Page 145 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - India

LAD AKH , JA MMU & K ASHMIR  143

Stok Palace, residence of Ladakh’s erstwhile royal family
2 Stok 3 Shey
. Thikse, a 15th-century
architectural gem crowning Ladakh district. 14 km (9 miles) Ladakh district. 15 km (9 miles) SE of
the crest of a hill, is a Gelugpa SW of Leh. @ n Leh Tourist Office, Leh. @ n Leh Tourist Office, (01982)
(01982) 252 094/297. _ Stok
252 094/297. _ Shey Shrubla (1st week
monastery that also has
a modern Maitreya temple, Monastic Festival (Feb/Mar). Stok of Sep). Shey Palace: Open daily. &
consecrated by the Dalai Lama. Palace: Open May–Oct. & ^ Shey was the ancient capital
The palace at Stok has been the of Ladakh. Its abandoned
residence of the Namgyals, palace contains a temple with
the former rulers of Ladakh, a gigantic late 17th-century
since its indepen dence in 1843. Buddha image, surrounded by
Part of the palace has been murals of deities painted in
converted into a fine museum rich colours and gold. Another
of the dynasty and its history. beautiful Buddha image is
Its collections include a set of 35 housed in a nearby temple.
thangkas (see p127) representing Just below the palace are
the life of the Buddha, and said huge 11th-century rock
. Chemrey, perched on to have been commissioned by carvings of the Five Buddhas
a hilltop and dating from the 16th-century king, Tashi of Meditation (see p150).
the 1640s, houses Buddhist Namgyal. Images and ritual
scriptures with silver covers religious objects, such as the
Kargil
and gold lettering. bell and dorje (thunderbolt), are
Thak-thok Monastery of unsurpassed workmanship.
Indus Secular objects include fine
Likir belongs to the Nyingmapa
Lamayuru jade cups, the queens’ jew ellery,
Ri-dzong sect. It is built around a cave
that Guru Padmasambhava, including a spectacular
Basgo Nubra Valley the 8th-century saint, is headdress, the kings’ turban-
believed to have used shaped crown, and ceremonial
for meditation. robes. There is also a sword
Alchi
(see pp144–6) Leh with its blade twisted into
(see pp136–7) a knot, said to have been
contorted by the enormous A Ladakhi couple bringing their baby
Indus strength of Tashi Namgyal. to be blessed at Shey
Shey
Zanskar Valley Stok Thikse Buddhist Sects in Ladakh
Darhuk Five sects of Tibetan Buddhism are represented in Ladakh.
Thak-thok monastery belongs to the Nyingmapa, which is based
Stakna Thak-thok on the teachings of the 8th-century saint, Padmasambhava
(see p124), while Matho (see p144), with its oracle monks, belongs
Chemrey to the Sakyapa. The Drugpa and Drigungpa sects are based on the
Hemis teachings of a line of Indian masters from the 11th century. The
lamas of all these sects wear red hats on ceremonial occasions.
The lamas who wear yellow
hats belong to the reformist
Gelugpa sect, which is headed
by the Dalai Lama (see p127)
and exercised political control
in Tibet until 1959. Apart from
Manali
Thak-thok and Matho, and the
two Drigungpa monasteries of
Phiyang (see p141) and Lama-
Key yuru, all Ladakh’s monasteries
belong to either the Drugpa or
Road
Gelugpa sects. Monks of the Gelugpa sect chanting prayers
See also features on Little Tibet (p127), Buddhist Iconography (p145), and In the Buddha’s Footsteps (p225)

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