Labrang Monastery (Sikkim)

Not to be confused with Labrang Monastery.

Labrang Monastery (Sikkim)
Labrang Monastery
Religion
Affiliation	Tibetan Buddhism
Sect	Nyingmapa
Location
Location	Phodong, Sikkim
Country	India
Location within Sikkim
Geographic coordinates	27°25′05″N 88°34′46″E
Architecture
Founder	Gyalshe Rigzing Chempa
Date established	1844; 181 years ago (1844)

Labrang Monastery (Sikkim), (lit. 'lama's dwelling',[1] a.k.a. Palden Phuntshog Phodrang or Palden Phuntsok Monastery) is a Buddhist monastery located in Mangan district, Sikkim, India.

Geographic location

Labrang Monastery is situated 38 km from Gangtok and located on flat ground on a hill, at an altitude of 7000 ft.[2] It is surrounded by lush green jungle. It is located 2 km from Phodong Monastery.[3]

History

Labrang Monastery was constructed in Tumlong, North Sikkim in 1826 CE and completed in 1843 CE. The monastery's founder was Gyalshe Rigzing Chempa, the son of King Tsugphud Namgyal. The monastery was built in memory of Latsun Chembo of Kongpo, Tibet.[2] Major renovation was carried out in 1978 with government aid.[4] The monastery sustained damage in 2006 as a result of earthquakes in the region.[1]

Architecture

The wooden pillars and roofing of the monastery have been reinforced with steel.[4] The building is unique in that it retains its original structure, whereas similar buildings in Sikkim have burned down.[1] The monastery holds a bronze statue of Karma Guru, a wrathful form of Padmasambhava.

Museum

The monastery houses a museum with a large collection of Buddha statues, sutras and murals.[2]

References

1. Mukhopadhyay, Parthasarathi; Chandra Dutta, Sekhar; Bhattacharya, Subhamoy (September 2009). Lessons learnt from the impact of Sikkim 2006 earthquake on heritage structures. 3rd Greece-Japan Workshop: Seismic Design, Observation, Retrofit of Foundations. Laboratory of Soil Mechanics, National Technical University of Athens, Greece. doi:10.13140/RG.2.1.2607.1209.
2. "Labrang Monastery - Sikkim Tourism Development Corporation". Retrieved 2 February 2025.
3. "Labrang Monastery". Retrieved 23 March 2018.
4. "Ecclesiastical affairs dept., Govt. of Sikkim". Retrieved 2 February 2025.

External links

• Sikkim Tourism Development Corporation