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Thak Thok Gompa
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Thak Thok
gompa shelters a
cave in which the apostle Padmasambhava is said to have meditated during his
epic eight-century journey to Tibet. Blackened over the years by sticky
butter-lamp and incense smoke, the mysterious grotto is now somewhat
u staged by the monastery’s more modern wings nearby. As well as some spectacular 35-year-old wall paintings, the Urgyan Photan Du-khang
harbours a collection of multicolored yak-butter candle-sculptures made by
the head lama. for a glimpse of “state-of-the-art” Buddhist iconography,
head to the top of Thak Thok village, where a shiny new temple houses a row
of huge gleaming Buddhas, decked out in silk robes and surrounded by garish
modern murals.
Apart from during the annual festival, the village of Sakti is a
tranquil place, blessed with serene views south over the snowy mountains
behind Hemis. Accommodation is available in the J&K Tourist Bungalow.
There are also plenty of ideal camping spots beside the river, although as
ever you should seek permission before putting up a tent on someone’s field.
Nine buses a day leave Leh for Sakti.
The Main Temple
The main shrine here is a cave in which the apostle Padmasambhava is said to
have meditated during his epic 8th century journey to Tibet. Blackened over
the years by sticky but ter-lamp and incense smoke, the dark and mysterious
grotto is now somewhat upstaged by the monastery's more modern wings nearby.
As well as some spectacular thirty-year-old wall paintings, the Urgyan
Photan Du-khang harbours a collection of multicoloured yak butter candle
sculptures made by the head lama.
For a glimpse of "State of the art" Buddhist iconography, head to the top of
Thak Thok village, where a shiny new temple houses a row of huge gleaming
Buddhas, decked out in silk robes and surrounded by garish modern murals.
The Festivities
Apart from during the annual festivals of Thak Thok Tse Chu (9-11 of the
sixth Tibetan month) and viz Thak Thok Manchog (20-29 of the ninth Tibetan
month), the village itself is a tranquil place, blessed with serene views
south over the snowy mountains behind Hemis.
HOW TO GET THERE
Road: Three buses a day leave Leh for Thak Thok: the first and most
convenient at 10.30 am, and the last at 4.00 pm, returning at 7.00 pm.
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Ladakh
Places of Interest (Visit
Ladakh) |
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Leh
Leh is nested in a side valley just to the north of the Indus Valley.
Until 1947 it had close trading relations with Central Asia yak trains would
set off from the Leh Bazaar to complete the stages over the Kaakoam Pass to
Yarkand and Kashgar.
Kargil
Administering the Valleys of Suru , Drass, Wakha and Bodkarbu, Kargil
lies midway between the alpine valleys of Kashmir and the fertile reaches of
the Indus Valley and ladakh
Thak Thok
Thak Thok gompa
shelters a cave in which the apostle Padmasambhava is said to have meditated
during his epic eight-century journey to Tibet.
Dhahanu
Dhahanu is situated to the south west of Leh,
around 163 Kms. passing through the beautiful villages of Kaltsey, Domkhar,
Skurbuchan
Padum
Padum is 240 km to the south of Kargil, comes as a bit of an anticlimax
Rangdum
Rangdum is an elliptical expanded plateau surrounded by colourful hills on
the one side and glacier encrusted rocky mountains on the other.
Zanskar
Walled in by the Great Himalayan Divide, Zanskar, literally " Land of
White Copper" has for decades exrted the allure of Shangri La on visitours
to Ladakh.
Zangla
Zangla is the nodal point on the popular Padum Strongdey Zangla Karsha
Padum round trip, which covers most of the cultural sites of Zanskar.
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Valley
of Ladakh |
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The Suru Valley
Diving two of the world's most formidable mountain ranges, the Suru
Valley winds south from Kargil to the desolate Pensi La the main entry point
for Zanskar.
Nubra Valley
the Nubra valley - nubra means green used to be on the trading route
connection Tibet with Turkistan, Also Now as the Valley of Flowers
more ...
Drass Valley
Drass (3230 m), 60 km west of Kargil on the road to Srinagar, is a small township lying in the centre of the valley of the same name
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Shyok Valley
The Shyok River receives the waters of the Nubra and Changchenmo rivers. It rises from the Khumdang glacier, which can be approached from
Shyok. |
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Pangong Tso
Pangong Tso, 15km to the southeast of Leh, is one of the largest
saltwater lakes in Asia, a long narrow strip of water stretching from Ladakh
east into Tibet.
Tso Moriri
Tso Moriri or "Mountain Lake" is Famous for the large herds of
king, or wild ass, which graze on its shores, the lake of Tso Moriri. |
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