Places to Visit

Norbulingka Institute, founded in 1988 by Kelsang and Kim Yeshi at Sidhpur, near Dharamshala, India, is dedicated to the preservation of the Tibetan culture in its literary and artistic forms.

The institute is named after Norbulingka, the traditional summer residence of the Dalai Lamas, in Lhasa, Tibet. The ground plan is based on the proportions of Avalokitesvara, the thousand-armed god of compassion, with the temple as the head.

Norbulingka is dedicated to handing down tradition and restoring standards by providing training, education and employment for Tibetans. It supports an environment in which Tibetan community and family values can flourish. It reconciles the traditional creatively and respectfully with the modern, and seeks to create an international awareness of Tibetan values and their expression in art and literature. Norbulingka produces high quality, traditionally crafted art objects, as well as clothing and home furnishings. Free guided tours of the institute are available to visitors every day except Sunday. Workshop are also offered for those wishing to study Tibetan arts. The institute also runs two guesthouses-- Norling Guesthouse and Chonor House. All proceeds from all Norbulingka's projects go directly back into the institute to further our endeavors to preserve Tibetan culture.

Norbulingka's art studios include Tibetan statue making, thangka painting, screen-printing, applique and tailoring, woodcarving, wood painting, papermaking, and wood and metal craft.

The Academy of Tibetan Culture, established in 1997, offers a three year course of higher education in traditional Tibetan studies, as well as English, Chinese, and world history.

The Research Department of Norbulingka houses the team composing the official biography of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, of which nine volumes in Tibetan have already been published. The research section is also compiling a comprehensive encyclopedia of Tibetan culture.

Tibetan Institute of performing Arts (TIPA) is located about 30 minute walk from the Dev Cottage. the Tibetan Institute of performing Arts was the first institute created by the exiled Tibetan government. TIPA is both a culture of music, dance and theatre.

The Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA) was founded by Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama on reaching McLeod Ganj, Himachal Pradesh, India in exile from Tibet in August 1959. It was then called Tibetan Music, Dance and Drama Society, which was one of the first institutes set up by the Dalai Lama,[1] and was established to preserve Tibetan artistic heritage, especially opera, dance, and music.

The new opera company employed both professional and amateur performers and entertained the Tibetan refugee camps and staged numerous performances of the folk Lhamo operas. These performances lasted all day and were "a reminder of home" for refugees.

For those interested in yoga and meditation, Tushila Meditation and yoga centre is next door.

During the rule of Raja Bhagsu there was once a severe drought in his capital. The local chiefs requested the king to do something or else the people would leave his kingdom. The king promised to do something this and set out himself in search of water. After about 3 days of searching he reached the Sacred Nag Dal (Lake) at a height of 18000ft. This lake was very big and had a lot of water. Raja Bhagsu used trickery to fill the water of the lake into a small vessel. He decided to spend the night there, as it had grown dark. Later in the Evening Nag the Lord of Snakes happened to pass by the lake and was shocked to find the lake empty. Following the footmarks he reached the place where Raja Bhagsu was resting. He challenged Bhagsu for a duel and defeated him in the ensuing fight. The moment the vessel containing the sacred water fell on the ground water started flowing from there. Baldy injured Raja Bhagsu prayed to Nag and moved by his prayers Nag granted him a boon that this place shall henceforth be referred firstly by the kings name and then by the Lords name and he shall become popular. Henceforth this place came to be known as "BhagsuNag". In the Beginning of the Kalyug Raja Dharamchand dreamt that lord Shiva asked him to build a temple here to bring prosperity to the area. Today it is about 5100 years since this temple was built.