Lahaul and Spiti district
Lahaul Spiti and (Hindi: लाहौल और स्पीती Lahaul Spiti aur [ lɑhɔ ː l ɔ ː r spi ː ti ] ) is the largest in area, but the least populated district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh.
Geography
Lahaul Spiti and is bordered to the north by Ladakh, on the east by the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, on the southeast by the district Kinnaur in the south and west by the Kullu Valley, to the west by Chamba (to which up to 1971 parts of the western Lahauls included ) and Kashmir. The district was politically together. Geographically and culturally Lahaul has more relations to Kullu in its south and Zanskar in the north, Kinnaur in the south and Spiti after Rupshu ( nomadic region in eastern Ladakh ) in the north. Also landscape and climate are different: while Lahaul lies in the rain shadow of the Pir Panjal - chain, but still smeared by rainfall from the Indian plains. According strong is the glaciation inside ( Chandrabhaga range with over 100 Eisgipfeln to 6517m altitude). The villages Lahauls are predominantly above the valleys of the rivers Chandra and Bhaga ( after their confluence at Tandi: Chandrabhaga ) at 2500 - 3500m altitude. Spiti is against dry, situated high in the shadow of the Himalayan main ridge, and comparatively less populated than Lahoul. Many villages are located in the main valley of the Spiti River, which in ERMS ( 4100m ) is formed from three glacial rivers and leaves at about 3300m at Sumdo Spiti Kinnaur after. Because of the " inversion landscape " but there are also stately villages and pastures just on the plateaus above 4200m height ( Kibber, Langza, comedy, Demul others), because the plateaus are less dry than the valleys. The most important side valley of Spiti River is the Pin Valley, which branches off to the south towards Kinnaur. Spiti northeastern areas, towards the highest peaks Gya ( 6714m ) in the triangle Spiti / Ladakh / Tibet until today are almost inaccessible.
The district capital Kyelang is also the largest town in Lahaul. The largest town in Spiti Kaza as administrative center of the subdistrict Spiti.
Lahaul today has a relative prosperity in that it is, thanks to sophisticated irrigation, the most fertile potato producer in the world. In much drier Spiti are Coll the traditional, necessary for self-sufficiency in the Tibetan cultural sphere increasingly barley fields of peas fields ( for sale in Indian markets ) replaced.
Language, culture and religion
In Spiti and Lahaul both a Tibetan dialect and Hindi is spoken. There are also four other languages in Lahaul, whose origin is not well understood. The main religion in Spiti is Tibetan Buddhism in its most authentic form. Lahaul is Hindu in the more populated lower valley regions, in the upper valleys Buddhist. There are numerous monasteries, temples ( gompas ) and shrines of local deities. Spiti is ethnically and culturally westtibetisch.
The most important Hindu temple is Devi Markula in Udaipur, with steles from the 10th century, in the same Ikononografie as in temples in Changunarayan in the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal ( Vaishnavism ). Local patron Lahauls is Gyepang Raja, who resides on the same double peak in Central Lahaul; His temple is in the village Sissu in the lower Chandra Valley.
Among the most important gompas include the Triloknath Temple at Tunde ( place of pilgrimage for Buddhists and Hindus ), Khardang Gompa in Khardang ( largest monastery Lahauls ), Ki Gompa above the Spiti Valley ( largest monastery in Spiti, the seat of the punching Tulku, the 19th Rinchen Zangpo of reincarnation ), Dhankar Gompa and Kungri Gompa (oldest monastery) in Spiti.
The temple complex in Tabo is one of the most important Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in the world. It was founded by Rinchen Zangpo 996, and some of the nine temples are preserved in its original Indo-Tibetan style. The current Dalai Lama Spiti considered as one of its home regions. His spiritual teacher came from Kibber and died there as well. The Dalai Lama has several of his Kalachakra initiations in Spiti performed ( in Tabo, Ki and Kungri ). He has expressed a desire to spend his life in Spiti.
As a transit route between India and Tibet and East Turkestan Lahaul always had meaning, while Spiti was away and was at best fought between the kingdoms of Ladakh and Guge (Western Tibet). Tourist today Lahaul ( wrongly ) only on transit area, while Spiti, closed until 1992 because of its border areas for foreigners, since the late 1990s, booming tourism. Spiti is today, thanks to its membership of the Indian Union, one of the few regions of an indigenous Tibetan Buddhist culture.