Rumtek Monastery

About 24 km from Gangtok, across a valley with the town visible on the opposite ridge, Rumtek is the largest monastery in Sikkim and the most important centre of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism outside Tibet. The original monastery on the site dates to the 18th century, but the great complex seen today was built in the 1960s by the 16th Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, after he fled Tibet, as a faithful recreation of his seat at Tsurphu.

The main shrine hall is a riot of colour: towering golden Buddhas, intricate murals, silk thangkas and the throne of the Karmapa. Behind it stands the Karma Shri Nalanda Institute for Buddhist Studies, and a reliquary temple holding the Golden Stupa that contains the relics of the 16th Karmapa — one of the most sacred objects in the Kagyu world.

Rumtek has also been at the centre of the long dispute over the recognition of the 17th Karmapa, which is why you will usually see a security presence at the gate. For visitors it remains a serene, working monastery; its Losar (New Year) cham dances are among the finest in the Himalaya.