Murals on the walls of Buddhist Temples are customary, they usually tell the story of Sidhartha Gautama and the history of Buddhism.
Tibetan murals are a reflection of their living surroundings--- sky, grassland, snow and Sun. Tibetan Buddhist murals include guardians, demons and protectors as subject matter. Blue, red, yellow, green and golden are the most active colors in Tibetan murals. Strict rules govern Tibetan mural painting. Smoke does much harm to murals. Color fades and even becomes blurry. Colorful murals on rocks can be seen all around the monastery.
Gangtok is the capital and largest town of the Indian state of Sikkim. It is situated in the lower Himalayas and known for its clean surroundings and temperate climate. This hill station of about fifty thousand people is the centre of Sikkim's tourist industry. The Enchey Monastery in 1840 made it a pilgrimage center. It became a major stopover between Tibet and British India at the end of the 19th century. Following India's independence in 1947, Sikkim became a nation-state with Gangtok as its capital. In 1975 the monarchy was abrogated and Sikkim became India's twenty-second state, with Gangtok remaining as its capital. Gangtok is a centre of Tibetan Buddhist culture and learning with numerous monasteries and religious educational institutions.
