Journey to Ki: Highest Monastery in the World

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Years after the visit of Lama Druptob Karpo, construction of the Enchey Monastery started in the very same spot as a remembrance of the master of flying. The construction completed in Moreover, monks can be seen meditating in and around the monastery in their traditional attires. The scenic view of the location and the colorful architecture of the monastery is the home to 90 monks. This festival is very close to the inhabitants of Gangtok and also attracts thousands of tourists and monks from other Buddhist monasteries around the world.

The Chaam festival signifies the love between the Bhutias and the Lepchas. While visiting this monastery, care should be taken to avoid the rainy days within this part of Sikkim. The duration of June-October consists of the beginning of the main winter period in this entire region and is the best time to visit the monastery. The foothills of the Himalayas in Dehradun are the home to the Mindrolling Monastery.

The Mindrolling Monastery is an ideal centre for learning Buddhist scriptures as well as other academic courses. Traditional Tibetan medicine and Tibetan lunar calendar are also being taught under the guidance of the Ngagyur Nyingma College of the monastery. The landscapes around the monastery are very enchanting and have been attracting visitors from centuries.

The colourful gardens of the monastery serve as the best way to relax the mind and the body; escaping mental digressions is guaranteed. It is the largest stupa in the world. The shrines of this monastery depict the art and culture of the Buddhist culture in a closely understandable way.

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Blessing ceremonies and other ritual function can be seen all throughout the year in this monastery. Arunachal Pradesh, the North Eastern state of India which is considered to be one of the best places for trekking, is the home to the magnificent Tawang Monastery. The monastery is located at a height of 3, m above the sea level. The snow covered mountains of the Himalayan range welcomes every visitor to this monastery, all throughout the year. The peaceful and serene surroundings of this monastery make it an ideal place to seek solace of mind.

The monastery is also the birthplace of the sixth Dalai Lama. The fifth Dalai Lama wished for a monastery in this region and thus the monastery was established. Mera Lama Lodre Gyatso founded this monastery. The infrastructure of this monastery is very rich and is very well decorated with stunning statues depicting Buddhist teachings and meanings of life. A 3-storey building comprises the main building of the monastery. This building is further divided into shrine rooms for the monks to meditate, worship and perform other religious activities.

Within the compound of the monastery, sixty-five residential buildings provide shelter to the monks and lamas.

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The library has a large collection of ancient books on Buddhism and some of these scriptures are very old and rare. Besides being one of the major Buddhist monasteries in the country, Tawang Monastery is also one of the finest craft centre in the entire Arunachal Pradesh. The craft centre within this monastery produces some of the finest quality woollen carpets in the world. Cultural festivals are an integral part of the Tawang Monastery.

This festival is celebrated to mark the Tibetan New Year and it runs for 15 continuous days. The victory of good over the bad is depicted in this festival. Alongside the tall gazing trees in the forest of Dharamshala, the prayer flags of the Tsuglagkhang Complex can also be seen; this view is simply mesmerizing!

The Tsuglagkhang complex is the official residence of the spiritual leader, Dalai Lama. The complex is located near Mcleod Ganj and is surrounded with beautiful forests of pine trees. The Dhauladhar Mountain ranges mainly comprises these forests. The monastery is an ideal place for some peaceful time and in the presence of Dalai Lama, the holiness of the monastery knows no bounds.

The simple life of Dalai Lama can be closely observed in this monastery. The monastery also has a museum, Namgyal Gompa, Kalachakra temple and many more sacred paintings of the Buddhist culture. The entire monastery is open to the visitors; there are no restrictions on visiting any part of the monastery. The Kye Monastery is one of the oldest monasteries in the Spiti Valley. In the year , it completed 1, years. Located at a distance of 12 km to Kaza, this monastery stands 4, m above sea level.

Since its establishment, it has faced several attacks from the Mongols. And, due to repetitive reconstruction, the monastery looks like a fort today. Even after several changes in the structure, the beauty of the monastery is ineffable. It is one of the most important learning centres of the Buddhist monks and the lamas. Influence of the Chinese architecture can be clearly seen from the structure of this monastery. The temples of this monastery are built one over the other. The Kye monastery is very rich in terms of collections of Buddhist paintings and Holy Scriptures.

A wide range of ancient books can be found in the library of the monastery. On the eve of completion of 1, years, His Holiness Dalai Lama visited this monastery. Over 15, Buddhist monks, lamas and devotees from all over the world visited the monastery to witness this celebration. This festival is celebrated on the completion of every 1, years. Another beautiful monastery to visit in Himachal Pradesh is the Namgyal Monastery. Since the third Dalai Lama himself founded this monastery, it is considered as one of the holiest monastery in India as well as in the entire world.

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The Namgyal Monastery is also the home to one more monastery within its main campus. Several temples can be seen inside the monastery along with various learning institutions. Special prayers for the betterment of Tibet are carried out in this monastery. The passage to the interior parts of this monastery is limited to His Holiness Dalai Lama and his disciples. It offers various religious, tantra and sutra learning centres to more than students. Amongst the monasteries in Sikkim, Rumtek monastery is the largest and the most visited monasteries in the entire region. This monastery was founded in Tibet during the 9th century.

Later, in the early s, the monastery was re-established in India. The author is a good storyteller and he includes all the right tidbits about the trip to keep the reader interested. The journey to the mountain with some ungainly characters is funny and foreboding at the same time. The climb up the mountain will keep you reading and perhaps panting too.

Just reading about the climb took my breath away. I won't give away the ending, but it comes far too soon. I was left wanting to know more about this fascinating place and the people who live there. I also wanted to know more about the author who apparently has written several books like this about various fascinating places. I'm giving it four stars only because it appears that the author got tired of writing and just brought the book to an abrupt ending.

It would have been much better if he'd filled out more about his journey and the contemplative life he found at Ki. Still, it's worth your time to read it and I recommend it. This book was amazing. Well written as well as adventurous.. One person found this helpful 2 people found this helpful.

This would have been a great book if photos and maps included. I kept wanting to see the trip on a map and also the photos taken on the trip. Without them only half the journey. Easy read, many positive feelings. Ladakh is strange place, more Tibet that China controlled Tibet.

Hope that monasteries never will be empty. One person found this helpful. It is about their journey physically, not spiritually Good information, fun read, but not exactly what I expected. This is not The Snow Leopard, not even close. The comparison is a little offensive. Simon Worrell is no Peter Matthiessen. This book is not much of a spiritual journey. You won't learn much about Buddhism, very little about India or Tibet, nor very much about the people he is travelling with.

It's not an awful book. It is just useless. The prose is mediocre and otherwise it doesn't have anything to say. If you have not read The Snow Leopard, by all means you should. According to a legend Yumbulagang was the first building in Tibet and the palace of the first Tibetan king, Nyatri Tsenpo.

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Under the reign of the 5th Dalai Lama the palace became a monastery of the Gelugpa school. Sadly, it was heavily damaged and reduced to a single storey during the Cultural revolution but was reconstructed in Stones from the ruins of Karakorum were used in the construction. It is surrounded by a wall featuring stupas. The number , being a sacred number in Buddhism, was probably envisioned, but never achieved. Under communist rule Erdene Zuu was allowed to exist as a museum only.


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However, after the fall of communism in Mongolia in , the monastery was turned over to the lamas and Erdene Zuu again became a place of worship. The other two are Sera Monastery and Drepung Monastery. Being the farthest from Lhasa of the three university monasteries, Ganden traditionally had a smaller population with some 6, monks in the early 20th century. In the monastery was completely destroyed by the Red Guards and the mummified body of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Monastery, was burned.

Reconstruction of the Monastery has been continuing since the s. Key Gompa or Ki Monastery is a thousand year old Tibetan Buddhist monastery located prominently on top of a hill at an altitude of 4, meters 13, feet in the Spiti Valley.

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The village of Kibar below the monastery is said to be the highest village in India. The monastery has been attacked many times during its long history by Mongol and other armies and was also ravaged by fire and earthquakes. The successive trails of destruction and restorations have resulted in a box-like construction, and the monastery looks like a fort, where temples are built on top of one another. The temple was built by Chinese emperors who harbored a deep fascination for the Tibetan version of Buddhism. Over the years, many Tibetan and Mongolian monks lived and taught here, and there are still monks in residence today.


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The temple contains a 26 meter 85 foot tall statue of Maitreya Buddha carved from a single piece of white sandalwood.