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Ladakh monastery head wants Dalai Lama’s birthday, 6 July, to be holiday in UT, writes to L-G

Citing 'debt of gratitude' Tibetan Buddhists in Ladakh owe Dalai Lama, Kushok Thiksay, head of Thiksay monastery and a former Rajya Sabha MP, wrote to Lieutenant-Governor Monday.

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New Delhi: The Thiksay monastery, one of the most prominent Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in Ladakh, is pushing for the declaration of 6 July — the birthday of the 14th (current) Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso —  as an official holiday in the Union Territory, ThePrint has learnt. 

“Ladakh, primarily a Buddhist region of the Himalayas with close historical ties to Tibet, owes a debt of gratitude to the Dalai Lama,” Thiksay monastery head and former Rajya Sabha MP Kushok Thiksay wrote Monday to Ladakh Lieutenant Governor R. K. Mathur.

“The 14th Dalai Lama through his frequent visits and teachings has promoted communal harmony in the region and revitalised the predominantly Buddhist heritage of the Ladakh region,” he added.

“As a token of our deep appreciation and gratitude for his monumental impact on the Ladakhi culture and its people, we proposed that the 6th of July — the birthday of His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama — be declared an official holiday for the UT region,” read the letter.

ThePrint has a copy of the letter. 

Located 19 km from Leh, Thiksay Monastery was founded by Spon Palden Sherab with his master Jangsem Sherab Zang — a disciple of Lord Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelugpa school of Tibetan Buddhism, to which the Dalai Lama also belongs  — in 1433 AD. Kushok Thiksay, its present head, was a Rajya Sabha MP from 1999 to 2002.  

This request comes ahead of the Dalai Lama’s visit to the Union territory, which is likely to take place anytime between July and August. 

In April, Thiksay and former MP Thupten Tsewang had reached Dharamshala and invited the Dalai Lama to visit Ladakh. The spiritual leader of Tibet is revered in Ladakh, which is home to a large community of Buddhists. 

The visit gains prominence as China is not only locked in a border standoff with India in Ladakh, but also keeps a wary eye on the Dalai Lama and his activities. He had last visited Ladakh in 2018.

In his letter, Thiksay mentioned that Sikkim has already adopted 6 July as an official holiday and that Ladakh should follow in its footsteps. “This has already been adopted by the Sikkim state government and Ladakh being primarily a Himalayan Buddhist region can also incorporate it into its annual calendar,” the letter stated.

The Dalai Lama’s life and “unparalleled legacy” is like those of Mahatma Gandhi and B. R. Ambedkar, and should be honoured as such, it added.

In 2015, the then Pawan Kumar Chamling government in Sikkim had adopted 6 July as a restricted holiday. Unlike a gazetted holiday, a restricted holiday means any persons related to the occasion are allowed to take the day off.

(Edited by Tony Rai)


Also Read: With bike rally, Tibetans mark 27 yrs since spiritual leader Gedhun Choekyi Nyima’s kidnapping


 

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