Lama land

Leh, with monasteries perched on rocky crags and prayer flags fluttering in the air, may have been affected by commercialism, but it still retains a pristine charm, says Mukesh Khosla

The locals call Leh the ‘Land of the moon’

Lamas in their flowing robes and shaven heads greet you everywhere. Every third son in most families becomes a lama — Photos by the writer

As the plane begins its descent one can see a scattered township, the gurgling River Indus and the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas. Leh is now firmly on the tourist map. This place, one of the most inhospitable and unforgiving mountain ranges, is less than an hour from Delhi.

Leh (meaning ‘oasis’) is the capital of Ladakh. In the past, Leh was the hub of many caravan routes, playing host to traders from Yarkhand, Kashgar, Lhasa, Amritsar, Khotan and Persia. The caravans have now been replaced by the tourists.

The temperature outside is 9`B0C with a nippy breeze. Coming from the 35`B0C of Delhi this is a sudden change. For someone not acclimatized to Leh’s climate, the recipe is simple but strict: Take it easy, lest you find yourself out of breath and panting. After all, breathing doesn’t come easy at 12,000 feet above sea level.

It is not for nothing that the locals call this the land of the moon with fairy castlelike monasteries perched precariously on rocky crags. They are, in fact, the main point of interest in Leh where people follow the Tibetan form of Buddhism. Ladakh, with its capital in Leh, for centuries has owed spiritual allegiance to Tibet and the Dalai Lama is considered the reincarnation of Lord Buddha.

Leh has one main street and a warren of alleys to the houses, which climb up the hillside towards the towering monasteries. It also has many quaint bazaars, which sell products ranging from talismans and prayer wheels to sunglasses and television sets. The snack stalls are aplenty offering solja the yak butter tea and hot momos, delicious steamed meat or vegetarian dumplings with chilli sauce.

The main market on Fort Road has a lively air. There are locals in their traditional dresses as well as in denim jeans and a fair sprinkling of foreign and Indian tourists.

But it is the lamas in their flowing robes and shaven heads that greet you everywhere with Jule! Jule!

They lead a simple life. The summer day is spent in farming for food, which will not just meet their daily needs but will also be stored away for winter months. Mornings and evenings are spent in the monasteries revolving the prayer wheel and singing hymns in praise of Buddha.

The people of Ladakh are deeply religious. They are the true followers of the tenets of peace laid down by Buddha. Which explains why they consider the Dalai Lama the reincarnation of Buddha.

Such is the impact of religion that every third son in the family becomes a lama who performs all rituals, including the prayers at births, marriages and deaths. With such an emphasis on godliness, the monasteries are the pivot point of life in this region.

Festivals form a major part of their culture. And the Ladhakis have them in abundance and throughout the year. Their most important is the Ladakh Festival, which is 10 days’ of merriment at Leh’s Polo Grounds and has games like archery, polo and plenty of dancing and singing. The celebrations come to a head on the final day of the festival. Leh is surcharged. Musicians and dancers don traditional dresses: Women are in turquoise and precious stonestudded perak headgear and chuba dresses, made of Chinese brocades, while the men put on staid gondas, or stovepipe hat.

In Ladakh’s history, gompas (monasteries) have always occupied a place of prime importance. Shey, Thiksey, Hemis, Lamayaru, Likir and Alchi are the best-known monasteries of the region and revered by the locals. They also witness a high flow of tourist traffic.

Although Leh and Ladakh have stayed far removed from urban influences because of the hostile mountain ranges obstructing accessibility, but with the region now being connected by air, there are rashes of commercialism all around. Normal butter has fast replaced the yak butter. Local eateries have been replaced by German bakeries and pizzerias. Markets and roads are chockfull of cars and taxis and many big city outlets like Fab India have already set up shop there.

"We are now awaiting McDonald’s and Domino’s," says a local.

Rum (popularly acknowledged as currency in this region) is preferred to the heady local rice brew, Chang, which the tourists like to taste as a novelty. But go slow on this brew. It may taste innocuous but this is heady stuff. Chush is still the favourite fish from the River Indus nearby. The river is also the source of water. For trout fishing one could go up to River Shyok. Hunting, of course, is banned to preserve the scanty wildlife in Ladakh.

With the opening up of their land to tourism, the Ladakhis have come into some money. Though many locals still live off the land and continue to eat what they grow and wear what they weave, modernity is all around Leh.

For a newcomer the ill effects of high altitude start after a couple of hours after landing there. The nights are worse because the air is more rarefied. But day or night, one pair of socks just won’t do—you have to put onat least two pairs and keep them on till the summer comes.

The Ladakhis have their answer to vitamin E in a local substance called Momiai, which is a prized as an aphrodisiac. It is a dark coloured pastelike substance, which is extracted from rocks due to extreme heat during daytime. It burns like petrol and gives out black smoke.

The Ladakhis believe that Momiai is packed with amazing magical qualities. Though a tourists may or may not be able to authenticate that, what they can truly find magic all around in this ancient region. Because just standing atop the Thiksey Gompa the landscape can truly take the breath away. This is really the land of the moon. — NF

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