Likir Monastery
| Likir Monastery | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Coordinates | 34°16′36″N 77°12′54″E / 34.27667°N 77.21500°ECoordinates: 34°16′36″N 77°12′54″E / 34.27667°N 77.21500°E |
| Monastery information | |
| Location | Likir, Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, India |
| Founded by | Duwang Chosje and Lhachen Gyalpo |
| Type | Tibetan Buddhist |
| Sect | Gelug |
| Lineage | Ngari Rinpoche |
| Number of monks | 120 |
Likir Monastery or Likir Gompa (Klud-kyil) is a Buddhist monastery in Ladakh, Northern India. It is located approximately 52 kilometres (32 mi) in the west of Leh. It is picturesquely situated on a little hill in the valley, in Likir village near the Indus River about 9.5 kilometres (5.9 mi) north of the Srinigar to Leh highway. It belongs to the Gelugpa sect of Tibetan Buddhism and was established in 1065 by Lama Duwang Chosje, under the command of the fifth king of Ladakh, Lhachen Gyalpo (Lha-chen-rgyal-po).
Although Likir is relatively isolated, it was once on a major trade route which travelled via Tingmosgang, Hemis and Likir to Leh.
Likir is mentioned in the Ladakhi chronicles as having been erected by King Lhachen Gyalpo (Lha-chen-rgyal-po) (c. 1050-1080 CE). The name Likir means "The Naga - Encircled", representing the bodies of the two great serpent spirits, the Naga-rajas, Nanda and Taksako. It presumably, originally belonged to the early Kadampa order of Tibetan Buddhism.
When Francke visited the monastery in 1909 he was shown a long inscription written in black ink on a wall which outlined the history of the monastery. Francke had it copied and interprets it as follows:
"King Lha-chen-rgyal-po founded the monastery in the 11th century. In the 15th century, Lama Lha-dbang-chos-rje [a famous pupil of Tsongkhapa] converted the lamas to the reformed doctrines of the Ge-lug-pa order, and thus founded the monastery afresh as a Ge-lug-pa establishment. Then it is stated that seven generations after Lha-chen-rgyal-po, King Lha-chen-dngos-grub [c. 1290-1320] arose, and that he introduced the custom of sending all the novices to Lhasa. This statement is found in exactly the same words as we find in the rGyal-rabs"
Eighteen generations later King bDe-legs-rnam-rgyal reigned, but his name has been erased from the inscription because he was forced to embrace Islam after the battle of Basgo in 1646-1647. The inscription itself is dated to the reign of King Thse-dbang-rnam-rgyal II (Tsewang namgyal II, c. 1760-1780), who repaired the monastery after a conflagration.
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