Hemis Monastery

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Sight Address : Hemis Monastery is located in Hemis, Ladakh, 45 km from Leh, Jammu and Kashmir. Edit

Detail InformationEdit

Hemis Monastery is located in Hemis town, 45 km southeast of Leh is the beautiful Hemis Monastery, which was re-established by King Senge Nampar Gyalva in 1672. Built in Tibetan style of architecture, the monastery throws lights to the Buddhist culture and their way of lifestyle. The annual Hemis festival honoring Padmasambhava is held in early June and is a well worth place to visit.

Hemis Monastery, Ladakh

HistoryEdit

Hemis Monastery existed before the 11th century. Naropa, the pupil of the yogi Tilopa, and teacher of the translator Marpa is connected with this monastery. A translation was made by A. Grünwedel of Naropa’s biography that was found in Hemis monastery. In this manuscript Naropa (or Naro) meets the “dark blue” Tilopa (or Tillo), a tantric master, who gives Naropa 12 “great” and 12 “small” tasks to do in order to enlighten him to the inherent emptiness/illusoriness of all things. Naropa is depicted as the “abbott of Nalanda”, the university-monastery in today’s Bihar, India, that flourished until the sacking by Turkish and Afghan Muslim forces. This sacking must have been the driving force behind Naropa’s peregrination in the direction of Hemis. After Naropa and Tilopa met in Hemis they travelled back in the direction of a certain monastery in the now no longer existing kingdom of Maghada, called Otantra which has been identified as today’s Otantapuri. Naropa is consered the founding father of the Kagyu-lineage of the Himalayan esoteric Buddhism. Hence Hemis is the main seat of the Kagyu lineage of Buddhism.In 1894 Russian journalist Nicolas Notovitch claimed Hemis as the origin of an otherwise unknown gospel, the Life of Saint Issa, Best of the Sons of Men, in which Jesus is said to have traveled to India during his “lost years.” According to Notovitch, the work had been preserved in the Hemis library, and was shown to him by the monks there while he was recuperating from a broken leg. But once his story had been re-examined by historians, Notovitch confessed to having fabricated the evidence. Bart D. Ehrman states that “Today there is not a single recognized scholar on the planet who has any doubts about the matter. The entire story was invented by Notovitch, who earned a good deal of money and a substantial amount of notoriety for his hoax”.

Must SeeEdit

Popular

Visiting TimeEdit

8am-1 pm & 2-6 pm.

Closed OnEdit

N.A.

Best Season to VisitEdit

June to October.

Best Time To VisitEdit

Morning , Afternoon, Evening.

Time Required for SightseeingEdit

4-5 hours.

Ticket Required : Yes Edit

Individual National Adult Rs. : Rs. 100/-

Kids Rs. : N.A.

Individual Foreigner Adult Rs. : Rs.100/-

Kids Rs. : N.A.

Still Photo Camera Rs. : N.A.

Video Camera Rs. : N.A.

Guide Required : No Edit

Approximate cost: N.A.

Dress Code (If Any) : N.A. Edit

Dress Require: No

Restaurants NearbyAdd / Edit

How to ReachEdit

Taxi : This place is well connected by road. Jeep hire to Kargil from Padum costs Rs.8000 (while Kargil to Padum is Rs.10,000 – taxiunion rules don’t allow return trips) per vehicle, whether done in one gruelling 14-hour drive or with an overnight stop en route. Other one-way/return rates from Padum: Karsha Rs.600/750; Zangla Rs.2000/3000, Rangdum Rs.4000/6000

BUS : There is a regular bus service run by J&K SRTC from Leh and Kargil for Padum with stops at various point in Suru and Zanskar Valley.Leh-Kargil-Padum buses run approximately thrice weekly, supposedly departing Kargil bus station around 1am but timetables are infamously idiosyncratic. Consider gathering a group and hiring a jeep to
Padum (Rs10,000, 14 hours): start before dawn or consider overnighting at Rangdum. Doublecheck that your driver has Zanskar-endorsed permits from the drivers’ cooperative.

Train : The closest railway station is Jammu, there are regular train services from Delhi and many other cities to Jammu railway station, from Jammu you can take buses or taxi ride to Srinagar and then to Leh. From Leh you can take bus or taxi to Hemis town Situated at a distance of 40 km southeast of Leh . If you are for more adventures you can also rent bikes, available on rent in Leh and will cost you anywhere between rupees 600 a day for an Enfield to rupees 300 for others. The road to Nubra valley takes you over the Khardong La which is the world highest motorable road, Khardong La Pass which is at a height of 18380 ft above sea level and is about 50 kms from Leh.

Air : Nearest Airport is Leh Airport .The following airlines (Kingfisher, Jet Airways, and Air India) operate regular flights to Leh from Delhi, Jammu and Srinagar. The duration of Delhi-Leh flight is just an hour long. Better booked the air-tickets before 2 or 3 months in advance because during May to October tickets prices are very high due to heavy tourist influx. From Leh you can take bus or taxi Hemis town Situated at a distance of 40 km southeast of Leh If you are for more adventures you can also rent bikes, available on rent in Leh and will cost you anywhere between rupees 600 a day for an Enfield to rupees 300 for others.

Others : Truck : Trucks often stop for hitchhikers, who are usually expected to pay half the bus fare, bargaining may be necessary. They are slower than the buses and sometimes stop for long periods to unload cargo.

Things to CarryEdit

Carry your own food & plenty of drinking water.
Carry woolan cloths,camera etc.

Safety / WarningEdit

Ladakh is one of the safest parts of India, and the most basic precautions are enough to keep you and your possessions safe. Most of the region is dotted with military cantonments every 50-80 kms, but mainly because of its strategic position on international border between India and China. The army plays major part in rescue and aid efforts and that is why you will require to produce identification documents or written permission from local authorities before entering some remote places.