The holy
Mt.
Kailash,
a
mystical
power in
people's
minds,
has been
a symbol
of
relief
from
suffering
to
generation
after
generation
of
believers.
The
region
is
revered
by four
different
religions
as one
of the
most
sacred
pilgrimage
destinations
in Asia.
Hindus
regard
Mt.
Kailash
as the
earthly
manifestation
of Mt.
Meru-their
spiritual
center
of the
universe,
described
in the
ancient
texts as
a
fantastic
"World
Pillar,"
139,440
km high
around
which
everything
else
revolves,
its
roots in
the
lowest
hell and
its top
kissing
the
heavens.
On the
summit
sits
Lord
Shiva
who
shares
this
lofty
peak
with his
consort
Parvati,
daughter
of
Himalayas.
For the
Jains,
Mt.
Kailash
is
acclaimed
as a
site
where
their
first
prophet
achieved
enlightenment.
Buddhist
cosmography
identifies
Mt.
Kailash
with the
mighty
Mount
Sumeru,
the
central
peak of
the
world.
"The
Father
Mountain"
represents
the
means to
enlightenment
and Lake
Mansarovar,
"the
Mother
Principle,"
represents
Buddhist
transcendent
consciousness.
And in
the
ancient
Bon
religion
of
Tibet,
Kailash
was the
sacred
nine
storey
Swastika
Mountain,
upon the
Bonpo
found
Shenrab
alighted
from
heaven.
Set
amidst
Mount
Kailash
and
Mount
Gurla
Mandhata
at
height
of
14,950
ft.
above
sea
level is
Mansarovar
Lake,
the
highest
freshwater
body in
the
world.
The lake
stretches
majestically
over
Tibetan
Plateau
with a
circumference
of about
88 km
and
covers
an area
of 320
km. It
was
created
to show
the
omnipotence
of
Brahma's
mind (manas).
To bathe
in the
lake and
to drink
its
waters
is to be
delivered
to the
paradise
of
Brahma
and to
cleanse
the sins
of a
hundred
lifetimes.
Lying as
they do
beneath
the
symbolic
temple
of
Kailash,
Mansarovar
and
Rakshash
Tal
represent
the
water
tanks
present
at the
entrance
to every
Hindu
temple.
The
round
shape of
the
former
is like
the sun
and the
curved
outline
of
Rakshash
Tal
symbolizes
the
moon.
These
ideas
are
expressed
in the
names of
the two
lakes,
Mansarovar
being
associated
with
'light'
and
Rakshash
Tal
meaning
the
'lake of
the
demons'.
To
Hindus
Mansarovar
symbolizes
the
receptive,
female
aspect
of
creation,
the
yoni,
while Mt
Kailash
symbolizes
the
active
male
aspect,
the
lingam.
According
to
legend
one
Khora
around
Kailash
cleans
away the
sins of
a
lifetime;
10
circuits
cleans
away the
sins of
one
Kalpa
(era)
and 108
khoras
secure
Nirvana
in this
life.
Making
one
circuit
around
the
mountain
in the
Year of
the
Horse
(2002)
is equal
to 13
circuits
in any
other
year. It
is
considered
the most
auspicious
year for
the
Kailash
pilgrimage,
because
that was
when it
became a
power
place.
After
making
13
khoras
one is
allowed
to make
the
inner
circumambulation.
In this
way the
more
Khoras
you
make,
the
cleaner
and more
pure you
become.
As you
become
more
pure,
you are
allowed
closer
to the
core of
Kailash
and
nearer
to
nirvana/heaven.
This is
why the
paths of
holy Mt.
Kailash
are an
endless
stream
of
pilgrims
throughout
the
summer
months. |
Major
Mt.
Kailash - Holy
Lake Mansarovar
Tour
