Beacause it’s there!
We have followed the figure of Tibetans prostrating their heads more than once, and surrounded the Kailash Mountain. If you ask me why I want to turn around the mountain, is it because of belief? It’s too far-fetched for ordinary people; because you want to challenge yourself? In fact, once is enough to prove. Perhaps the words that Mallory left us helped us to answer many unclear reasons, because Gang Rinpoche is there, so we are willing to cross mountains and mountains to get close to it.
Kailash stands erect in Ngari, Tibet, where the Indus River, the Ganges River and the Yarlung Zangbo River originate. Most of the surrounding mountains are above 6,000 meters above sea level. Like a pyramid straight into the clouds, Gang Rinpoche is regarded as the greatest holy site by Hinduism, Jainism, Tibetan Buddhism and Bon religion with a shocking sense of excellence.
Gang Rinpoche is recognized as a sacred mountain, not only because of its majestic appearance, but also because of what happened here, which completely changed the religious structure of Tibet and even China.
At this time, the remote Gang Rinpoche became a sanctuary for devout Buddhists. Prince Jidnimagun, a descendant of the Tubo royal family who believed in Buddhism, brought more than a thousand knights to Purang at the foot of Gang Rinpoche. In the county, the famous Guge Kingdom was established in an effort to revive Buddhism. Monks from all over Tibet and India came here one after another, and the declining Buddhism began to revive in Gang Rinpoche.
This world-class religious monument attracts believers from all over the world to worship every year. Different sects have different practices and rituals, but they condense into the most primitive and purest form – walking.
For us ordinary people, going around the mountain may be a physical and psychological challenge. In the thinnest air at an altitude of 5,000, we finally reaped the most abundant peace and tranquility, which will let us who escaped from the big city know that this It’s all worth it.
Mountain climbing can be done in one day, two days, or three days. The two-day mountain climbing we have done is the most common route and method.
With the powerful Google satellite image, the swastika depression on the front of Gang Rinpoche is clearly visible.
Our itinerary for the two days is roughly as above.
day1 Taqin – Zhire Temple ASL4675-5080m 22km
Taqin is a small mountain village under the sacred mountain. It is located next to the G219 National Highway on the Xinzang-Tibet Line. It is the starting point and the end point of Gang Rinpoche’s mountain tour. Every year when the mountain tour season comes, pilgrims flock to fill the entire area with colorful tents. village.
Before departure, you can buy some snacks with sufficient calories and a small amount of water in the supermarket in Taqin. There will be a supply point on the way to the mountain where you can buy water and butter tea (25 yuan a bottle). The first day starts at 9 o’clock in the morning. The whole journey is 22 kilometer.
Departing from Tachin, I was very happy, and I came back here after 48 hours. It is not an exaggeration to describe it as a mess, so that I don’t want to raise my hand to put on a raincoat when it is raining heavily.
The weather at this time is very good, but the weather on the plateau, especially around Gang Rinpoche, is like a child’s face, and it changes as soon as it is said. In the next trip, we encountered rain, snow, and wind, so we made warm and resistant jackets It is still necessary.
The supply point on the way to the mountain, lunch can be settled here, bread, or instant noodles, if you still want to eat and drink here, I am afraid that the gods will not bless you to realize this wish.
When resting at the supply point, you will meet friends from all over the world here, who are strangers to each other, and talk about the most familiar topic-Tibet. Here, no one talks about work, no one talks about overtime and salary increase, and no one worries about housing prices. From the first step of turning around the mountain, you start to empty yourself constantly. Just walking – that is the simplest, most enjoyable and most luxurious state.
The celestial burial platform and Mani pile on the way to the mountain, there are many clothes, hats, jewelry and photos left by believers, covering the Mani pile. It is said that this represents a symbolic death, and you can bring such items to stay here before turning around the mountain.
We arrived at Zhire Temple at 5:00 p.m., which is the best place to take photos of Mount Kailash. Unfortunately, when we arrived, the weather was already bad. Tibetans said that such weather indicated heavy snowfall.
We chose to live in Gangjia opposite Zhire Temple. There are tents and board houses. The price is 80 per night in peak season. Sure enough, as soon as we entered the tent, there was heavy snow outside. At this time, you should still be struggling in the scorching heat, while we are fighting against the headache and fatigue caused by high altitude and cold at an altitude of 5,000 meters.
Tents to stay in, and simple dinners, you have no choice here. When you take the first step to turn the mountain, please remember to respect and adapt to the local customs and life.
Summary of the first day: The journey is 22 kilometers, and the whole journey is a gentle mountain road. After arriving at the foot of Yakou Mountain in the afternoon or evening, you can rest at Zhire Temple or a simple inn. If you arrive early and your physical fitness permits, you can continue to cross the pass on the day of the challenge, so that the next day will be much easier. However, crossing the pass is the most difficult part of the whole process. It takes 4-5 hours. There are no supply points and accommodation points in the middle. The temperature is low and it is not suitable for camping. .
day2 Zhire Temple – Taqin 5080-5648-4675m 34km
On the second day, if your physical fitness allows, you can start at 6:00, because crossing the Zhuomala Pass in the morning will be the most difficult part of the whole journey, and it will take 4-5 hours.
Before arriving at the Zhuomala Pass, which is the highest at 5630 meters above sea level, you need to cross 4 passes. Although 4km is not long, the altitude continues to climb. From 4500 meters above sea level to 5600 meters, people with average physical fitness will stop after climbing a few steps panting rhythm.
Looking up to the direction of the Zhuomala pass, there are layers of twists and turns and you can’t see the end. The closer to the top of the mountain, the more prayer flags. This section is called “Desperate Slope” by the world. This time and this place must be full of thoughts of “rest for a while and rest for a while”.
There are no road signs or signs, only stones, snow, and prayer flags. I am not even sure whether the pass is the pass, and whether it is the way to go down the mountain. There is only one sentence to overcome inertia and despair: “Don’t think about how many roads are left, just keep your head down!”
Persistence – this should be the extra practice bestowed on us by the mountain on the way to the mountain
On the way to the mountain, kind-hearted Tibetans will leave their dry food here for the birds looking for food in the snow.
It is a rule of thumb that people don’t want to eat when they are too tired, so they need to eat a little in advance to replenish energy, and don’t replenish their energy when they are exhausted. People with high resistance can carry a few cans of oxygen on their backs, which is very useful, and they are also sold at supply stations, and the price is relatively high, which is a matter of course.
There is a very delicate small lake under the pass – Tuojicuo (the bathing pool of dakinis). According to legend, in the early years, a woman went down to the lake to drink water due to thirst. The child in the leather robe fell into the lake and drowned as soon as she knelt down. …Since then, people have used thirteen circles as the standard for turning around the mountain.
After 6 hours of trekking, we finally arrived at Zhuomala Pass. At that time, what I thought in my heart was, “I’m finally coming out, and I won’t abuse myself anymore!” However, don’t think that victory is in sight after crossing the highest pass. kilometers away. We walked back to Tachin at about ten o’clock in the evening, and we really gritted our teeth all the way. I was so exhausted that I didn’t even take the last photo, “I really don’t want to experience it anymore”, the determination at that time was so firm that I kept chanting these words silently before falling asleep. However, half a month has passed, and when I returned to the busy traffic in the city, I began to miss, be grateful, and yearn again…
Some people understand life on the road around the mountain, and some people just walk with their heads down and look up at the scenery. No matter what kind of appeal we come to this world, we are here to observe and experience, and there is no other.
On the way to turn around the mountain, I encountered many stories. Perhaps, how many times to turn around under the sacred mountain of Kailash Rinpoche to reach the Dzogchen in my heart, everyone will have a different answer in their hearts.
mother carrying baby on her back
The father carrying the baby around the mountain
A pair of father and daughter, there is no way to kowtow on the gravel road ahead, and the father asks his daughter to kowtow here before moving on.
Granny who walks slowly step by step
When I crossed the Zhuomala Mountain Pass, I met the family of an old lady who was over 80 years old. Accompanied by her family, she went around the mountain. The old lady fulfilled her wish in Gang Rinpoche. It’s hard for you to imagine how such a thing can be done without faith!
If you have limited time or don’t want to go around the mountain, the following lines can also overlook the holy mountain: Tarqin Town, where you can see the majestic and tall figure of the holy mountain; Going in the wrong direction, looking back, you can see the most positive image of the pyramid at Gang Rinpoche; road leading to Pulan County, you can see the pyramid-like holy mountain from a distance; On the south side of the sacred mountain, at the 1314-kilometer milestone, it is very close to the sacred mountain, and Kailash Rinpoche can be photographed. Travel friends have spontaneously associated it with “one lifetime”, and wrote blessing words on the milestone
Regarding this road stele, every time I pass by it is in a different state. It seems that there are special people who will smear it clean, whether it should be written or not, but I prefer pure white road steles.
If you have a chance to go to the mountain once, you can prove your physical strength and endurance on the first level, and it can still stand the test. On the second level, there are no lofty reasons such as purifying the soul, but some beautiful imaginations in the heart, and it is just that I am not reconciled to being a human being.
The world is so big, the place where everyone is born, grows up, works and lives is such an insignificant coordinate point, it is time to go for a walk, not for other reasons, just like an ant that has been stuffy in a cave for a long time, occasionally drills out to breathe, Then go back and continue to be bored, living the day as usual, but there is already a colorful world in my mind. When I am bored, I can play movies for myself in my mind, often replaying and reminiscing. This is a lifetime wealth!
It is expected that we will go to Ali again at the end of September and during November this year. If you are interested, you can make an appointment.
