A Photo Guide to Bylakuppe’s Golden Temple in Karnataka
This post is a photo guide to Namdroling Monastery, commonly known as the Golden Temple located in the Bylakuppe Tibetan settlement in Karnataka. The settlement is only 53 miles from Mysore, one of the popular Madikeri tourist places, and is something I highly recommend when in South India. Scroll on to see the beauty of Bylakuppe’s Golden Temple!
Just 53 miles from Mysore, Namdroling Monastery is located in the town of Bylakuppe in the state of Karnataka, India. The monastery is home to over 5,000 monks and nuns, as well as a college and hospital. There are four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism, and the oldest, Nyingma, is what is taught here.
Bylakuppe is a Tibetan refugee resettlement area provided by the Indian government to Tibetans fleeing instability. I found out about Bylakuppe over a year ago from a friend who was in Mysore getting her yoga teacher training. The pictures she posted on Facebook were just incredible – I couldn’t believe I would be so close to the largest Tibetan settlement in India.
As soon as you enter the grounds, you’re made aware of the need to be silent. If you’ve ever been to India, you know the hustle and bustle can get overwhelming. It takes a while to get used to the constant noise from traffic (never heard so many horns beep before in my life), street vendors, and dogs barking all the time. A couple of hours meditating in silence & serenity was pure bliss!
The largest temple on the monastery grounds is the Golden temple or Padmasambhava Buddhist Vihara. The sheer vastness of the inside combined with silence in such a large space is enough to wow you.
There were hardly any tourists or visitors when I visited in March, so I was able to spend a good amount of time in the temple, sitting in the back just meditating and clearing my mind. If you’re looking for places to visit when you’re in Mysore, consider a day trip to Bylakuppe. It’s a breathtaking taste of Tibet in South Western India – you’ll leave feeling refreshed.
