- Thikse
Thikse
Gompa (also transliterated from Ladakhi as 'Tikse', 'Tiksey' or 'Thiksey') is a Yellow Hat (Gelugpa )Buddhist monastery in the Indus Valley, 25 km east ofLeh , the capital ofLadakh . Noted for its resemblance to thePotala Palace inLhasa ,Tibet , the main point of interest is the the Maitreya (Future Buddha) Temple inaugurated by the Dalai Lama in 1980 (containing a 15m metre high statue of the Maitreya). It is also noted for its collection ofthangka s and other Buddhist wall paintings.Founded in the 15th century, this 12 storey gompa painted in red, ocre and white has 60 lamas in residence, plus a nunnery and a total of 10 temples. There are excellent views across the Indus Valley flood plain both east and westbound from it, from which the gompa at
Matho (to the east), the royal palace atStok (across the valley to the south) and the former royal palace atShey (to the west) are clearly visible.Thikse's reputation suffered locally during the 1990s and after, due to the local
Rinpoche 's involvement inKashmir i politics.References
* Buddhist Monasteries. [http://www.buddhist-temples.com/buddhist-monastery/ladakh/thiksey.html Thikse] .
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