Trek to Tholung Monastery by Asis Mukherjee

When our north Sikkim bound bus dropped us at Mangan, the District Head Quarter of North Sikkim, we found the place as desolate as a remote village on the hill. We found neither a hotel nor a lodge but only a few shops by the roadside. We entered one tea shop and on enquiry we came to know that we had to put up at the nearby school building. So we went to the headmaster’s quarter to approach him for our night stay. The headmaster was a very gentleman and when we explained our purpose to come here, he gladly opened a room for us. We put up our rucksacks and set out again for the District Magistrate’s Office to obtain our permission to go to the Dzongu valley which is a restricted area for the Lepchas and any outsider must have to take permission from the local government authority. We explained to him our objective to visit the Tholung Monastery and applied in writing and got the permission easily. We again came to the tea shop and asked for a cup of tea. With the cup of tea we sat together and were discussing our future plans. Until that time we did not know where we would put up the next day.

In the year 1997 this place was not known to even trekkers and mountain lovers though tour operators were taking the tourists from Gangtok to Gurudongmar lake and Yumthang valley in the North Sikkim. Even today though communication systems have developed and internet service is available to everybody, Tholung Monastery remains in the age of the hoary past. The monastery was built in the early part of the eighteenth century in the reign of Chogyal Chakdor Namgyal. I got this information in the guide book of Sikkim written by Rajesh Verma. The mystery of the monastery drew my attention to visit the remote place in North Sikkim district. So myself along with my friend Pradip Biswas set out one day for Gangtok during autumn. After taking one day’s rest at Gangtok we came here. Now we are sitting at the tea shop and talking within ourselves about tomorrow’s plan. A gentleman was sitting beside us with his cup of tea. Hearing our discussion in bengali he interrupted also in bengali and asked us where we were going to. We were very much surprised to find a Bengalee at that place which was quite beyond our expectations. He then introduced himself as an officer of the Central Intelligence Branch, Government of India. He was posted at Mangan on duty. Hearing our intention to visit Tholung Monastery he generously came forward to our rescue. He took us with him to the house of the local M. L. A. Before leaving he told the shopkeeper for three meals for all of us for the night. We understood that he used to eat there. So we also got relieved from the tension of our dinner. We followed him and within a furlong on the main road we entered into a big two storey building. A man opened the door and took us inside the house and told us to wait in the drawing room. After a while a gentleman appeared and greeted us. After hearing our purpose he called a man and introduced us with him and told us that he would take us next morning to Lingzey village where his brother was staying. Not only that he also assured us that his brother would help us in every need and we were supposed to stay at his brother’s house. After having a cup of tea offered to us we thanked him and left his house. We thanked the I . B. Officer and came along with him to the tea shop again. After having our dinner together we came to our night stay at the school. I told my friend Pradip that there is a local belief that “you can go to Tholung only when Tholung calls you”. Before going to bed we thanked God for making such an arrangement for us which was beyond our imagination. Now we can also feel the call of Tholung in our hearts.

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Next day morning we woke up and got prepared to set out. Before leaving we bade goodbye to the Headmaster and conveyed our thanks. We came to the house of the M. L. A. and found the man who was entrusted to accompany us was waiting for our arrival. We all moved a few yards down the road and waited for the service jeep for Lingzey. The jeep came from Gangtok. A few passengers alighted and we got in. Within an hour we reached our destination, the Lingzey village. Our guide took us to the house of the brother of the M. L. A. It was also a big two storied building. We entered and the guide introduced us to him and he cordially welcomed us to his house. In no time we were served with tea in a nice mug. The landlord accompanied us and asked me why we were going to visit the Tholung monastery. Because the local people of the state, especially the Lepchas used to go there. It’s a very sacred pilgrimage to them. I told him that I read about it in a guide book of Sikkim written by Rajesh Verma and Tholung monastery attracted me since then. He appreciated our intention but he also informed us that this year the “Kamsil ” festival was over in the month of April. “Kamsil ” festival takes place every three year when the relics and the artifacts are displayed for the pilgrims. I told him that I was aware of that”. I also added that the mystery of the monastery drew me here. He assured us that the next day we would move for Tholung and the man who brought us here would accompany us as our guide. It’s a day long march of twenty kilometers.

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We went to our room provided by our host on the first floor. Putting down our rucksacks at one corner we relaxed on our mattress. In fact we could not perceive how smoothly everything was happening so far on our way beyond our expectations. After lunch was served in our room we set out for a stroll around. At first we went to a little monastery adjacent to the house where a group of young boys, dressed in saffron garments were studying. It appeared to us like a hostel cum school where training and schooling both were provided to the future lamas. It was run by our host. Then we strolled around the Lepcha village in the Dzongu valley. We also saw the famous Lingzey waterfall which was pouring its water into the torrential Tholung river. We came across the “Beh Forest Bungalow”. After a brief stroll we came back to our nest before dusk. In the evening we were served with typical Lepcha dishes and drinks. In Lepcha the name of the drink was “Chee”. It’s a kind of local beer served in a bamboo container with a straw to sip. Along with it there were “Thukpa ” and “Momo” which were rather known to us. With that we finished our dinner and went to bed.

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Next morning after a heavy breakfast we set out for our final destination accompanied by our guide. We crossed the Tholung river on a bamboo bridge.The path went through the forest and cardamom groves. Here and there the rocky cliffs were to be negotiated with great caution. Sometimes waterfalls were descending down below to the Tholung river which was our company all through the way. Birds tweeted loudly in the bush and on the branches of the trees. Here and there we found huts of the hardy lepcha families. We paused for a while at one of them for tea. Since we left Mangan we did not spend a single penny to anyone. We had been treated as guests of the entire region. We reached Tholung monastery on the top of the hill at around 2 p.m. The newly built Monastery stood with an adjacent bungalow for the pilgrims on a flat land surrounded by prayer flags and a small tomb stood at another side. We unleashed our rucksacks and sat at the doorstep of the monastery. Its height is 8000 feet. In the clear sky towering Kanchenjunga and Siniolchu peaks were seen clearly from here. All around only silence prevailed. This place is more a pilgrimage than a tourist spot. A young Buddhist Monk came out from the monastery and our guide introduced us to him. He cordially invited us inside the house. Shortly he offered us noodles and tea. We all were fatigued and hungry also. So we devoured the meal silently. After that food we regained some energy. We went inside the Holy Monastery and there we met a senior Lama. We saw the metal “Chorten” in which enclosed the ashes of Lama Latsun Chembo the patron saint of Sikkim and thirteen boxes containing the holy relics and artifacts under supervision of the Government of Sikkim. Every three year these artifacts are unveiled to the public during the “Kamsil” Ceremony in the month of April. The “Thangkas”were hanging all around. The environment inside the monastery was very quiet and peaceful and a fragrance of incense was prevailing all around. After spending some time we came out side to enjoy the beauty of the nature. We realised why the Sikkimes had chosen this place to keep the relics and the artifacts protected from the invading Nepalese. It was so secluded and perhaps due to high altitude and dense forest it was easy to guard. The calmness of the nature soothes one’s heart. Our guide told us that a few miles walk further from here along the Tholung river takes one to a religious spot called “Devta Pani”. But we were satisfied that we could reach Tholung through many odds and uncertainty. So we were sitting there until sunset. When darkness engulfed the entire area and a starry canopy was spread in the sky we went to our night shelter. Our guide lit a fire and we all sat around it with a cup of tea. It was like celebration of a bonfire. Our guide and the young lama started to prepare food for our dinner. They didn’t allow us to participate. So we sat and watched them. Around 8 p.m. we had our supper and then we went to bed and slept in the lap of the Lama Latsun Chembo. Dawn appeared quietly in the silent valley. We came out from the room. Our guide offered us the morning tea. We enjoyed the morning sunshine on the Mount Kanchenjunga. After breakfast we bade good bye to the monks of the monastery and started our return journey to Lingzey. We reached Lingzey at around 2 p.m. We came to the house of our host. He requested us to stay for the night also. But as we saw the jeep was available for Gangtok we decided to leave. We expressed our thanks and bade adieu to him. As our jeep started for Gangtok our sojourn through a trance to the land of mystery came to the end leaving a permanent image in our minds.

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