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About Sumda Chun Monastery |
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The
Sumda Chun Monastery symbolizes the cultural influences of
Tibetan Buddhism in the Himalayan area and is of enormous
regional and international importance. Sumda Chun was a part
of the long and strenuous pilgrimage route which is connected
with the two other temples of this period, Mangyu and Alchi.
The
Sumda Chun Monastery once covered the entire hill but today,
only the assembly hall, main shrine, two Bodhisattva chapels,
a prayer wall and a few stupas remain. Conservation programmes
have been started to preserve the architecture, sculptures,
paintings and artwork of Sumda Chun Monastery and the temple
in Sumda Chun. There are elaborative sculptures and paintings
in the main hall of the monastery.
Established in the 12th century, the complex of the monastery
and the temple were originally built for parched climate but
the unexpected amount of rainfall over the years has caused
severe damage to the structures and the art forms.
The temple at Sumda Chun is said to be one of three temples
that Lotsawa Rinchen Zangpo founded one night. The other
temples are at Alchi and Mangyu. Sumda Chun is the starting
point of the significant Sumda-Mangyu-Alchi Buddhist
pilgrimage which pilgrims try to finish in one day. |
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Location of Sumda Chun Monastery |
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Sumda
Chun Monastery is situated at 12,700 feet above sea level in the
remote part of the Himalayas, the village of Sumda Chun is
reachable only by a 3- to 4-hour trek up a steep and winding
river valley track. The monastery there is one of the most
significant surviving early Tibetan Buddhist temples of the
Ladakh region of northern India. Its remoteness has both helped
and hindered its preservation.Once a extensive complex covering
an entire hill, today the assembly hall, main shrine, two
adjacent Bodhisattva chapels, a prayer wall, and several stupas
are among the structures still standing.
Sumda Chun Monastery is around 65kms to the southwest of Leh,
which is linked by a motorable road, upto Sumdo. The track
begins ascending to the west, through a gorge from the left bank
of the stream. At one point, the track crosses to the right bank
and climb becomes little more difficult. One or two houses come
in the way before another gorge appears on the right which leads
to the Sumda chon Monastery and towards the left leads to Sumda
Chenmo. This track goes along the stream with plantations of
Willow. After walking for an hour the monastery appears above
the village houses. There is one more short track from Alchi
Village through Stakspila, the climb from Alchi is more
difficult and long compare to Sumda side. The pass is open only
in summer. The Sumda Chon Monastery was probably founded during
the period of Lotsava Rinchen Zangpo with Mangu Monastery and
Alchi Choskor. The monastery consists of three temples. The
assembly hall has the image of four headed Vairocana, as the
central or main image which is nicely ornamented better than
Mangu and Alchi Monasteries. The wall has murals of Buddhas i.e.
Ratnasambhava, Akshokhya, Amitabha, Amogasiddhi and Vairocana. |
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Restoration of Sumda Chun
Monastery |
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NIRLAC, in conjunction with World Monuments Fund (WMF), has
recently completed a four-year renovation of Sumda Chun. The
program starts with the preparation of a site survey; conditions
mapping of the temple structure, wall paintings, and sculptures;
provisional repairs to the leaking mud roof; and the preparation
of a conservation plan to guide all future work.
In 2008 the renovation of the roof and repairs of the vertical
breaks in the exterior walls rendered the building watertight
and structurally sound; test cleaning of the attractive features
and pre consolidation of severely deteriorated areas of painted
surfaces was also accomplished.
In 2009 work continued on the interior and exterior features of
the temple and adjoining structures including the provisional
stabilization of the painted stupa. Materials testing of the
wall paintings continued and microclimate data was composed from
data-loggers installed in 2008.
In the summer of 2011 the project at Sumda won a UNESCO
Asia-Pacific Heritage Award for superiority in cultural heritage
conservation. The award cited the "combined world-class
scientific methods with vernacular building know-how," and
observed that the "art conservation is particularly prominent
for its complexity." still standing. |
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The Site and the Building |
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Situated in the Zanskar ranges of Ladakh, the monastic
complex of Sumda Chun comprises one of the very few
surviving early period Buddhist temples, ornamented in the
interiors with beautiful wall paintings and stucco
sculptures in the style of Western Tibetan art. At Sumda
Chun, the famous white temple perched on the hillside,
dominating a small settlement of a few houses and fields
below is all that remains of the original monastic complex
which is believed to have once expanded over the entire
hill.
The temple building is particularly divided over an
entrance veranda, assembly hall and two ancillary
chambers. In keeping with traditional construction
techniques, the structure has been constructed with stone
and mud mortar and finished with mud plaster. Flanking the
temple are the two small auxiliary chambers that can be
entered from low doorways directly from the courtyard.
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Paintings
and Sculptures |
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All
the walls in the interior of the assembly hall are ornately
ornamented with wall paintings, the oldest of which are believed
to date to the 12th century AD. Around half the original wall
paintings have been lost or painted over and now stand replaced
with newer ones, the latter famous by their appearance,
stylistic technique and limited signs of surface deterioration.
The most prominent ornamentation is however the shrine, a
strange assemblage of thirty seven stucco figures set in the
walls of the niched chamber. The smaller auxiliary chambers to
the north-east and south-west of the assembly hall are found to
house monumental four-armed stucco statues of Bodhisattvas.
The heroic rescue of the Sumda Chun Gonpa has brought back to
life one of the oldest monasteries in a remote area of Ladakh.
The reinstallation of the historically significant but severely
dilapidated structure was carried out in a systematic and
responsive manner guided by careful research. Conservation
interventions combined world-class scientific methods with
vernacular building know-how. The art conservation is
particularly prominent for its complexity. The excellent project
was realized through the steadfast commitment of the local
community and the monastic order, in cooperation with
international partners and cultural foundations. |
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Best
Time to Visit |
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The
best time to visit Sumda Chun is between the months of May and
September.The weather during these months is warm unlike the
hostile cold weather of the winter months. Trekking and hiking
can be done in the close by regions during these months but all
trekking trails are closed or blocked due to heavy snowfall in
November.
The trek from Sumdo to Sumda Chun goes through steep hilly land
and gorges. Another way to reach Sumda Chun is trekking from
Alchi village which goes through Stakspila but the gradient of
the slope going down is very steep making it a very time
consuming trip.
The Sumda Chung Monastery is listed as one of the 100 most
endangered sites in the World Monument Funds 2006 Watch List.
The abbot of the Hemis Monastery appoints monks who take care of
the daily traditions and all major events in the temple. The
village has a total population of 16 people who actively
contribute to the rituals and activities of the temple. |
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