After two-month ‘cycle yatra’, Drukpa nuns reach Jammu

Tribune News Service

Jammu, August 5

Led by Gyalwang Drukpa of the Ladakh-based Drukpa Order, 500 monks and nuns from Nepal cycled to reach Jammu as a part of their 2,500-km journey to Hemis Monastery in Ladakh.

The Drukpa Order, which is known for its insistence on gender equality and celebration of diversity, regularly organises such events to highlight issues of global significance. The Cycle Yatra , which commenced from Kathmandu (Nepal) on July 3, is an annual feature of the Order’s efforts to promote awareness about environment crises in the region and inspire collaborative action to resolve it.

The two-month-long yatra traverses through some of the most arduous routes in the Himalayan region amid adverse conditions. From the quake-hit regions in Nepal to the monsoon-hit towns in Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Pathankot, Srinagar, Sonmarg and Kargil – the yatra will culminate at Hemis Monastery, 45 kilometres from Leh. It is scheduled to arrive at its destination prior to Naropa 2016– a grand spiritual festival that is held once in every 12 years, celebrating the 1000th birth anniversary of the Indian saint Naropa, patron of the Drukpa lineage.