and that our current guesthouse has power! We would not have been able to see most of these dark interiors without them.
Vajrahasa statue, part of the Gem family of Ratnasambhava, Tabo Monastery
What a challenge it’s been to ensure my equipment is all charged and ready to go. Sadly, I am told by locals that Spiti in general lacks electricity because the Indian government is remiss in providing good infrastructure to all its citizens, and particularly to those communities that are remote, less populated, and lack political clout. As you can imagine this makes Spiti’s growing tourism especially difficult when hotel and restaurant owners, cyber cafes, etc., must routinely apologize to their clientele for not being able to meet their needs due to lack of power. I got creative with calculating how long my cell phone, laptop and camera equipment would last before finding the next feasible charging place.
Vajrakarma statue, part of the Action family of Amoghasiddhi Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
Vajrayaksa statue, part of the Action family of Amogasiddhi Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
Akshobya statue, Vajra family Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
Behind the main altar is a small inner sanctum or cella that contains a 13th century statue of Amitabha in an elevated niche, flanked by two crowned statues of bodhisattvas, Padmapani on the left and Mahashtamaprapta on the right. Above him are figures identified as Apsaras or minor gods in the act of homage, and painted on his left and right are female attendants.
Amitabha statue, inner sanctum, Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang Stylistically different from the statues in the main hall, it looks like a later addition or replacement.
Padmapani statue, inner sanctum, Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang. Visible on the left are some of the Thousand Buddhas that are painted on the circumambulatory inner walls.
A narrow corridor for circumambulation surrounds Amitabha. Its inner walls are richly painted from floor to ceiling with Thousand Buddhas, manifestations of the enlightened one in splendid iteration of the five colors, different robes, lotus pedestals, and haloes.
Buddhas in a Thousand Buddha depiction on inner sanctum circumambulatory walls, Tabo Monastery
On the outer walls are magnificent bodhisattvas and Supreme Buddhas (Tathagatas). These are my favorites! I really appreciate the mastery of these paintings in the inner sanctum. The below bodhisattva is an example of one of sixteen that symbolize aspects of Buddhahood stemming from Vairocana.
Bodhisattva, from outer circumambulatory wall of Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
The bodhisattva figures literally took my breath away when I saw them revealed by my flashlight! Every brushstroke showed ease, delicacy and variety in execution. The highly inventive and detailed jewelry, as well as the fabric patterns, was a pleasure to discover. In addition, these paintings are well-preserved and dated 1042 C.E. when the temple was renovated. In other words, they appear as they were first created, untouched by other painters or conservators since then. What an incredible indication of the original quality of work that existed!
These inner sanctum figures look different from the ones on the upper register of the Tsug Lhakhang in that they are far more elaborate and refined. Additionally, Indo-Tibetan paintings show a freedom of composition not found in later Tibetan artworks where proportions and poses are more defined by convention.
The Supreme Buddhas were also delightfully painted, exhibiting a similar level of refinement and delicacy but painted at a much larger scale, about life-size.
Supreme Buddha dressed in unusual pleated robe, painted on outer wall of circumambulatory, Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang inner sanctum
I particularly like the sense of ease yet energy that this below Buddha expresses. His face and gaze are sublime, his hands in graceful repose. But his unusual robe depicts rhythm and movement in the undulating sleeves and neckline detail. Coupled with the artist’s use of primary colors and radiating spirals in the halo, the overall effect of this painting is vibrant immediacy.
Supreme Buddha on outer wall, inner sanctum of Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
Detail of Supreme Buddha on outer wall, inner sanctum of Tabo Monastery Tsug Lhakhang
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