Situated on the western end of the Himalayas, Ladakh has four major mountain
ranges - the Great Himalayan, Zanskar, Ladakh and the Karakoram - passing
through it. A maze of enormously high snow capped peaks and the largest glaciers
outside the polar region, dominate the terrain, where valley heights range
from a mere 8,000 feet to 15,000 feet. The world’s largest glacier,
Siachen is here.
Rainfall is a mere two inches and it is the melting snow in summer which sustains
life in this arctic zone. Vegetation is sparse. The major waterway is the
Indus which starts near Mt. Kailash. As it flows down, it is joined by its
other tributaries and these river valleys form the main area of human habitation.
Ladakh also has one of the largest and most beautiful natural lakes in the
country, Pangong Tso, with intensely clear water of an incredible range of
hues of blue. In late October, in Ladakh, the valleys are a visual delight
- apricots and poplars provide a spectacular display of green, gold and rust;
the grey and chocolate brown mountains with the turquoise blue waters and
azure blue skies provide a resplendent panorama of Ladakh in autumn. Ladakh
has a sparse population of about 1,35,000. Ladakhis are predominantly Buddhists
and Shia Muslims. They comprise an amalgam of four races of which Tibetans
are dominant. A cheerful, simple and hardy people, they have an immense capacity
for work. Living as close to nature as they do, they have maintained a harmonious
balance with their surroundings. They grow barley, apricot, walnut, mulberry
and grapes. Main trees are willows, junipers and poplars. Long distances are
traversed by using animal transportation - yaks, ponies, hunia sheep and Bactrian
camels. The most attractive feature of the landscape of Ladakh are the Buddhist
gompas (monasteries) which are either situated on mountain spurs or sprawl
majestically over cliff-slides. They are aesthetically pleasing, architecturally
interesting and have a wealth of artefacts. Gompas provide the focus for the
faith of the highly religious Buddhist people. They are places of worship,
isolated meditation, and religious instruction for the young. All gompas have
large courtyards and many of them celebrate their annual festivals in winter
which are marked by gay mask dances and dramas enacting tales from the scriptures.
The victory of good over evil forms the basic theme of these dances.
From the 4,100 metre high Fatu-La Pass in Ladakh, the road spins down to Lamayaru.
Flat roofs are perched seemingly one on top of the other on a spur overlooking
a ravine with incredible rock and earth formation. The small, bright green
fields of Lamayaru village stand out brightly against this fantastic landscape.
Above them is the Lamayaru Monastery, picked out in red, rising tier upon
tier It is the oldest site in Ladakh and beats all others in sheer grandeur
with its unique wood carving, statues and frescoes Lamayaru was a Bon shrine
prior to the advent of Buddhism.
At Alchi, 70 km. from Leh, on the banks of the Indus, is
the Alchi Gompa which dates back a thousand years. One of
its walls features thousands of miniature-sized pictures of the Buddha Three
large, brightly painted, clay images are its focal attractions.
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Namgyal Tsemo
Namgyal Tsemo is no longer inhabited This gompa was built
by King Tashi Namgyal It forms a part of the Leh Palace complex and is looked
after by monks from the Sankar Gompa.
Sankar Gompa
Sankar Gompa- This is a relatively modern monastery It is the residence
of the head priest- Kushak Bakula. A number of gold icons are found here.
Spituk
Spituk- 8 km. from Leh, it stands on the top of a hillock
commanding a panoramic view of the Indus valley for miles. Many icons of Buddha
and fine thankas are to be found in this 15th century gompa. The gompa also
houses a collection of ancient masks, antique masks and arms, and an awe-inspiring
image of Mahakal. The face of the Kali image is kept covered and is revealed
only at the annual function in January.
Shey
Shey- Situated on a hillock 15 km upstream from Leh, it was
once the residence of the royal family It is believed to be the seat of power
of the pre-Tibetan kings A 7.5 metre high copper statue of Buddha, plated
with gold, and the largest of its kind, is installed here.
Phyang
Phyang - 17 km. from Leh on the Leh-Kargil road, this gompa
looks like a huge palace from afar, built by Tashi Namgyal in the later half
of the 16th century A.D. it belongs to the Red Cap sect of Buddhists. Hundreds
of icons of Buddha and other gods are kept on wooden shelves.
Thikse
Thikse - 19 km. from Leh, spectacularly sited, Thikse is
one of the largest and architecturally most impressive gompas. There are several
temples in this gompa containing images, stupas and wall paintings of Buddha
which are exquisite.
Hemis
Hemis - 40 km from Leh, it is the wealthiest, best known and biggest
gompa of Ladakh. Hundreds of pilgrims gather during the major annual festival
held here in summer. It celebrates Guru Padma Sambhav’s birth anniversary.
It also has the largest thanka in Ladakh which is unfurled once in 12 years
(last was in 1992). Hemis was built in 1630 during the reign of Sengge Namgyal,
an illustrious ruler of Ladakh. It flourished under the Namgyal dynasty for
the royalty favoured the Drugkpa Sect which managed the monastery. It has
an Assembly Hall and a temple known as Tshogkhang. The Hall, Dukhang, is also
used as a `green room’ by the dancers during the festival. The temple
verandahs have a surfeit of frescoes, among them the Kalachakra (Buddhist
wheel of life) and the `Lords of the Four Quarters’, besides rows of
prayer wheels.
