Kailash- Tibetan LocationLocation · Landmark"Precious Snow Mountain"

The Mandala and the Axis

For Tibetan Buddhists, Kailash is a mandala made of rock and ice. Chakrasamvara and his consort Vajravarahi dwell on the summit in eternal meditation, and the mountain's four faces, each aligned roughly with a cardinal direction, mark the walls of their palace.

Bon practitioners see a different mountain. For them, Kailash is Tise, the Nine Stacked Swastika Mountain, the axis linking heaven, earth, and underworld. The founder Tonpa Shenrab descended from heaven to this peak. Bonpos walk around it counterclockwise, opposite to the Buddhists, tracing a different cosmology on the same stone.

Milarepa and Naro Bonchung

When Milarepa arrived at Kailash, the mountain was a Bon stronghold. He and the Bon sorcerer Naro Bonchung dueled with magic but neither could gain a decisive advantage. They agreed that whoever reached the summit first would win the mountain for their tradition.

On the appointed morning, Naro Bonchung soared up the slopes riding a magic drum. Milarepa sat motionless in meditation. His followers watched in dismay as the Bon sorcerer neared the peak. At the last moment, Milarepa rose and flew to the summit on a ray of sunlight, arriving before Naro Bonchung could complete his ascent. The defeated sorcerer's drum tumbled down the mountainside and carved the distinctive vertical gash visible on Kailash's south face, a cleft that never holds snow. Naro Bonchung acknowledged Milarepa's mastery, and Milarepa granted the Bon practitioners a lesser nearby mountain, Bonri, as consolation.

The Kora

The pilgrimage circuit around Kailash is 52 kilometers and traditionally takes three days on foot, crossing Dolma La Pass at 5,630 meters on the second day. Buddhists and Hindus walk clockwise. Bon and Jain practitioners walk counterclockwise. Pilgrims believe a single circumambulation wipes away the sins of one lifetime. One hundred and eight circuits bring liberation from rebirth entirely.

The circuit is especially sought in the Year of the Horse, every twelve years in the Tibetan calendar, because the mGur 'bum places Milarepa's victory over Naro Bonchung in a horse year. Many pilgrims measure the entire 52 kilometers with their bodies, performing full-body prostrations for weeks on end.

Dira Puk Monastery on the north face shelters the cave where Milarepa spent years in solitary retreat. Zutulpuk Monastery on the eastern route marks the site of his magical contests with Naro Bonchung. Inside, the low ceiling bears an impression of Milarepa's head, pushed upward by the force of his meditation. Chuku Monastery on the western approach houses a marble statue of Amitabha that pilgrims visit before beginning the walk.

The Two Lakes

At Kailash's southern base lies Manasarovar, one of the highest freshwater lakes in the world at 4,590 meters. Its waters purify the sins of a hundred lifetimes, and pilgrims who complete the kora bathe there to seal their merit.

Nearby lies Rakshas Tal, the Demon Lake: crescent-shaped where Manasarovar is round, dark where Manasarovar is luminous. A narrow channel once connected the two lakes. When it flows, Tibetans consider it an auspicious sign.