Pelkor Chode Monastery (Gyantse)
དཔལ་འཁོར་ཆོས་སྡེ།
A monastery shared by several Tibetan Buddhist schools, including Sakya, Gelug and Kadam. Its Kumbum stupa, known as the Hundred Thousand Buddhas, holds tens of thousands of statues and murals across its chapels.
Pelkor Chode Monastery sits at the foot of Dzong Hill in Gyantse county town. Construction began in 1418, and it is a rare example of several Tibetan Buddhist schools, including Sakya, Gelug and Kadam, sharing one monastery. Its most famous feature is the Kumbum, or Hundred Thousand Buddhas, a stupa about 42 meters tall with nine tiers. It contains roughly 76 chapels, and tens of thousands of statues and murals that blend Nepali, Han Chinese and Tibetan styles. It is considered the peak of 15th-century art in Gyantse. Follow the stairs inside, climbing level by level, to reach the top and look out over the old town and Dzong Hill. The Tsochen Hall contains fine clay sculptures and murals. Admission is about 60 yuan, subject to on-site prices. Getting there: from Lhasa, the southern route via Yamdrok Lake and Karola Glacier to Gyantse is about 260 km, and Gyantse to Shigatse is about 90 km. It is a must-stop on the Lhasa to Shigatse southern route. Combine it with Gyantse Dzong and the old town. Note that the passages inside the Kumbum are narrow, dim and steep, so bring a flashlight. Photography is prohibited in most of the chapels.
Opening hours
About 09:00–18:00
Nearby sights
- Gyantse Old Street (Jiarijiao)
- Gyantse Dzong
- Pala Manor
- Tsechen Monastery
- Nenying Monastery
- Drongtse Monastery
- Manla Reservoir
- Simi La Pass