Gorsam Stupa: A reminder of India’s historic Tibet ties and sovereignty over Arunachal

The Gorsam Stupa (or Chorten in Monpa/Tibetan) is a special place, and this is for many reasons. Not only because between March 16 and 18, a Gorsam Kora (‘kora’ meaning ‘circumambulation’ in Tibetan) will be held around the monument, bringing together local Monpas and their Bhutanese neighbours, but it is also located near the Bhutan and Tibet trijunction, an area vital to India’s security, being close to the McMahon-Shatra Line, defining India’s northern border with Tibet in the Northeast since 1914.

Today, without an iota of historical evidence, this line is disputed by China, who invaded Tibet in 1950 and claims that the area is part of South Tibet (Zangnan in Chinese). If one were to believe Beijing, the Chinese territory would extend till Assam, a typically hegemonic nonsense.

In 2017 already, China had announced the 'standardisation' of the names of six places in Arunachal Pradesh. One of the six names was ‘Qoidengarbo Ri'. After scratching my head for some time, I realised that it sounded like ‘Chorten Karpo’ or ‘White Stupa’ and referred to the Gorsam Chorten, the only large white stupa in the area. The name ‘Ri’, or 'ridge' in Tibetan, may refer to one of the ridges around the stupa.

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Beijing clearly tries to snatch the area south of Zemithang, which was the tactical HQ of the 4th Infantry Division during the 1962 Sino-Indian War; at the time, it asserted that the Indian Army had then trespassed into Chinese territory.

The Dalai Lama’s First Night

The Gorsam Chorten is known for another reason; on March 31, 1959, the 14th Dalai Lama, soon after crossing the Indo-Tibet border at Khenzimane in the Kameng Frontier Division (today Tawang district), proceeded to spend his first night near the stupa.

Four days earlier, the 24-year-old Tibetan leader had sent a message to Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, asking for asylum, which was immediately granted by the Indian government.

Beijing does not like this reminder, though at that time, it did not claim the area (if it had, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) would have followed the Tibetan leader to Tawang and Bomdila!).

A secret report sent to Delhi a few days later observed: “At 1400 hours on March 31, the Dalai Lama and his party reached Kenze Mane [Khenzimane] which demarcates the frontier in Chuthangmu area. His Holiness was riding a yak and was received by the Assistant Political Officer, Tawang. They proceeded to the checkpost without halting at the frontier.” In Chuthangmu, a detachment of the Assam Rifles was waiting to accompany the Dalai Lama’s party to Assam.

The Tibetan leader reached the stupa at night.

A couple of days later, he met Harmander Singh, a senior Indian official and then Political Officer. In Bomdila, the Dalai Lama was officially received by Nehru's special envoy, PN Menon (father of former Foreign Secretary and NSA, Shivshankar Menon), with a welcome message from the Indian Prime Minister.

The History of the Stupa

Lobsang Tempa, a Monpa scholar, tells us the history of the stupa: “Gorzam Choeten (Gorsam Chorten), one of the most magnificent Buddhist monuments in Monyul [Tawang district], is said to be built in the 13th or 16th century (the dates are based on oral accounts) by Lama Sangye Telthar … [who] was born and raised in Pangchen Valley [near the Tibet border], where he was later known as Mon-nyon (the ‘Crazy Monpa’) because of his eccentric tantric practices.”

The stupa is described as an imitation of the famous Boddhnath chorten in Kathmandu.

The Arunachal Gazette gives a vivid description: “Built in stone and raised to a height of about 100 feet, the Gorsam Chorten is the largest Buddhist stupa in Arunachal Pradesh. … The hemispherical dome rests upon three plinths. Four miniature stupas are set on the four corners of the lowermost plinth. The base is square, with each side about 175 feet in length, with a niche running all along its whole length, and 120 prayer wheels (manes) are set in frames of wood in the niche of each side of the base. A paved path goes all around for the pilgrims to follow in respectful circumambulation, keeping the chorten on their right, turning the manes and muttering "Om Mani Padme Hum.”

The stupa is built on the bank of the Namjiang Chu river, which witnessed the first clashes with China in October 1962.

Other Records

We have several other accounts of the stupa from the early days.

In an article, Leaves of Pangchen, Sang Khandu, an officer of the Arunachal Pradesh government who was posted for several years in Zemithang Circle, wrote, “The most significant monument of Zemithang area is the Gorsam Chorten. It is considered one of the oldest and the largest stupas in the Himalayan region. Since ancient times, every year religious melas are held for getting blessings, during which pilgrims from within and abroad visit.” Khandu mentioned the yearly festival, called Gorsam Chorten Kora.

He explained, "Before construction of the Gorsam Stupa, the place was full of malevolent spirits. Sangye Telthar constructed the stupa to ease the villagers from these evil spirits. … I was told that the completion of the construction of the stupa took almost 12 years.”

The story continues into the 20th century; the stupa was in a very dilapidated state in the 1990s when the 13th Tsona Gontse Rinpoche, the head lama of the area, called for a kar seva.

Already in the early 1950s, after taking over the Tawang administration, Maj Bob Khathing visited the place: “31st July 1951 – Gyaleteng (Pangchen) to Khabteng 12 miles. Left Gyaleteng at 0600 hrs and arrived at 1500 hrs. Gorsam Chote [Chorten] is a beautiful temple of about 120 ft square. It was said to have built after the shape of Bodh Gaya temple, and it actually rescinds the old temples in India. One temple exactly like Gorsam Chote is also in Bhutan Hills named Dhullang Chote.”

K Lama, one of Khathing’s successors, visited the spot in March 1955; he noted, "On the way, I saw hundreds of Monpa devotees going to Gorsam Chorten in Panchon [Pangchen]. Gorsam Chorten, a famous temple (pagoda), was built at Gorsam in the Panchon area about 400 years ago by a certain Lama. This temple was so far looked after by the Panchon people. On the 15th of the 1st Tibetan month, every year people from surrounding areas came there as a religious pilgrimage; even people from the Bhutan and Tsona areas also came there.” For decades, it has been an occasion for Bhutanese to visit Tawang district and exchange with the local Monpas.

My First Visit to the Area

After my first visit to the area in 1996, I wrote, "About 6 or 7 kilometres before reaching Zemithang, we crossed a small, desolate village: Gorsam. Tsona Rinpoche, who recently organised the renovation of the stupa, told me that it is the second largest in Asia. This might be a slightly exaggerated statement, as there are many large stupas in Nepal, Sri Lanka, Cambodia or Burma.”

Gorsam Chorten’s Kar Seva had been considered by many as the mini-Ayodhya of Tsona Gontse Rinpoche (also known as TGR, when he jumped into the political arena). He himself claimed that more than 5,000 volunteers participated in the renovation. It was indeed a strong reassertion that the area belonged to India.

I further wrote, "But it is still quite large and impressive; it seems to block the entrance of the valley. Very often in Tibet (and in Monyul) stupas have an occult role in repelling adverse negative forces and protecting the locals," and I ironicised, “I do not know what the state of the stupa was at the time of the Sino-Indian War in 1962, but certainly it could not have been in good shape since so many Chinese could enter inside Indian territory!”

The Connection with Bhutan

Another thing that the Chinese government would like to erase from our memory is that the stupa establishes the deep historic link between Bhutan and the Tawang area.

Lobsang Tempa explained: “The division between Tashigang and Monyul too became sufficiently clear by the second half of the 18th century. … A number of Bhutanese who felt dissatisfied with the heavy taxation in Bhutan had migrated into the Monpa area, and the Tashigang Dzong took objection to it. … An agreement was signed in 1790 AD by Kalon Phala on behalf of the Tawang Monastery and Lama Chhodra on behalf of Bhutan, laying down that Bhutanese emigrating into Monyul and Monpas into Bhutan will be fined.”

During the last few years, thousands of devotees, including Bhutanese nationals, have gathered during the Gorsam Kora festival to observe the auspicious occasion on the last day of the lunar calendar's first month.

Incidentally, Zemithang is also the breeding ground of the migratory black-necked crane, which has deep spiritual and ecological value for the Monpas.

The next kora is another occasion to remember its rich historical background.

(The writer is Distinguished Fellow, Centre of Excellence for Himalayan Studies, Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence (Delhi). Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the writer. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.)