Nestled among the snow-capped mountains and perched at a height of 10,000 feet, picturesque Tawang is all set to welcome the Dalai Lama on his sixth visit to Arunachal Pradesh starting from tomorrow.
Colourful posters with pictures of the Tibetan spiritual leader and flags welcome visitors to the place, where the Dalai Lama had landed in 1959 after his escape from Tibet.
A security blanket has been thrown around the area, strategically located between China and Myanmar, with the Tawang district administration making all efforts to ensure a peaceful visit of the leader whose visit has been resented by China which has laid claim to the sensitive border state of Arunachal Pradesh.
Lama Tashi, director of the Himalayan Studies and Research Centre, who was nominated for the Grammy award for his songs based on Tibetan master chants, says the visit would give a strong signal to China that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of the country.
"People regard him as god and, therefore, no objection should be raised from any quarter for his visit to the state," Tashi says.
The spiritual leader is scheduled to hold discourses in the 300-year-old Tawang Monastery and at nearby Dirang from November 9 to 12 and another at Bomdila before leaving for Itanagar.
He had visited the place in 1983, 1997 and 2003. He paid two visits in 2003, and during one of the two visits, he had skipped Tawang to visit the Western side of the state dominated by the Mahayana sect of the Buddhism.
Monk-turned political personality TG Rinpoche said the people here view the Dalai Lama as the reincarnation of "Avaloktaswara", the god of compassion.
Rimpa Khandu a local youth who has never seen the spiritual leader, is upbeat about the visit. "The youths particularly are ecstatic although they are not sure whether they will be able to meet the Dalai Lama because of the strict security.
"This time security is tight and it will be difficult for the ordinary people to shake hands with the leader," he says.
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