The Yungdrung Droduling Gompa in Hurikot is important in the Bon tradition of the region. In the valley to the north a village called Jagdul, a monastery and several meditation caves used to exist. Climate changes then however caused major landslides that blocked a direct trail to Samling and forced the inhabitants to move down to what is today known as Hurikot. This village is now an important trade center for the caravans from the north where salt, tea and wool are bartered for corn and grains.
Around 30 years ago the local community called a monk Geshe Nyima Wozer to the village to conduct rituals and ceremonies for the villagers. With great support from the community he built a small building with a small chapel where he could stay and serve the villagers. Then, with great enthusiasm, he initiated the plan for a new building, a community monastery close to the village.
In 1996 when the anthropologist Marietta Kind lived in Dolpo during her research, she and her husband, the architect Urs Furger helped Geshe Nyima Wozer to design his plans for the monastery on paper. Since then, the monk with his unweary commitment found further sponsors (apart from us) for his project and in 1999 achieved the building of the main premises with a mud roof. In summer 2000, with our support, the roof was extended with a skylight and covered with corrugated iron sheet and wooden floors were added to the building.
Artists from Humla made the new Buddha statue of the founder of Bon religion, Tompa Sherab Mibo, in traditional style from clay as well as other statues and wood carvings, decorations and wallpaintings. The main wallpaintings were drawn by Bonkyap from Parlä (nap. Baigybara) in Dolpo, who is by now the most renowned Bon thanka painter in Nepal. The artwork at the monastery is of the most exquisite quality. Apart from us other organisations have supported the monastery with substantial donations, the main ones are:
Friends of Dolpa,
American Himalayan Foundation, Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche and the
Ligmincha Institute,
Deutsche Dolpohilfe.
In the meantime the monastery is not only a religious centre but in addition also enables complementary education in Tibetan language and local culture at the local government school. Below the monastery a small hostel has been built to host orphans and other children from difficult backgrounds, who join Tibetan and government school. A few are also introduced as novices at the monastery. Both the monastery and the Tibetan school are supported with a yearly amount by our NGO.
