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Monestries
in Himachal Pradesh |
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The
monasteries of Himachal Pradesh are highly significant and
revered by the people of all religion. These monasteries do
not just preserve the rich Buddhist culture in the state,
but also make for an attractive tourists destination. Quiet
a few of these monasteries have gained fame on international
level, while many others are popular just locally.
Famous
Monasteries Of Himachal Pradesh
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Kye
Monastery |
Tabo
Monastery |
Other
Monasteries in Himachal |
Dhankar
Monastery
The monastery is located around 25 km from Kaza in the Spiti
valley of Himachal Pradesh. An image of "Vairocana" or
Dhayan Buddha consisting of 4 complete figures seated back
to back is the highlight of this monastery. The monastery
has Buddhist scriptures in Bhoti language as well as relics
in the shape of paintings and sculptures as its belongings. Two Gompas
are housed in this monastery - Lha Opa Gompa & Lkhang
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Gompa. The former is supposed to
date back to 12th century. The
second gompa is more prominent with its splendid mural that
represent the life of Buddha. |
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Guru Ghantal Monastery
Around 800 years ago at a place where Chandra and Bagha
river met, a monastery was established by Padmasambhava. The
monastery was located atop a hill above the Tupchiling
village and came to be known as the Guru Ghantal Monastery.
The highlight of this monastery is that unlike the other
monasteries of the state, the idols here are made up of wood
and not clay. |
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Within the monastery there are
idols of Padmasambhava and Brajeshwari Devi along with numerous other
lamas. Moreover, there is also an image of Kali in
Blackstone inside the monastery which gives strength to the
belief that the monastery was once a temple.
In earlier times a festival by the name of ghantal was
celebrated in this monastery wherein the visiting lamas and
thakur feasted for a day. The festival is not celebrated any
more today. Also, the monastery is not in a very good state
of maintenance. There are seepages inside and the paintings
have lost their colors. However, one thing is for certain,
and that is the workmanship of the gompa, which is
definitely much better than many other monasteries of the
state. The monastery is also known as the Trilokinath. |
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Namgyal Monastery
This one is located in Dharamshala and is also known by the
name of Namgyal Dratsang. Its history states that it was
founded by the third Dalai Lama, Sonam Gyatso in the year
1575. The monastery was established with an intention to
help the Dalai Lama carry on his public religious activities
as well as perform prayers for the betterment of Tibet.
Within the monastery premises, there is a |
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monastery, an
institute and few temples. The monastery is not open for
public, and only His Holiness, the Dalai Lama and his
students can gain entry into it. The institute admits
students for thirteen years of training in Tantra and Sutra.
The admission is difficult, however, once in, the students
get to gain knowledge from the renowned spiritual teachers
of Tibet as well as the Dalai lama himself. The monastery is
presently home to more than 180 monks. |
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Rewalsar Monastery
Located around 20 km south west of Mandi is a pagoda style
monastery of Rewalsar. Rewalsar is considered extremely
important place for Buddhists since it is from here that
Padamasambhava set out to spread his religion in the land of
Tibet. This dharma which he spread came to be known as
Lamaism. |
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The monastery stands on the edge of the Rewalsar
lake and the island in the lake is supposed to be inhabited
by the spirit of Padmasambhava. Inside the monastery, murals
in mixed Indo Chinese style are attention grabbers. |
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Kanum Monastery
The Kanum monastery is located in the Kanum in the Kinnaur
area of Himachal Pradesh. The village of Kanum, in the
erstwhile era, was a place rich in scriptural learning. It
was during this period (in the 11 th century) that 'Rin-Chen-Bzang-Po'
founded a school of scholastic learning here. |
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Kardang Monastery
This monastery is located at an altitude of around 15000
feet in the village of Kardang. Kardang is the erstwhile
capital of Lahaul and the monastery here is one of the
biggest and the oldest one. It was constructed around 900
AD.
The possessions of the monastery includes beautiful thangka
paintings, musical instruments and old weapons. |
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There is
also a library of Kangyur and Tangyur volumes of Buddhist
scriptures in Bhoti language. Infect the collection here is
considered to be the largest one. The lamas of this
monastery are allowed to marry. During summers they put up
with their family and work in fields while in winters they
return to the monastery. The monastery is extremely
important for the Durga - Pa sect. |
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Shashpur Monastery
In 17 th century AD, Lama Deva Tyatsho of Zanskar founded
the Shashur Monastery, a little distance away from Keylong.
Lama Deva Tyatsho was a missionary of the King of Bhutan.
The present structure of the monastery is because of
renovation work carried out by Deva Gyatsho.The attractions
of the monastery, which belongs to the Red sect of the
Tibetan Buddhist, are the 15-feet |
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'Thankha' and precious
wall paintings presenting all the siddhas of Buddhism. Another highlight of the monastery is the devil dance
performed by the lamas during the Chham celebration in the
month of June - July. |
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Tayul Monastery
Established by Dogpa Lama, Serzang Richen of Kham region of
Tibet, in the 17th century AD, the Tayul Monastery is
located around 6 km from Keylong in the Bhaga valley. The
highlight of the monastery is the 12 feet tall statue of
Padmasambhava. Apart from this, there is a hundred million
Mani wheels which is believed to turn by itself on extremely
sacred events. |
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The last time when the wheel turned on its
own was in the year 1886. There is also a library in the
monastery which houses 'Kangyur' and 'Thankas' reflecting
the life of Lord Buddha.
Thang Yug Gompa
This monastery is located around 13 km from Kaza in the
Spiti Valley. The lama here usually belongs to Tibet.
Still More Monasteries
Kungri Gompa, Lippa, Nechung Monastery, Pooh, Tashijong
Monastery, Tilasangh Monastery. |
