Top choice in Himachal Pradesh
Dominating Rewalsar's western flank is an enormous, 12m-high statue of Padmasambhava. He's dressed in brown with a gold face setting off his trademark fiercely staring eyes and wisps of moustache and beard. The right hand takes a warding-off-evil mudra (gesture).
The statue was inaugurated by the Dalai Lama in 2012.
28.89 MILES
On a clear November day, it's hard to imagine a more perfectly framed view than that of Bahu's remarkably preserved village core, perched on a ridgetop…
27.45 MILES
A popular day trip from Kullu starts with a 20km uphill drive southeast to Chansari followed by a 2.5km uphill hike to the Bijli Mahadev. The temple…
24.59 MILES
Sitting amid young orchards beside a holy peepul tree, this 9th-century stone sikhara is a small but ornately carved national monument. Niches on the…
0.75 MILES
Padmasambhava reputedly meditated in a location high on the ridge above Rewalsar. The supposed sites are almost 10km by road (bus ₹30, taxi one way/return…
28.06 MILES
Though little to look at, this is Kullu's pre-eminent temple enshrining the valley's major deity, a tiny bronze idol of Raghunath Ji (Rama), star of the…
29.97 MILES
This sprawling monastic complex's extensive series of buildings and stupas lie semi-hidden in rolling pine woods, halfway along the pretty, narrow lane…
Dzongsar Khyentse Chökyi Lodrö Institute
26.28 MILES
Inaugurated in 2004, the Dzongsar Khyentse Institute is a Tibetan Buddhist college of higher learning catering for devotees of 300 monasteries covering…
8.21 MILES
This intricately sculpted stone Shiva temple stands on the spit of land at the junction of the Beas and Satlos rivers, 150m east of Victoria Bridge.
1. Zigar Drukpa Kargyud Institute
0.09 MILES
A short detour uphill from the lake en route to the giant statue, this three-storey complex is a Buddhist study centre with outsized statues of Tantric…
0.11 MILES
Conspicuous by the giant trident rising on the west side of the lake, this group of smallish Hindu temples are dedicated to Krishna and Lakshmi (white, in…
0.14 MILES
At the lake's southwest corner, this monastery is not Rewalsar's most outwardly attractive, but the prayer hall has artful murals, and at the waterfront…
0.21 MILES
At the lake's southwest corner, visitors gather beneath a Himachal Tourism open pavilion throwing balls of atta (flour) or puffed rice into the water. The…
0.24 MILES
Painted red and purple, this Tibetan-style Buddhist monastic academy for Buddhist monks has a central temple that features a large, central Sakyamuni…
0.32 MILES
On the northeast side of the lake, this gold-domed Sikh temple was built in the 1930s but commemorates the 10th guru's month-long stay here in 1701 during…
0.75 MILES
Padmasambhava reputedly meditated in a location high on the ridge above Rewalsar. The supposed sites are almost 10km by road (bus ₹30, taxi one way/return…
7.96 MILES
At the entrance to Bhootnath Bazar, 100m northwest of Indira Market, Mandi's most active historic temple is a small 16th-century stone structure with…