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Mt. Kailas

Mt. Kailas

Write: Radborne [2011-05-23]
Mt. Kailas

Overview

Throughout Asia exist stories of a great mountain, the navel of the world, from which flow four great rivers that give life to the areas they pass through, this is the Mt. Kailas, which is the key to the drainage system of the Tibetan plateau. Four of the great rivers of the Indian subcontinent originate here: the Karnali, which feeds in to Ganges (south); the Indus (north); the Sutlej (west); and the Brahmaputra (Yarlung Tsangpo, east).

Mt. Kailash, at 6714m, is not the mightiest of the mountains in the region, but with its hulking shape-like the handle of a millstone, according to Tibetans-and its year-long snow-capped peak, it stands apart from the pack. Its four sheer walls match the cardinal points of the compass, and its southern face is famously marked by a long vertical cleft punctuated halfway down its traverse by a horizontal line of rock strata.

This scarring resemles a swastika-a Buddhist symbol of spiritual strength- and is a feature that has contributed to Kailash's mythical status. The mountains is known in Tibetan as Kang Rinpoche, or ' Precious Jewel of Snow '.

Know more

Story of Mt. Kailash

Mt. Kailash has long been an object of worship for four major religions. For the Hindus, it is the domain of Shiva, the Destroyer and Transformer. To the Buddhist faithful, Mt. Kailash is the abode of Demchok (Sanskrit: Samvara), a wrathful manifestation of Sakyamuni ( Sakya Thukpa) thought to be the equivalent of Hinduism's Shiva.

The Jains of India also revere the mountian as the site at which the first of their saints was emancipated. And in the ancient Bon religion of Tibet, Kailash was the sacred Yungdrung Gutseg (Nine-Stacked-Swastika Mountain) upon which the Bonpo founder Shenrab alighted from heaven.

Mt. Kailash has been a lodestone to pilgrims and adventurous travellers for centuries, but until recently, very few had set their eyes on the sacred mountain. This situation has begun to change in recent years. In May 2001 Spanish climbers even gained permission to climb the peak, only to abandon their attempt in the face of international protests.

Mt. Kailash, The Trek at a Glance

The 52km circuit or kora of Mt. Kailash is one of the most important pilgrimages in Asia. A religious sanctuary since pre-Buddhist times, a trek here wonderfully integrates the spiritual, cultural and physical dimensions of a trip to Tibet, which explains its growing attention. The well-trodden track around the sacred mountain passes through verdant alpine valleys linked by a lofty pass, the Drolma-la. Being able to meet pilgrims from across Tibet and other countries is one of the many allures of this walk.

Trekking season of Mt. Kailash uns from mid-May to mid-October, but trekkers should be prepared for changeable weather at any time. See the Nagri (Western Tibet) chapter for an introduction to Mt. Kailash and the kora. as well as for further information on Darchen, the shabby little town where the walk starts and finishes. Snow may be encountered on the Drolma-la at any time of year and the temperature will often drop below freezing at night. The pass tends to be snowed in from early November to early Aril.

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Mt. Kailas

Lake Manasarovar (Mapham yum-tso; 4,556m), or Mapham Yum-tso (Victorious Lake) in Tibetan, is the the most venerated of Tibet's many lakes. According to ancient Hindu and Buddhist cosmology the four great rivers of the Indian su-continent, the Indus, Ganges, Sutlej and Brahmaputra, arise from Manasarovar. In reality, only the Sutlej River originates at the lake, although the headwaters of the other great rivers are in close proximity. Just 20km from Mt Kailash across the Barkha plain, Manasarovar can be circumambulated in four or five days. Five of the original eight monasteries in the area have been partially rebuilt...more

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Mt. Kailas

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