The Namgyal Institute of Tibetology houses fine craftsmanship of Sikkim and gives you a glimpse of the largest collection of original Tibetan books outside of Tibet. SHAlINI SAKSENA tells you more
Going sightseeing is a must if one is visiting a new place. Each place has its history and places that make for an interesting visit. The Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, a Tibet (NIT) museum in Gangtok, Sikkim, is one such place. The name itself — Namgyal — has an interesting meaning; it means world outside Tibet.
The name is apt. As you enter the museum the first thing you notice is a board that states that this world’s foundation stone was laid by the 14th Dalai lama on the February 10, 1957 and was opened by the Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on October 1, 1958.
Then there is the silver image of Manjushri — the Bodisattva of knowledge — that was brought from Tibet. Besides various statues of Buddha in various positions like vitarka mudra (intellectual argument, dharmachakra mudra (teaching preaching), bhumisparsha mudra (earth touching) or the varada mudra (charity, compassion), there are several, one can get glimpse of the opulent life that Siddhartha must have led before he finally became Buddha through various thangkas.
Then there is a casket that has relics of two great Asokan missionaries, Madhyama and Kasyapagotra.
Then there is a horn made out of a human femur and a skull on display. The placard reads that these were used for various tantric practices. As one moves on, there are sandalwood images that representPadmasambhava, the three founding lamas of Sikkim and the first King Phuntsok Namgyal showcasing the fine art work of the region.
But few visitors to the place know that the institute is known for its project seeking to document the social history of Sikkim’s 60 monasteries. Another project is to digitise and document old and rare photographs for knowledge distribution.
The NIT’s library holds one of the largest collections of Tibetan works in the world outside Tibet. There are over 60,000 titles consisting of Tibetan translations of canonical and non-canonical works from their original Sanskrit or Pali, as well as tantric texts belonging to the four sects of Tibetan Buddhism.
The library also has the collected works of Padma lingpa, Mipham Rinpoche and the Great 5th Dalai lama, and the hagiography of Guru Padmasambhava.