Tibetans pray for Dalai Lama's upcoming Arunachal visit

Dharamsala, Sep. 22 (ANI): Tibetans living in exile in Dharamshala on Tuesday prayed for the success of Dalai Lama's impending visit to Arunachal Pradesh.

Although the annual ritual of prayers is dedicated for highest Buddhist leader's health and well being, but this year a large number of monks and nuns from various monasteries have assembled at the Theckchen Choelling Tsuglag Khang monastery to wish the Dalai Lama a good luck for his upcoming visit to the north-eastern state.

"This is a Mahaguru Puja (worship dedicated to the highest teacher), it's the Padma Sambhava Puja (worship of Sambhava) and here mainly for the long life of His Holiness Dalai Lama and also for his visit to Arunachal Pradesh and his coming visits to Europe and America," said Tenzin, a monk.

The Dalai Lama, in the month of November, is scheduled to visit Tawang, one of the last vestiges of Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism and a major cause of tension over the decades-old border dispute between India and China.

China says Tawang, located in Arunachal Pradesh, once belonged to Tibet as such India should hand it back to help settle the border row between the two Asian giants.

China also doesn't recognise Arunachal Pradesh as a part of India and it has opposed the Dalai Lama's proposed visit to Tawang.

Dalai Lama will open a modern hospital in Tawang. Buddhist devotees in Tawang and surrounding places have begun donating gold, silver as well as in cash and kind to Buddhist monasteries, which they wish to dedicate to their spiritual leader.

This will be the Dalai Lama's fifth trip to Arunachal Pradesh since he entered India in 1959 after escaping from Tibet through Tawang. (ANI)