Devachen - Touch the Sky With Glory
Surrounded by fluttering prayer flags, the Karakoram on your north-east, the Great Himalayas on your south-west, and girt by the Indus, at Devachen you attain living Nirvana. You stand among the chilly winds from China, your shawl pulled tight over your shoulders as you watch the Sun rise over the Karakoram – all rock and ice and storm and abyss as Fosco Maraini said of it, “You then turn your gaze to watch the dawn light up the snow of the Great Himalaya in a gold-orange glow, and repeat to yourself: Nabha Sprisham Deeptam i.e ‘I touch the sky with glory’.
The Great Himlayas, warm and fatherly
Prayer flags and hope amongst the sand
Devachen (in Ladakhi: Valley of Peace, named after the Heaven in which the Amitabha Buddha resides) is the distilled essence of Ladakh – the mountains, the desert, the prayers, the peace. It is located two kilometres off the village of Choglamsar, which is itself about twelve km from Leh. Devachen's location, on the banks of the Indus in a valley between the Karakoram and Great Himalayan range, truly justifies its name.
The Karakoram, all ice and rock and storm and abyss
Get to Leh by road or air. To get there by road, you can hire a seat in a taxi (Innova or Sumo) from either Srinagar or Manali (fare Rs. 1500 per person). If you are a little short on budget and feeling really, really adventurous, you can take the rashly-driven Himachal transport bus. While a taxi will get you from Manali to Leh in about 19 hours across four spectacular mountain passes (Rohtang La, Baralacha La, Lungalacha La and Taglang La), the bus takes two days, with a night stopover at Sarchu. If travelling from Manali, you can get off at Choglamsar and then hike it to Devachen.
Baralacha La on the Leh-Manali road
There are regular flights from Delhi or Srinagar to Kushok Bakula Rinpoche Airport in Leh every morning (costing from Rs. 6000 upwards), though flights are prone to cancellation because of strong winds in Ladakh. From the airport you can take a taxi to Devachen, which might cost you about Rs. 300. Alternatively, get to Leh town (a couple of km away) and stay there overnight, especially if you need to acclimatise to the altitude. The next morning you can one of the local buses, in which you get a good picture of modern Ladakhi culture.
The world’s highest traffic jam at Rohtang La
Devachen (about 11,562 feet above sea level) is a fairly cold place. Woollens, socks, handgloves, cap are a must, even if you go in summer. You must take medicines for altitude sickness. Best to swallow a pill the night before your flight to Leh. And do remember to pack a camera!
The MIMC Complex, Devachen
Choglamsar has a few hotels and guest houses the other option is you can stay at Leh, where there is something to cater to every budget. In Devachen itself, you can also stay at the hostel of the Mahabodhi International Meditation Centre (MIMC). The room rates range from Rs. 500-1700 with vegetarian food included). The MIMC is a large campus established by Bhikkhu Sanghasena to propagate, Buddhist Meditation. In summer, the MIMC runs several residential meditation camps, which I strongly recommend.
You can also, by making prior arrangements, get a home stay with some of the local residents.
Meditation Hall, Devachen
The main activity at Devachen are the residential meditation camps. You can opt for the three-day introductory camp or the ten-day advanced camp. The activities include a vow of Noble Silence (which is more than verbal silence; you must not try to communicate at all), sitting meditation, walking meditation, yoga and meals, of course.
Walking Meditation ground
Walking about the campus is a very calming experience, which is not to be missed. You may get a chance to spot wild mountain sheep (bharal) and the ubiquitous magpies. Do take photographs of the many rocks on which the locals write Om mane Padme Hum in elaborate and colourful style. From Devachen you get a spectacular view of the Indus river as it weaves through the Choglamsar village.
Om Mane Padme Hum
Choglamsar village on the banks of the river Indus
Not far from Devachen is Thikse, where you can visit the Thikse Gompa. This is one of the important centres of Tibetan (Vajrayana) Buddhism. On the way to Thikse from Choglamsar, you can stop at the Sindhu Ghat, where you can (if you dare) take a dip in the icy waters of the Sindhu (Indus). At Choglamsar itself, you can visit the Tibetan Refugee Settlement.
Thikse Monastery as seen from Thikse village
Stupa at Thikse Monastery
At Devachen, the MIMC offers you very simple fare, in line with the objective of meditation and introspection and non-indulgence. However, you can walk over to Choglamsar village to taste the local specialties. Thukpa is now a famous Tibetan dish, but you must try it Ladakhi style, which is a little different. And of course, do have plenty of yak butter tea, made in the traditional long wooden churn (gurgur cha).
Nevertheless, with the advance of tourism in Ladakhi culture, you will find places serving you Chinese, Punjabi and dishes common to Indian restaurants.
The MIMC has a small souvenir shop selling Buddhist tangkhas (traditional silk paintings) and religious literature. A copy of the Dhammapada which I bought there has been a constant companion ever since my trip to Devachen. You can buy some more handicrafts in the Choglamsar Tibetan Refugee Settlement. But for a complete shopping indulgence, you must get to Leh.
One strong recommendation is to buy a few CDs of Ladakhi pop music. These are mostly Bollywood tunes karaoke-d with Ladakhi lyrics, but the sweet voices of the singers are very enchanting.
A trip to Devachen can be fairly heavy on the pocket, costing anything between Rs. 15,000 – 30,000 including airfare. If you plan well in advance, making stay and travel arrangement, you can do it in a hitchhiker's budget. But whatever the expense, you'll never grudge it.
Closure
Amidst the Karakoram and the Great Himalayas, the vast open skies, the chilly winds from the east and the Noble Silence of everything, all you can say is Nabha Sprisham Deeptam* i.e ‘I have touched the sky with glory’.
*This happens to be the motto of the Indian Air Force.
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