The junction of Ghum, 7km southwest from Darjeeling, is home to a number of colourful Buddhist monasteries. Yiga Choling Gompa , the region’s most famous monastery, has wonderful old murals and is home to some 30 monks of the Gelugpa school. Built in 1850, it enshrines a 5m-high statue of Jampa (Maitreya or ‘Future Buddha’) and 300 beautifully bound Tibetan texts. It’s just west of Ghum, about a 10-minute walk off Hill Cart Rd.
Other gompas of interest nearby include the fortress-style Guru Sakya Gompa , which conducts prayer sessions between 5.30am and 7.30am (useful if returning from a dawn visit to Tiger Hill). The active Samten Choling Gompa , just downhill, has the largest Buddha statue in West Bengal, a memorial chorten dedicated to German mystic Lama Govinda and a small cafe selling piping hot veg momos (₹20). All three gompas are within 10 minutes’ walk of each other on Hill Cart Rd.
About halfway between Ghum and Darjeeling is the huge Druk Sangak Choling Gompa , also known as Dali Gompa, inaugurated by the Dalai Lama in 1993. Known for its vibrant frescoes, it is home to 300 Himalayan monks who study philosophy, literature, astronomy, meditation, dance and music. Come for prayers between 4pm and 6pm.
You can get to Ghum from Darjeeling by toy train (₹30), shared taxi (₹30) or chartered taxi (₹300 one way).
