Journey to the origins of Buddhism©

‘There is something about the Himalayas not possessed by the Alps; something unseen and unknown, a charm that pervades every hour spent among them, a mystery intriguing and disturbing. Confronted by them, a man loses his grasp of ordinary things, perceiving himself as immortal, an entity capable of outdistancing all changes, all decay, all life, all death.’  – Frank Smythe, Famous British Mountaineer

By kind cortosy of professional photographer Fi © All rights reserved.

Designed for Group Leaders World-Wide
Groups of 24 participants arranged from June 15th– 1st October 2020 inclusive

Journey inclusive of

·         Taking care of your entire journey from Delhi airport and back

·         Experienced on-board team and Tibetan translators

·         Time to relax to experience extraordinary environments

·       Three nights in Delhi (in total) including a last day shopping trip to a famous market culminating in a farewell party of traditional entertainment and the finest cuisine at a well-known restaurant

·         Luxury accommodation and vehicles

·         40-minute flight over the glaciers back to Delhi

·         Healthy, hygienic food and beverages

·         Safe luggage transfers & Personal security

·         Environmentally aware

Himalaya Discovery’s responsibilities on-route

·         Taking care of leader requirements while they focus on their group

·         Pre-arranged meetings with Rinpoche’s, Lamas and Yogis

·         Preparing group meeting/meditationspaces in each location

·         Arranging night-time fire gatherings with local musicians and story-tellers

·         Optional  3-day detox program (see our  menu)

·         Caring for those with physical disabilities

·         Safe luggage transfers and management

·         Personal security

21-days through the highest most mystical regions on Earth

Himalaya Discovery is a reputable company with over twenty-five-years experience in organizing journeys through the remotest habitable regions of the Himalayas.

We offer this specifically designed package from 15th June – 1st October towestern group leaders and their participants who follow the teaching of Buddhism, or who are interested in researching/exploring where it originated. 

Historical background

Only relatively recently, political boundaries were established between India & Tibet. Before this tribes mingled to exchange crops and arrange marriages. Hence, many primordial ways have been lost with only sparsely populated hamlets continuing their ancient way of life.

Today in these remotest regions of the Indian Himalayas, some tribal areas remain, affectionately known as ‘Little Tibet’ because of non-Chinese influence. 

On this journey, we explore these monastic hamlets and spend time with lamas in their breath-taking landscapes that are cut-off by snow for at least six months of the year.

 

Throughout the journey, there is a door to door service using a fleet of luxury, air-conditioned vehicles with experienced drivers that we have known for years, and at each location, our team and vehicles stand by for individual excursions of your choice.

Note; There is plenty of time for photo shoots while our team prepare beverages carried with us on-route.

Journeying through ‘The land of the gods!’

Field-Vortex

Spending time in these locations revealsthat the environment of Buddhism’s greatest innovator’s was greatly influenced by their ‘out-of-this-world’localities.

 

For thousands of years,ancient Yogic philosophers and then Hindu/Buddhist mystics declared these areas asinterdimensional portals- and locals still believe this to be true.

 

They believe because of paranormal activitieshanded down by word of mouth that continue to be verified through on-going personal experiences.

 

For example, people (including Lamas) know of figures appearing out of nowhere to save people from accidental death, and many other occurrences, such as orbs of light seen coming and going from some of the most dramatic glaciers.

At the end of the day, it depends on the sensitivity of the traveler to tune into something that’s quite literally ‘in the air.’ 

Designed for Group Leaders

Himalaya Discovery has formulated this journey so group leaders can relax while everything is taken care of by our experienced team – allowing leaders time/space to focus on group dynamics, as well as personally enjoying theirpersonal journey.

 

If you would like more information in relation to what bringing a group entails, please fill in the short form on the ‘Tailor-made Packages’ part of this site first. Also see the ‘Practicalities’ section.

Note; Because this is an exclusive journey,our daily itinerarydoes not include naming certain monasteries or teachers and their locations in order to protect both – untilgroups are officially booked.

 

More information regarding localities and sight-seeing within the overall journey is in the itinerary below – offered as a guideline that can be changed according to the group leaders needs.

Daily Itinerary

Day 1 Arrive in Delhi; free time. Early supper followed by a general introduction and discussion. Good night’s sleep. (If you are arriving in Delhi the day before the journey begins, we can arrange an extra night in our hotel.)

Day 2 Delhi to Shimla by our fleet ofprivate cars.Supper followed by an introduction to your Himalayan team. 

Day 3 Relaxing day to acclimatize to the height (7,250 feet). Explore this famous British Hill Station- either on your own or in our guided tour. Shimla has many up-market shops plus a large Tibetan Bazaar. 4pm; explore the famous Dorje Drak Monastery, along with prayers with the lamas followed by afternoon tea.

Day 4 Shimla to a remote Himalayan village historically linked with Shangri La where we stay in our own hotel (The legendary Rupin), stopping for lunch to take in views with photo-shoots on-route.  

A five-minute walk from our personally run hotel is in an area linked with Shangri La

Day 5 Relaxing day. There are numerous walks and short treksinto the wild-life Trans-Himalayan side of the valley, plus an authentic Kinnauri village to explore. Supper followed by a performance of local tribal musicians.

Day 6 Morning; short journey to 1,200-year-old Kamroo Buddhist temple. SpecialPuja for our group and ceremonial dance performance followed by tea with the Lamas. Return to hotel for lunch and rest. Short trip to ‘the last village in India’ (15km away) to exploreits local 500-year-old Buddhist temple. Afternoon tea overlooking a spectacularview of the Tibetan/Trans-Himalaya mountain range.

Day 7 4-hour journey to Kalpa where we stay in another of our own hotels. Explore the village and adjacent Buddhist & Hindu temple.Evening meditation with local lamas. Supper overlooking the Kailash Mountain Range followed by an ancient-styleperformance by Buddhist musicians.  

View from our personally run hotel in this area

Day 8 3km (stunning)walk on the flat to a small village with a lunch picnic on the way. Optional further 2-hour walk to an isolated Buddhist nunnery- orback by car for a tea party at the girls orphanage in Kalpa where they perform local dances for us. Supper with a well-known Rinpoche with time for personal questions and group discussion. 

Day 9 Note; Gha Rinpoche fled Tibet with the Dali Lama. He then made a remote monastery where he went into a cave-retreat for 20-years. We take a full day excursion to this settinghigh in a rock-face with its caves and his stupa. Lunchwith two of theremaining Lamas that were there with him.  

Day 10 Set off into the highest habitable regions.2-day stay in thetiny village of Nako with dramatic views of the mountains in Tibet only 5km away. Settle in and explore the village and small lake. Supper and free time.

Nako monasteryis also known as ‘Lotsava Jhakang’ meaning ‘complex of the translator’ named after Rinchen Zangpo who translated Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit to Tibetan. The iconographic art work in the monasteryis related to Vajrayana Buddhism.

Day 11 In this village during the 11th century, Rinchen Zangpo spent years translating texts – and in several other monasteries visited on-route. Today, two temples in this village arepreserved. The main temple is dedicated to five Dhyani Buddha’s. The footprints of Guru Padmasambhava are preserved in a rock here that date back to 6-8th CE.

Morning; a private viewing of some of the original translations. Lunch with the Lamas and then rest. 4pm leave for next monastic village 60km away.

Day 12 Tabo is another monastic village founded in 996 CE by the Tibetan Buddhist Lotsawa and the translator Rinchen Zangpo, along with financial support from the King of Guge.

It’s one of the most important monasteries in Tibetan Buddhism and holds the distinction of being the largest monastic complex in Spiti.

Personal invitation to our group for early morning prayers, intermittent butter tea and buns,chanting &meditations along with the lamas and Rinpoche.

 

Free time to explore the village and surroundings.Supper around a bonfire with breath-taking views of the night-sky.

Day 13 Leave for another monastic village where we stay for two nights, first stopping at a remarkable monastic village on-route for lunch, along with a private viewing of its ancient Tibetan Buddhist scrolls and artwork.

This monastery accommodates nearly 250 monks where hundreds of lamas have received their training. It’s also known for its beautiful murals, thankas, rare manuscripts, stucco images and peculiar wind instruments that form part of the orchestra whenever Chham is enacted in the Gompa in summer.

For nature lovers and star gazers, viewing unusual rock formations that look like figures staring back at you – and the panoramic night sky – is a must!

Day 14 Free time torelax and explore this extraordinary location. Optional night walk and bonfire.

 

Day 15 A truly memorable drive throughglacier regions, stopping for lunch atan isolated Tibetan tent restaurant. 

There is virtually nothing in this uninhabitable wilderness of glaciers and rivers apart from shrines for those who have travelled by foot for thousands on years

Then we pass through the famous Kunzum and Rohtang passes and downward to our hotel in the forested area of Manali.

Day 16 A day to rest and explore on your own with guidance offered, plus the use of cars on-hand for any personal excursions. 

 

Day 17/18 An 8-hour drive to McLeod Ganj, Dharamsalaand then free time to explore numerous temples and monastic complexes where the Dali Lama lives. 

Day 19 Morning flightto Delhi. Afternoon optional excursions or free time to explore or rest. Supper in hotel in preparation for a full-onnext day.

 

Day 20 Optional sight-seeing or shopping trip to q large famous market housings art/craft goods and antiques from all over India. (We can arrange trunks to be shipped back to your home %) 

In the evening there is cultural music entertainment at a famous restaurant for your fare-well party.

Day 21 Fly home. (Please bear in mind that your room has to be vacated by 12pm or extra costs will be incurred.)

Please see our ‘Booking & Practicalities’ section for further information

Available for 24 participants
Cost inclusive from & back to Delhi 

Note; if you are travelling on your own and would prefer a single room, please inform us when booking. There is a small surcharge for the price of the room only, as all rooms are double and the cost of the journey is priced for two people sharing one room. Alternatively, if you would prefer to share but are not travelling with anyone, please let us know and we will connect you with a like-minded participant.

Cost inclusive from and back to Delhi
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