Hemis Gompa, Jammu & Kashmir

How to reach there
Road: It is a possible Leh by car.One bus Every day.

Accomodation
One can stay here, either in a small tent in the woods, where mattresses and blankets are available on rent or if you have your own tent, in one of the many scheduled camping sites besides the stream.

Located
It is located 45 km from Leh on the western side of the Indus.

Festival
Hemis Gompa is one of the largest, wealthiest and most important gompas in Ladakh. The special feature of the Hemis Gompa is the ceremonial Hemis Setchu festival, which is celebrated in late June or early July when the passes are open. This is one of the largest and most spectacular of the gompa festivals. At one point of time it was virtually the only gompa festival that took place during the summer tourist season.

Dressing & Dancing
The locals dressed in their finest traditional garb celebrate the festival with great pomp and festivity. Large crowds flock to have a glimpse of the colourful two-day festival. The vibrant mask and chaam dances, which are performed with great enthusiasm, are special features of delight for the spectators. Accompanied by cymbal crashes, drum rolls and periodic groans from the temple trumpets, the lamas dressed in opulently brocaded silk costumes and ghoulish masks, mime episodes from Buddhist mythology. The show culminates on the second day with a frenzied dismemberment of a dummy, symbolising the destruction of human ego, and thus the triumph of Buddhism over ignorance and evil. The dramas are also a form of popular entertainment eagerly anticipated by the Ladakhi villagers