Buddhist Gompas

Hemis is the biggest Gompa of Ladakh, was established by king Singe Namgyal in the 17th century. It is famous for its magnificent summer festival, which the birth anniversary of Guru Padmasambhava. The annual festival celebration held at the Gompas are a colorful sight with masked dances and religious ceremonies drawing both pilgrims and tourists in large numbers.

Basgo Gompa
Basgo is situated about 40 km west of Leh. The complex of buildings includes a ruined fortress dating from before the 15th century, two large temples and a small shrine. Presently, one lama from the Hemis gompa is the caretaker at the temple. The best preserved temple which situated at the highest point, is the Chamba Lha-khang or Maitreya temple (Chamba is the Ladhaki word for Maitreya, the Future Buddha). It was built in the mid 16th century by Tshe-wang Namgyal, of the Namgyal dynasty who ruled Ladakh. With the exception of Alch, this temple has the oldest original wall murals in Ladakh, dating from the 16th century. Entering the Chamba Lha-khang temple, over the entrance you see a portrait of Vajrapani (meaning "vajra-in-hand", for Vajrapani is always shown holding a vajra).

Flanking Varapani below are the Kings of the Four Quarters and above are Indra and Brahma on the left and Vishnu and Shiva on the right. Below these are images of four small guardian divinities. Below this are groups of miniature paintings that reflect the royal dress of Kashmir and the Mughals in the 16th century, as this wall mural is original to that time. On the right is a scene of Tshe-wang Namgyal, his two brothers and members of the royal family with their servants. On the left are scenes from the life of Sakyamuni (the Historical Buddha). The left side wall has images of a seated Buddha in the meditation posture, a seated Buddha making the gesture of explanation, a painting of Atisa (and Indian Buddhist who went to Tibet and became a great teacher of Buddhism, dying there in 1054) and another seated Buddha whose hand-gesture is not identifiable. On the right side wall are Avalokitesvara, Padma Karpo, a 16th century Buddhist scholar associated with the red-hat sect of Buddhism, a seated Buddha making the Earth-witness gesture and Vajradhara, holding a vajra and representing the supreme Buddha manifestation of the red-hat sect of Buddhism.

The three main images opposite the entrance are a lovely Maitreya (the Future Buddha or Buddha of Compassion) in the center, flanked by Bodhisattva images. The one on the right is making the preaching gesture and the one on the left is making the gesture for generosity. To the right of these images are paintings of Padme Sambhava (an 8th century Indian teacher of Buddhism in Tibet) and Mila Ras-pa (spiritual head of the red-hat sect and famous ascetic).

The Serzang temple (Serzang translates as "Gold and Silver") located next to the royal quarters is in a somewhat neglected state. Its name refers to a Buddhist canon manuscript, partially written in gold, silver and copper letters, which are commissioned by Senge Namgyal, a 17th century Ladakhi king. The main image in this temple is a two-storey tall Maitreya and by his head are mural paintings of Tilopa, Naropa, Marpa and Mila Ras-pa, historical personags associated with the red-hat sect of Buddhism. The walls are painted with Buddha figures. Volumes of the Kandsur are on the left side of the temple. The Tandshur is on the right. Both sets of volumes are stored in attractive glass-fronted bookcases.

Another small shrine is located off a courtyard one level below the Serzang temple. This shrine was built in 1642 and dedicated by a wife of Senge Namgyal, a Balti princess named Zeze Khatunee, whose Muslim background caused the Buddhist monks in Ladakh to declare her an incarnation of Tara. This shrine contains a large image of Maitreya (the Future Buddha or Buddha of Compassion) while the wall murals depict various guardian divinities.

Chemre gompa
Chemre gompa is locd 40 km south Leh in the Chemre Valley. Situated atop a rocky outcropping in the valley, it resembles a medieval European castle when seen from the rear. The gompa has a Dukhang and two temples above it. The gompa was founded some 350 years ago by a Tibetan Lama, Stagtshang Raspa who also founded Hemis gompa. To this day, Hemis and Chemre have the same head lama. About 120 lamas of the red-hat sect live at Chemre. Entering the central courtyard, the Dukhang are of Chemre's founder, Stagtshang Raspa, in his 4th and 5th incarnations (successive incarnations became the Rimpoche of the gompa). Behind these images is a mural of Sakyamuni (the Historical Buddha) flanked by his two chief disciples. On either side of this painting are two large mandalas, one of Kalachakra and the other of Akshobhya (the Imperturbable Buddha or the Buddha of the East). The other walls of the Dukhang and the wall behind the images contain murals depicting the Thousand Buddhas.

Exiting the Dukhang, ascend the steps on the right to the second level to the Lama Lha-khang or Lama Temple which contains images of various lamas, manifestations of the Buddha and other divinities as well as Buddhist religious texts. Climb two more flights to the gompa's highest level where the Guru Lha-khang, a new temple, is located. This temple is dedicated to Padme Sambhava, an 8th century Indian Buddhist who propagated Buddhism in Tibet and translated many of the Buddhist writings from their original languages of Pali and Sanskrit into Tibetan.

This room, not surprisingly, contains a large image of Pademe Sambhava. He is flanked by striking statues of several of his manifestations, including some in his fierce aspect of the being who conquered various demons. Facing the statue of Padme Sambhava, the left wall shows Buddha and his various manifestations next to illustrations of guardian divinities and the rear wall again shows the fierce guardians of Tibetan Buddhism. The walls of this temple, painted in 1977 by a Ladakhi artist, have some of the finest wall murals in Ladhak. This room also contains beautifully decorated columns and roof struts.