The
Center of the Earth
Mt. Kailash is the confluence of the
myth and the mountain andit's a no coincidence.
It is believed to be the navel of the
world from which flows four great Rivers
( The Ganges, Bramhaputra, Sutlej and
Indus) that they give life to the areas
they pass through.
Mount Meru, described by Hindu epics,
as the center of the earth is believed
to be what is today's Mount Kailash. This
6714m high peak of Western Tibet has long
been a sacred object of worship for four
major religions-Hindus-Buddhists, Jains
and Bons. For Hindus, Mt. Kailash is the
domain of Lord Shiva whereas Buddhist
revere the mountain as the adobe of Samvara
(Demchok)-the wrathful manifestation of
Buddha. For Jains, this is the place where
their saints emancipated from and for
Bons, their founder Shenrab alighted from
haven in.
Indian Hindus are the craziest about their
affection and respect to the Mount Kailash.
On one of our marketing campaigns in India,
when our manager mentioned to our booth
visitors that he had been to Mt. Kailash,
a middle aged woman tried to touch his
feet out of respect because for her, every
individual who has been to Mt. Kailash,
is a holy person.!
What is the significance of circumambulating
Mt. Kailash?
Circumambulation of Mt Kailash, a circuit
of 53km, is the ultimate goal of all pilgrims.
Hindus call the circumambulation as "Parikrama"
and Tibetans as " Kora". It
is believed that a single kora cleans
the sins of a lifetime while 108 koras
will give you Nirvana-the complete emancipation!
For most Tibetan pilgrims, one kora is
just a one long day walking whereas Western
and Indian visitors, make it in a 3 days
well supplied trekking.
The Kora begins in Darchen in a clockwise
direction of the mountain and includes
various sites of religious significance.
Lake Manasarovara
Lake Manasarovara is the most venerated
of the Tibet's Lakes. According to Hindu
mythology, it was formed in the mind of
Brahma-the creator of the world for his
sons to bathe after having performed austerities.
Indian pilgrims gets purified by taking
a dip in the holy water and also collect
some water in a bottle to present to their
neighbors back home. One of our clients-
a London based Indian Sadhu took with
him some water and sold one teaspoonful
of it for 10 pounds amongst the Indian
communities! So strong is their faith
and respect to this lake.
Not many people are interested in taking
the kora of Lake Manasarovara as it's
a tough 4 days trekking with well supplied
team. One of our groups in Aug 2002, abandoned
the trip simply because of some kind of
flies which were abundant along the route.
Indian Pilgrims simply take dip in the
water and may request the driver to take
them around.
* Tholing and Tsaparang
* Tholing and Tsaparang are the ruined
former capitals of the ancient Guge Kingdom
of Western Tibet and are rarely visited
by the western travellers.
Tholing,once Western Tibet's most important
monastic complex exists today in ruins.
It was founded by Rinchen Zangpo, an India
returned scholar and the greates Sanskrit
translators who played the key role in
reviving Buddhism across the Tibetan plateau.Tholing
is accessible in one day by jeep from
Mount Kailash.
Tsaparang, about an hour's drive west
of Tholing is most probably the greatest
interest to those with some knowledge
of early Buddhist art.The ruins of Tsaparang
extend along a ridge with two main areas
of interest:the Red and White chapels
and the Tsaparang Dzong. The ruins consists
of ancient summer and winter palaces.The
Red and White Chapels have the best of
Tsaparang's murals
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