Sikkim

Sikkim is home to almost 200 monasteries or Gompas belonging to the Nyingma and Kagyu sect. Some monasteries like the Dubdi monastery in west Sikkim is considered the oldest monastery having been built in 1705. It is also home to some exotic orchids. It is said Sikkim has more than 6000 species of orchids.

A former royal kingdom, Sikkim has had a turbulent past owing to incessant raids and annexation threats from nearby kingdoms. Sikkim’s Coronation Book describes Guru Tashi (descendants of the Mi-nyak House of Kham in Eastern Tibetas) as the first ruler of Sikkim. Yet, it was not before 1642 AD, when Sikkim got its first Chogyal (king) Phuntsog Namgyal (the fifth generation descendant of the Mi-nyak house), who consolidated the fragmented territories. This event was preordained by the Buddhist sage Rinpoche, who had come to the region to spread Buddhism.