The concluding birth centenary function in remembrance of renowned religious scholar, political leader and a diplomat, Kushok Bakula Rinpoche will be held in Leh on May 19.
An organizing committee was set up in Leh to commemorate the year long celebrations. Rinpoche was people’s leader known for his great sense of compassion and equal treatment to all people irrespective of religious faith and Ladakh’s different regions.
On 19th May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Leh and join the people of Ladakh in the concluding day of the yearlong birth centenary celebration of Rinpoche. While the birth centenary was commemorated in different parts of India by various state governments, central universities and other organizations, commemorative events have also been held in various countries abroad. The Government of Mongolia organized a special event on the 17th April in Ulaanbaatar where Smt. Sushma Swaraj was the chief guest. She paid glowing tributes to Rinpoche in her keynote address.
In 2005, while renaming the Leh airport after Bakula, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said, “The Most Venerable Kushok Bakula Rinpoche, the Architect of Modern Ladakh’ was a noble saint a true Buddhist and above all, a great Indian. It is only appropriate that we name this airport, the link between the high Himalayas and the world below, after this son of Ladakh and this man of God. He was a unique lama of great talent and exceptional gifts. He was revered for his erudition, his dedication to the education of a new generation, his gentle humility and his wisdom and compassion.”
Rinpoche led an active life spanning five decades during which he served with distinction as a member of the Jammu and Kashmir Constituent Assembly, MLA, Minister in the J&K Government, member of the Lok Sabha, Member, National Commission for Minorities and Ambassador of India. He was a religious preacher and a reformist, a politician and a statesman. All these roles he performed with ease and perfection. Rinpoche was an epitome of humility.