Tashilhunpo Monastery, Tibet

The Tashilhunpo Monastery in Tibet is a borderland of culture, religion and also political tussles. Established by the First Dalai Lama, Gendun Drupa, the Tashilhunpo Monastery in Tibet was set up in the year 1447. Aside of a monastery, the Tashilhunpo Monastery in Tibet serves as the residence of the second man in the Buddhist religious hierarchy: the Panchen Lama. The Tashilhunpo Monastery in Tibet received political attention when a dispute boiled over regarding the succession of the 11th Panchen Lama between the Chinese officials and the Tibetan monks. The other claim to fame of the Tashilhunpo Monastery in Tibet is the fact that it is Tibet's second largest monastery.

Sprawling over an area of 3,229,279 Sq ft, the Tashilhunpo Monastery in Tibet is home to some 800 or so monks or 'Lamas'. The Tashilhunpo Monastery in Tibet is also called the 'Heap of Glory'. The attractions in this monastery are many and vary in characteristics. First, there is the "Thangka Wall" which was built in 1468 by the monastery's founder. The Wall has a unique exhibit of the various envisions of the Buddha for three days in the month of May, 14th, 15th and 16th, for every year of the Tibetan Lunar Calendar. The second attraction of the Tashilhunpo Monastery in Tibet is the statue of the seated 'Maitreya' or the final 'Bodhisattva' who is to come. This 86 Ft statue of the Maitreya is the biggest anywhere around the world and also the most expensively crafted with gold and copper and encrusted with pearl, diamonds and other precious stones.