Told in the hills
A Kham lineage on a Sikkim hillside
Lingdum Monastery belongs to the Zurmang Kagyu tradition, a branch of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. The lineage takes its name from the Zurmang monasteries in Kham, in eastern Tibet, where it grew over several centuries. Like many Tibetan lineages after 1959, it rebuilt part of its life in exile. Lingdum, completed in 1999 near Ranka, became its main centre in Sikkim, led by Zurmang Gharwang Rinpoche. The site faces the hills west of Gangtok.
That makes Lingdum very young by Sikkim standards. Rumtek's first monastery dates to the mid-18th century, and Enchey's present building to 1909. Yet Lingdum follows the old forms: a large courtyard of the kind used for ritual dances, a main hall with painted pillars and murals, and young monks in training. Visitors see a working monastery in full use, not a museum, which is part of its appeal. Rituals here run to the Tibetan lunar calendar.
Ranka's other well-known stop has a folk story behind it. In Nepali tradition, the Ban Jhakri is a forest shaman, a healer said to live among caves and trees. Banjhakri Falls and Energy Park, on the road towards Ranka, was planned after Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling visited the waterfall on 28 September 2004, on his way back from Ranka Monastery. Statues in the park retell the shaman tradition, which belongs to folklore rather than recorded history.
Pinned to the board
Did you know
Lingdum Monastery, also called Pal Zurmang Kagyud Monastery, was completed in 1999.
In Nepali, ban means forest and jhakri means healer, so the Ban Jhakri of Banjhakri Falls is a forest shaman in folk belief.
Banjhakri Falls and Energy Park was planned after the Chief Minister visited the waterfall on 28 September 2004, returning from Ranka Monastery.
