Visiting Ladakh the exotic area of India

History

Ladakh was always an independent kingdom that paid allegiance to the Dalai Lama sitting in Lhasa. In fact records show that Ladakh was an independent country for close to 2000 years. After the spread of Buddhism, Ladakh became an outpost of Tibet and the Dalai Lama was recognized as the ruler.

In the nineteenth century (1825-30) the Sikh general of Ranjit Singh named Zorawar Singh, conquered this state and established Sikh rule over it. The Tibetan forces were routed and the entire state was annexed by Ranjit Singh. With the end of Sikh rule, the British as a reward to the Prime Minister of the Sikh Empire for his treachery Gulab Singh was made maharajah of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh became part of his kingdom. When the state of Jammu and Kashmir acceded to India in 1947, Ladakh also became part of the Indian union.

The State

Ladakh is a mountainous state with its capital at Leh. The city is at a height of 12000 feet above sea level and boasts the highest operational airfield in the world. The people are predominantly Buddhist and the state is rich in monasteries and pagodas. The capital Leh is connected by air to Delhi and Chandigarh. Hence reaching Leh is not a problem. The airfield is managed by the Air Force with one corner being earmarked for the civil terminus. There is no rail link and if one has to travel by road the route is tortuous and starts from Srinagar.

Travelling in Ladakh

Three years back Ladakh had a cloud burst and much of the state was destroyed. However the state has recovered from the effects of the cloudburst and one can now safely visit Leh and Ladakh. The good news is that the main market in Leh, including adjacent hotels and guest houses  remained unaffected.

The roads to popular destinations which were affected have been repaired. Thus the roads to Nubra Valley, Pangong lake, Tso Moriri and the old monasteries are again accessible. Visiting the monasteries is itself like a dream as one will come across an atmosphere that is not prevalent anywhere else except in Tibet. The Monasteries are the repository of Buddhist culture.

Jesus and Ladakh

Many research scholars have speculated that Jesus did not die on the cross and came to Kashmir. Records in the Monasteries are available which refer to Isa Masih (Name for Jesus). The beauty of Ladakh lies in its monasteries. One can spend hours here and also peruse the libraries. Visiting the bare brown colored Himalayas is a delight. One will see that there is hardly a tree in the entire region. It’s an experience that has to be relished. I am lucky as thanks to my career in the Air Force I spent so much time in Ladakh and must have landed at Leh at least 20-30 times.

Last word
Visiting Ladakh is an experience that is unique. I will recommend a visit to this exotic land. One can fly direct from Delhi to Leh. It will be an experience landing at the highest airfield in the world. I can safely say there is no place like Ladakh anywhere in the world.