Ladakh: As Ladakh has always had close
cultural and trading connections with
Tibet its predominant culture
stems from Buddhism.This is particularly evident in the most
populated region of Leh and the Indus Valley with its many
whitewashed gompas
( monasteries ) and forts perched on top of Sugarloaf
Mountains.Padum the capital of more remote Zanskar shares this
Buddhist heritage.Kargil and the Suru Valley the third main region
of Ladakh is predominantly shi’ia Muslim and share a cultural
affinity with Baltistan ( in Pakistan since Indian Partition in
947).
Ladakh- the land of high passes- marks the boundary between the
peaks of the western Himalaya and the vast Tibetan Plateau. Opened
up to tourists in 1974 Ladakh has been variously described as ‘the
moonland’, ‘Little Tibet’ and even ‘the Shangri La’. Whatever the
description it’s one of the most remote regions of India. Yet for
thousands of visitors Ladakh is a completely magical place remote
with delightful, gentle, ungrasping people.
Until very recently Ladakhi society has generally been very
introverted and the economy surprisingly self-sufficient. Ladakh
also developed a very distinct culture. Polyandry was common but
many men became lamas (monks) and a few women chomos (nuns). Most
people depended on subsistence agriculture but the harsh climate
contributed to very high death rates and a stable population. That
is rapidly changing. Imported goods are increasingly widely
available and more and more people taking part in the monetary
economy.The capital of Ladakh is Leh.
Ladakh is land like no other. Bounded by two of the world’s
mightiest mountain ranges the Great Himalaya and the Karokoram it
lies between two thinner ones the Ladakh range and the Zanskar
range.
In geological terms this is a young land formed only a few million
years ago by the buckling and folding of the earth’s crust as the
Indian sub-continent pushed with irresistible force against the
immovable mass of Asia.
Its basic contours uplifted by these unimaginable tectonic movements
have been modified over the millennia by the opposite process of
erosion sculpted into the form we see today by wind and water. The
main source of water remains the winter snowfall. Drass Zanskar and
the Suru Valley on the Himalaya’s northern flank receive heavy snow
in winter; this feeds the glaciers whose melt water carried down by
streams irrigates the fields in summer.
For the rest of the region the snow on the peaks is virtually the
only source of water. Viewed from high above its surface Ladakh
appears a vast monotony of three colours; the brown of the earth the
white of the snow and the black of the dark shadows in the valleys.
On descending to the surface level the picture transforms into one
of vibrant vitality of effervescent streams flower-decked meadows
gaily dressed Ladakhis serene Lamas high-flying eagles and
fleet-footed mountain sheep. Now the Arctic-like desert turns into a
picture of animation.
Ladak’s early history is woven into its mythology. And though the
great Chinese wanderer Fa-Hien travelled its folds as far back as
399 AD it was till but a few decades ago what its name describes it
as: ‘A Land of Passes’ (La-Doghs : Passes and hillocks).
Means of modern communication have brought this hinterland of
traditional Buddhism into the circuit of an ordinary tourist. Ladakh
beckons for more than one reason. The defiant beauty of its barren
landscape its unique flora and fauna its cultural its clear blue
skies and clean air ‘the land where snow never melts and only corn
ripens ’ has more to offer than a good holiday.
Ladakh lies at altitudes ranging from about 9000 feet (2750 mts.) at
Kargil to 25170 feet (7672 mts.) at Saser Kangri in the Karakoram.
Thus summer temperatures rarely exceed about 270c in the shade while
in winter they may plummet to -200c even in Leh.
Surprisingly though the thin air makes the heat of the sun even more
intense than at lower altitudes; It is said that only in Ladakh can
a man sitting in the sun with his feet in the shade suffer from
sunstroke and frostbite at the same time.
