Mt. Kailash presents probably the biggest irony in tourism and other pilgrimage places. It is the most famous and divine place visited by the devotees across the borders. The mountain is an important religious destination for many religions like Jainism, Buddhism, and Hinduism and holds different significance to different religion. The mountain towers up to 22,000 feet above sea level and is considered to be one of the toughest climb. Pilgrims even with the toughest of vehicles take weeks to reach here through a journey, which is nothing less than a great challenge.

For Hindus, Mt. Kailash is the sacred abode of Lord Shiva, 'the God of destruction' of evil and sorrow. Hindus consider this mountain as eternal heaven and the center of soul and spirituality. According to the legend, Lord Shiva sits atop Mt. Kailash meditating and practicing Yoga. The mountain is assumed to be the center of the world and the four rivers flowing through Kailash divide the world in four different regions. In fact, the famous rock cut Ellora caves in Maharashtra are named after Mt. Kailash. The walls of this cave have many carvings related to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati.

The Buddhist called Mt. Kailash as Mountain Kang Rimpoche, 'the precious one of glacial snow'. The Tibetans called it Tise. They consider this to be the resting place of Buddha Demchok and the place where the intimidating battle between Milarepa and Naro Bonchung took place. Milarepa was the master of Tantric Buddhism (magic), and Naro Bonchung was the champion of Bon religion. After a long battle, no result was in sight and both came to a conclusion that the one who reaches the top of the mountain first wins. Soon Naro Bonchung got on his magic drum and proceeded towards the tip, but to everybody's amazement, Milarepa sat there meditating. As Naro Bonchung was about to reach the top, Milerapa sprang into action and overtook him by riding the rays of Sun. Since then Buddhism prevails in Tibet. Mt. Kailash is also an important religious center for Jains as well. They call this mountain Mt. Ashtapada. According to their religion, this is the place where the great sage Rishabhadeva, the founder of Jain religion, attained Nirvana, here on the peak of Mt. Ashtapada.

With no railways, roadways or air route, this is no easy place to reach. Only physically fit and mentally tough people who are totally devoted towards their journey to Kailash can reach their goal. It took at least 10 days of rigorous walking to reach Mr. Kailash if you start immediately after reaching the foot of the hill. It is advised to take a few days extra to get accustomed to the climate at such a high altitude. There are different ways to reach the tip of this mountain, the most commonly used being the Xinjiang highway which starts from Kashgar city and reaches Kailash via Shiquanhe. Others important routes are northern route, southern route and India Nepal Border. So, if you wish to take this journey and ready to endure the difficulties, this could be your path to enlightenment.