Attractions
Visit Thiksey Monastery
Thikse Gompa or Thikse Monastery is a Gompa belonging to the Gelug sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It is located on a hill in Thiksey, approximately 19 km east of Leh in Ladakh, India. Due to its resemblance to Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet, and the largest Gompa in central Ladakh, the palace contains in particular a collection of separate buildings for women who have resigned, which has been the source of important recent buildings and reorganizations.
The monastery is located at an altitude of 3600 meters (11800 feet) in the Indus Valley. The complex is twelve storeys high and houses many Buddhist art items such as stupas, sculptures, tangkas, murals and swords. One of the most important landmarks is the Maitreya Temple, which was erected in 1970 to commemorate the 14th visit of the Dalai Lama to the monastery. The statue includes a 15-meter (49-foot) statue of Maitreya, the largest statue in Ladakh, covering two floors of the building.