If you like to seek spiritual and intellectual meaning in your travels, Songtsen library girdled by the Himalayas, with gorgeous views of the valley of Dehradun in North India, promises a blissful retreat for self-regeneration. Anupma Khanna settles in
On the tree-lined Sahastradhara Road, a quiet lane meanders in an unassuming way flanked by trees and modest houses as it leads to this majestic, awe-inspiring centre. Named after King Songtsen Gampo, hailed as the father of Tibetan Culture, Songtsen library is a spectacular replica of Tibet’s first castle built in 2nd century BC — the Yumbhu lakhar. The place is very rich in character and its stone walls and landscape make an instant impression.
Nestled between the holy cities of Haridwar and Rishikesh, it is skirted in the West by lush
shrubland in front of a hill on which long lines of Buddhist prayer flags dance in the wind. With its cultural richness, serene setting and mystical architecture, Songtsen attracts discerning travellers, spiritual seekers and scholars from across the world while being untouched by mad, modern tourism.
Constructed between 1999 to 2001, Songtsen library was established by the head of the Drikung Kagyu order of Tibetan Buddhism, His Holiness, the Drikung Kyabgon Chettsang Rinpoche, and was inaugurated by the XIV Dalai lama in 2003.
The retreat draws its name from the 33rd Dharma King of Tibet, Songtsen Gampo (617-650 AD) credited with bringing Buddhism to Tibet. The great Dharma King brought the teachings to flourish in Tibet — his memorial stands as a monument and an image of hope. legend has it that the king sent sons of ministers to India to study the Bhotiya script of the Himalayan regions of ladakh and Kinnaur before the Tibetan script was born. And as one takes in the splendid vista, the eyes are rivetted on a beige-coloured vintage Mercedes Benz exhibited in a glass house — the one used by Dalai lama from 1964 to 1982.
The intricate art painted on the doorway of the sanctuary is based on the door of the Potala in Tibet. The thangkas adorning the ceiling are a stately confluence of ancient cultures — the Persian, Tibetan and Chinese. The most unusual of the paintings is that of Nyatri Tsenpo. There are a few rare thangkas depicting Tibet's first king (c. 127 BC) and old traditions. Artist Rinzin Chodrak created an original composition based on the council of artists at Kumbung labrang in Amdo, Tibet. During this council, they collected the existing biographies and myths of his life forming a source for the narrative in the painting.
And paralleling its architectural marvel are the rare manuscripts and literary collections it houses. A collection of particular significance is the one on the Dun Huang documents, the earliest written sources on Tibetan society and history. One of the earliest sources on diverse subjects on Central Asian culture like astrology, religion, philosophy and geography, the original manuscripts date from around the 6th to the 12th century and were discovered at various caves on and near the famous Silk Route of Central Asia.
Then there are the Buddhist Kagyur (Buddha’s voice) and Tengyur, the commentaries, the personal collection and journals of the erudite pioneer of Buddhism, lama Anagarika Govinda. Born in a German family, he became a Buddhist and dwelt in Almora in the mid-eighties. He is believed to have introduced Buddhism to the West. The library also houses over 6,000 digitised format Buddhist texts procured from the Tibetan Buddhist Resource Centre in New York.
The spiritual haven has a peaceful, undisturbed meditation room perched above the terrace of the edifice with an exhilirating view of the encircling mountains. Adding spiritual charm to this pious place is a huge statue of Avalokitesvara, a Bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas, made in pure sandalwood.
This tower-like construction at the back that houses a shrine to Avalokitesvara was added after the building plans were approved. It was constructed at night because according to Indian law of the time, once the roof was tiled, a building could not be brought down.
Nevertheless the planning department was very pleased with the results and granted approval, according to records.
“It was to be no ordinary building as its outward appearance was intended to reflect its function of preserving and transmitting Tibetan tradition,” describes Elmar Gruber in From The Heart Of Tibet. “After the library was completed, an area beside it was cleared for construction and a major new school of higher Buddhist studies, the Kagyu College, was soon built with an impressive temple at its centre. Inside the lhakhang an enormous statue of Shakyamuni Buddha is flanked by Nagarjuna and Asanga.”
People from around the world come for a retreat here for a few days to even six months. There are high quality and modern guest lodgings for visitors, scholars and researchers in the idyllic environs that can be booked for a nominal rent by sending an email request to the director of the library.
There are also good hotels in the vicinity. Sahastradhara, one of the most popular tourist destinations of Uttarakhand, is very close to the retreat and a must visit for travellers. Meaning “thousand fold spring”, Sahastradhara is an invigorating excursion spot with remarkable natural beauty marked by waterfalls, caves where water drips from limestone stalactites, making the water sulphur abundant. If architecture be music in space, Songtsen library is a song for the soul.
