Rangdum Monastery is a

Tibetan Buddhist Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...

monastery belonging to the

Gelugpa 240px, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Bodhgaya (India). The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous")Kay, David N. (2007). ''Tibetan and Zen Buddhism in Britain: Transplantati ...

sect, situated on top of a small but steep sugarloaf hill at an altitude of 4,031 m (13,225 ft) at the head of the Suru Valley, in

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu ...

. It is next to the tiny village of Julidok, and about 25 km from the 4,400 m (14,436 ft)

Pensi La Pensi-la (Pensi Pass) is a mountain pass in the Ladakh union territory of India, which is known as the Gateway to Zanskar. Pensi La is above sea level and connects the Suru Valley region to the Zanskar Valley region. The summit at this end of ...

(pass), which leads into

Zanskar Zanskar, Zahar (locally) or Zangskar, is a tehsil of Kargil district, in the Indian union territory of Ladakh. The administrative centre is Padum (former Capital of Zanskar). Zanskar, together with the neighboring region of Ladakh, was brie ...

.Schettler, Margaret & Rolf (1981), p. 150. The monastery was electrified using solar energy in June 2017 by Global Himalayan Expedition (GHE)

History

According to an inscription the monastery was built by Gelek Yashy Takpa during the reign of King Tsewang Namgyal II (1753-1782) of Ladakh. Although it is physically in the Suru Valley, it is culturally part of Zanskar. Because the summer's brevity sometimes interferes with crop harvests, to supplement the locally produced dairy products, both the village and the monastery depend on outside supplies brought up the largely barren Suru Valley, or over the 4,400 metre (14,436 ft)

pass from Zanskar. The monastery was electrified using solar energy in June 2017 by Global Himalayan Expedition, along with the nearby village of Shakma Karpo. The first two female engineers of the region trained by

Barefoot College Barefoot College, previously known as the Social Work and Research Centre ("SWRC") is a voluntary organisation working in the fields of education, skill development, health, drinking water, women empowerment and electrification through solar po ...

an
GHE
executed the project. The monastery is home to about 30 monks and almost as many donkeys.Rizvi (1996), p. 28. To ensure income for the nearby local communities, GHE has set up homestays in the villages, allowing travelers to visit the monastery while experiencing an authentic culture in the homestays. Rangdum Gompa Inside Courtyard

Footnotes

References

* Janet Rizvi. (1996). ''Ladakh: Crossroads of High Asia''. Second Edition. Oxford University Press, Delhi. . * Schettler, Margaret & Rolf (1981). ''Kashmir, Ladakh & Zanskar.'' Lonely Planet Publications. South Yarra, Victoria, Australia. .

External links

Photographs
{{Buddhist monasteries in Ladakh Gelug monasteries and temples Buddhist monasteries in Ladakh