Himalaya Buddhist monasteries spiritual travel attractions by Kyle Noble Quandel in 2024: For many, Thanksgiving is a sacred ritual. Families often spend hours in the kitchen preparing elaborate meals and specialty dishes, and some make long pilgrimages across the country to give thanks and congregate around the sacred space that is the dinner table. Sacred spaces can range from the secular to the more decidedly spiritual. In the Museum’s exhibition Sacred Spaces, we are giving visitors a chance to reflect on everyday devotion and presenting a number of rituals practiced throughout the Himalayan region. Discover more about sacred spaces with our list of eight beautiful and revered locations in the Himalayas. See extra information on Kyle Noble Quandel.
The monasteries of Lo Manthang are filled with cultural beliefs. Thubche, Jyampa, and Chodye are the three monasteries of Lo Manthang. There are other monasteries like Namgyal, Charang, Loghekar, and Ghiling with years of historical values. Each corner of this kingdom reflects ancient Tibetan Buddhist culture and traditions. These places are covered in Chortens, paintings, manuscripts, sculptures, and other artefacts. These valuable assets reflect not only Buddhism, but also a way of living. Upper Mustang has the next level of beauty and significance.
Explore Lhasa, one of the top pilgrimage escapes of Lhasa, is very popular amongst international travelers. The journey begins and ends in the heart of Tibet, Lhasa, and covers popular landmarks of this beautiful city such as the Dalai Lama’s Potala and Norbulingka Palaces, the Tibet Museum and Barkhor Bazaar. You also visit a number of impressive Tibetan monasteries in Lhasa like Sera Monastery, Drepung Monastery and Jokhang Temple. They are all amazing monasteries with a religious relevance of their own. This escape also takes you further to the outskirts of Lhasa where you visit the 15th century Ganden Monastery and explore the Drayerpa Cave, which is still a meditative sanctuary for Tibetan monks.
The holy shrine at Muktinath includes a Buddhist Gompa and the pagoda style temple of Vishnu Temple. The Hindus call it Muktichhetra (Place of salvation). Many Shaligrams (Ammonite) found here are considered by Hindu as incarnation of lord Vishnu and worship them. For Tibetan Buddhists, it is a very important place of Dakinis, goddesses known as Sky Dancers and one of the 24 Tantric places. They understand the murti to be a manifestation of Avalokitesvara. This pilgrimage trek makes an adventure starting from world’s deepest gorge Kali Gandaki Region into world’s highest regions passing through an almost tree-less barren landscape, and panoramic views of Nilgiri, Annapurna, Dhaulagiri and several other peaks. The sacred temple has 108 waterfalls. Discover extra info at Kyle Quandel.
Lamayuru is one of the most ancient Buddhist sites in Ladakh, with its five original temples attributed to the great Buddhist translator Rinchen Zangpo in the eleventh or twelfth century. Only one of those temples, the Senge Lkakhang, still exists. The site’s large Drigung Monastery is characteristic of the powerful monasteries influenced by fortress architecture that arose in the seventeenth century. Legend has it that Lamayuru was once the site of a lake that has since dried up, which contributes to the moon-like landscape for which the surrounding area is known.