Located around 24 km from the town of Kaza, the Dhankar Monastery stands at an altitude of 12,774 feet. The 16th century old fort monastery has also served as a prison in the erstwhile era. A new monastery stands in the small village of Shichilling below the old monastery.
The old monastery complex comprises a number of multi-storeyed buildings perched together. This old complex, also known as the Lha-O-pa Gompa has five different halls including Kanjur, Lhakhang, and Dukhang. A huge life size silver image of Vajradhara, the Diamond Being, is kept in a glass altar adorned with scarves and flowers. A must visit in this monastery is the Lhakhang Gompa, a small chapel, situated on the uppermost peak above the main monastery. This chapel is beautified with depictions of Shakyamuni, Tsongkhapa and Lama Chodrag on the central wall.
The monastery is associated with Gelukpa order of Tibetan Buddhism and has around 150 lamas residing in it. The highlight of the monastery is the a statue of Vairochana or Dhayan Buddha with 4 figures seated back to back. Apart from this, the monastery also houses Buddhist scriptures in Bhoti language, murals of Medicine Buddha, protector deities and Budhist thangkas.
Spiti Valley
Stretching over an area of 100 km and housing a population of less than 10,000, the Spiti Valley takes you by surprise. This is because the Himalayan regions are normally perceived to be green but in stark contrast the Spiti valley is a barren landscape.
Notwithstanding the barreness, the beauty of the Spiti valley is admirable. The sub divisional district headquarters lies at Kaza which has good accommodation options. However, the fooding is restricted to the basic north Indian and Tibetan meal.
Other Attractions
- Tabo
Monastery : Located 12 km from the town of Kaza, above the Kye
village is the monastery that is the oldest and the biggest one in the
valley. Housed here are beautiful scriptures and paintings of Budha and
other goddesses. The monastery completed its thousand years in 2000 and
a grand Kalchakra ceremony was organised to comomorate the event.
- Kye
Monastery : The largest and the richest monastery in the
Zanskar valley, Karsha can be reached from Padum on foot. Around 150
monks of the Gelukpa order reside in this monastery and celebrate the
three day Gustor festival with great enthusiasm every July-August. Worth
visiting in the monastery complex is the Lhabrang, a temple where
frescoes on the wall are three centuries old.
- Thang Yug Gompa : This gompa is located 13 km from Kaza and serves the western population of the Spiti valley. It usually has a lama from Tibet. The monastery can be reached by a bus from Kaza.
How to Reach
By Air - The airports at Kullu and Shimla are
the nearest one to reach the Spiti valley.
By Rail - The closest railway Station from Spiti lies at Shimla and Pathankot.
By Road - By road, Kaza can be reached from both Manali and Shimla. From both destinations, buses and taxis are available to transfer you to Kaza. From Kaza, you need to arrange your own vehicle to reach the Dhankar Monastery because it does not fall on bus route. Alternatively, you can also walk from the main road.
By Rail - The closest railway Station from Spiti lies at Shimla and Pathankot.
By Road - By road, Kaza can be reached from both Manali and Shimla. From both destinations, buses and taxis are available to transfer you to Kaza. From Kaza, you need to arrange your own vehicle to reach the Dhankar Monastery because it does not fall on bus route. Alternatively, you can also walk from the main road.
