India is a country of diversity and I am saying this because the more I travel in my country, the more I understand and see the unity in the diversity. Can people living in the world even imagine that there is a mummy in India? Yes, it is true that there is a mummy in the North of India. I drove for 19 hours from Delhi to see this mummy, which is 776 km away. Let me tell you whose mummy it is.
I had mentally prepared myself to drive on the 776 km long route and I did so because I wanted to see this mummy which is located in the Spiti Valley of Himachal Pradesh in the North of India. This mummy is located at an altitude of 3048 meters and it is the only mummy in India. I leave Delhi after loading all the essentials in the car. From Delhi I enter Haryana, then Himachal Pradesh's Shimla and the next day I reach Gu Monastery directly within which this monastery is located.
Spiti Valley is situated on the banks of Spiti River, this valley is 375 km long. This valley is dedicated to Buddhism because Buddhist monasteries are located here at many places and wherever you look you see Buddhist temples, prayer flags and monks. Key Monastery, Kibber Monastery, Kaza Monastery, Tabo Monastery and Nako Monastery are the main ones in this valley where tourists visit in large numbers. I myself have visited all these Buddhist temples.
This mummy is believed to be 550 years old and is the only mummy in India whose hair and nails are still growing. Local people worship it considering it as God. Gue is located about 50 km from Tabo, which is the only residential area before Gue. I am mentioning Tabo because this mummy is associated with Tabo Monastery. A monk named Lama Sangla Tenzing, who used to study in Tabo, goes to Gue village one day.
After coming 50 km away, Lama Sangla Tenzing disappears somewhere and no one knows. Because this place remains covered with snow for 6 months of the year, no one went to look for the Lama, anyway the Lama spends most of his time in meditation and assuming that he must be doing penance in a cave, no one went to look for him. Some locals also believe that this Lama came from Tibet and started living in Gue, but no evidence is found to prove this fact correct.
This mummy, which is of Lama Sangla Tenzing, is in a sitting position. It is believed that the Lama gave up his life while doing penance. The Lama gave up his life at the age of just 45 years. Investigation done by scientists found that this mummy is 550 years old, a special type of coating is used to make a mummy which is not on this mummy. So this is a secret that how this mummy is safe and in good condition till date without any external coating.
I talk to the local monk who tells that the Lama's mummy is still in meditation and is alive, that is why its hair and nails are growing. He further mentioned that in 1974, when an earthquake occurred here, this mummy had sunk into the cave and when it was excavated, blood was flowing from this mummy and it was still in a sitting position. I was also surprised to hear this information.
Till 2009, this mummy was protected by the ITBP but later it was handed over to the Gu Monastery where it has been kept in a glass box. Today lakhs of people come to see this mummy, but reaching here is not at all easy. I myself have reached here after driving for 19 hours to see this mummy, which is considered God by the local people.
The monk who showed me this monastery and shared information with me, offered me to stay at his house, which I gladly accepted. In the evening, I came to his house with him where he gave me hot salty tea and later made a green vegetable from local grass and fed me, which was very tasty. I stayed here for two days and explored the places around. But wherever I went, my surprise remained stuck in the mummy located in the cave, how the hair and nails of this mummy are growing.
If you have ever seen such a mummy, then share the information. Do you know that @worldmappin has organized a #winterchallenge dedicated to winter and Christmas, in which the winners will be given great prizes. Every day #traveldigest publishes the best posts of the day and motivates travelers. If you are still unaware of this challenge, then go to #worldmappin and read about this contest.
Disclaimer: This post is originally written in Hindi and I have used Google Translator to translate the Hindi text in English. All the photos have been clicked by me from sony point and shoot camera and edited in lightroom, post thumbnail created in adobe photoshop.
for more information you can read wikipedia page