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| native_name = {{native name|bo|Mapam Yumtso}}
| image = Yaks-Kailash-Manasarovar.jpg
| caption = Lake Manasarovar with [[Mount Kailash]] in the distance.background
| location = [[Burang County]], [[Ngari Prefecture]], [[Tibet Autonomous Region|Tibet]], [[China]]
| coords = {{coord|30.65|81.45|type:waterbody|display=inline,title}}<!--Precision of 0.05 deg (3')-->
| area = {{convertcvt|410320|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}
| depth =
| max-depth = {{convertcvt|90100|m|ft|abbr=on}}
| volume =
| residence_time =
| shore =
| elevation = {{convertcvt|45904600|m|ft|abbr=on}}
| islands =
| cities =
| frozen = Winter
<!-- Map -->| pushpin_map = Tibet#China Tibet Ngari#IndiaChina
| pushpin_label_position =
| pushpin_map_alt = Location of the lake in Tibet##Location within Ngari Prefecture
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| reference =
}}
'''Lake MansarovarManasarovar''' ({{lang-sa|मानसरोवर|MānasarōvaraMānasarōvar}}), also called '''Mapam Yumtso''' ({{bo|t=མ་ཕམ་གཡུ་མཚོ།|w=ma pham g.yu mtsho|s=ma pam yu tso}}; {{zh|c=瑪旁雍錯|p=Mǎ páng yōng cuò}}) locally,{{efn|Alternative names include '''Mapam Yatso''' ({{bo|t=མ་ཕམ་གཡ་མཚོ|w=ma pham g.ya mtsho|s=ma pam ya tso}}), '''Mapang Tso''', '''Tso Mapam''', '''Tsang Tso''' ({{bo|t=ཚངས་མཚོ|w=tshangs mtsho|s=tsang tso}}), and '''Tso Madröpa''' ({{bo|w=mtsho ma dros pa}}).<ref>{{Citecite web |title=Geographical names of Tibet AR (China): Ngari prefecture |websitework=KNAB Place Name Database |publisher=Institute of the Estonian Language |date=3 June 2018|url=https://www.eki.ee/knab/valik/cn54ng.htm|access-06date=28 August 2022|archive-03date=10 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200110214226/https://www.eki.ee/knab/valik/cn54ng.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> and '''Tso Madröpa''' ({{bo|w=mtsho ma dros pa}}).<ref>{{cite book| last1=McKay | first1=Alex | title=Pilgrimage in Tibet | isbn=9781136807091 978-1-13680-709-1| date=2013 | publisher=[[Routledge]]|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pUVdAgAAQBAJ&dq=%22ma+dros+pa%22&pg=PA26}}</ref>}} is a high altitude freshwater [[lake]] fed by the Kailash Glaciers<ref name|page=Brockman>{{cite book26|lastaccess-date=28 Brockman |first=NorbertAugust 2022|archive-date=201128 |title=Encyclopedia of Sacred Places, Volume 1August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220828191051/https://books.google.com/books?id=JkSk4euA-TECpUVdAgAAQBAJ&dq=%22ma+dros+pa%22&pg=PA356 PA26|publisher=ABCurl-CLIO |pagestatus=356 |isbn=9781598846546 |access-date=4 April 2019live}}</ref>}} is a high altitude freshwater lake near [[Mount Kailash]] in [[Burang County]], [[Ngari Prefecture]], [[Tibet Autonomous Region]], [[China]]. TheIt lakeis alonglocated withat Mountan Kailashelevation toof its{{cvt|4600|m}}, northnear arethe sacredwestern sites[[Tripoint|trijunction]] inbetween China, India and Nepal. It overflows into the adjacent salt-water lake of [[Lake Rakshastal|Rakshastal]] via the [[Ganga Chhu]]. The sources of four religionsrivers: [[HinduismIndus River|Indus]], [[JainismSutlej]], [[BuddhismBrahmaputra River|Brahmaputra]], and [[BonKarnali River|BönKarnali]].<ref name=Brockman/>lie in the vicinity of the region.
 
The lake is sacred in [[Hinduism]], [[Buddhism]], [[Jainism]] and [[Bon|Bon religion]]. People from India, China, Nepal and other countries in the region undertake a [[pilgrimage]] to the region. The pilgrimage generally involves trekking towards Lake Mansarovar and a circumambulation of the nearby Mount Kailash.
 
== Etymology ==
The [[Sanskrit]] word "''Mansarovar''" (मानसरोवर) is a combination of two Sanskrit words;, "''Mānas''" (मानस्) meaning "''mind" (ingenerally its widest sense as applied to alldenotes the mental powers), intellect,associated intelligence,including understandingintellect, perception, sense, conscience''")<ref>{{cite web |url= http://faculty.washington.edu/prem/mw/m.html |title= Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary |lastwork= [[Monier-Williams |first= Monier |website= faculty.washington.edu]] |quote= mánas n. mind (in its widest sense as applied to all the mental powers), intellect, intelligence, understanding, perception, sense, conscience, will RV. &c. &c. (in phil. the internal organ or antaḥ-karaṇa of perception and cognition, the faculty or instrument through which thoughts enter or by which objects of sense affect the soul IW. 53<br />• in this sense manas is always is always regarded as distinct from ātman and puruṣa, 'spirit or soul' and belonging only to the body, like which it is – except in the Nyāya – considered perishable |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121203191432/http://faculty.washington.edu/prem/mw/m.html |archive-date=3 December 2012-12-03 |access-date=10 October 2017-10-10 }}</ref> whileand "''sarovarasarovar''" (सरोवर) meansmeaning "''a lake or a large pond deep enough for a lotus''".<ref>{{cite web |url= http://faculty.washington.edu/prem/mw/s.html |title= Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary |lastwork= [[Monier-Williams |first= Monier |website= faculty.washington.edu ]]|quote= sarovara ○vara n. (accord. to some also m.) a lake or large pond, any piece of water deep enough for the lotus Kāv. Pur. &c |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150520235218/http://faculty.washington.edu/prem/mw/s.html |archive-date=20 May 2015-05-20 |access-date=10 October 2017}}</ref> The lake is called as ''Mapam Yumtso'' ({{bo|t=མ་ཕམ་གཡུ་མཚོ།|w=ma pham g.yu mtsho|s=ma pam yu tso}}; {{zh|c=瑪旁雍錯|p=Mǎ páng yōng cuò}}) and ''Tso Madröpa'' locally. In his [[Tibetan languages|Tibetan]]-10[[English language|English]] dictionary, [[Sarat Chandra Das]] states that ''Mapam Yumtso'' is derived from ''Mapam'' meaning unconquerable or invincible and ''Tso Madröpa'' is derived from ''Madropa'' meaning "ground heated by the Sun" both used in combination with ''Tso'', the Tibetan word for lake.<ref name="Das">{{cite book|author-10link=Sarat Chandra Das|first=Sarat Chandra|last=Das|year=1902|title=Tibetan-English Dictionary with Sanskrit Synonyms|publisher=Bengal Secretariat Book Depot|url=https://archive.org/details/tibetanenglishdi00dassuoft/page/948/mode/2up|pages=658, 959}}</ref>
 
== Geography ==
[[File:Mt Kailash satMt_Kailash_sat.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5left|Satellite viewTopography of lakesthe region showing Manasarovar (right) and [[Lake Rakshastal|Rakshastal]] lakes with [[Mount Kailash]] in the background.]]▼
[[File:Gurla Mandhata & Manasarovar.jpg|left|thumb|Mount [[Naimona'nyi]] (Gurla Mandhata) and Lake Manasarovar]]▼
[[File:Mansarovar map.jpg|thumb|Map of the region]]▼
It is located about 50 kilometers to the northwest of [[Nepal]], about 100 kilometers east of [[Uttarakhand]], and in the southwest region of Tibet. The lake lies at {{convert|4,590|m|abbr=on}} above mean sea level, a relatively high elevation for a large freshwater lake on the mostly saline lake-studded [[Tibetan Plateau]]. It freezes in the winter. According to Brockman, it is one of the highest freshwater lakes in Asia (with the highest being [[Tilicho Lake]] in Nepal at an altitude of 4919 m).<ref name=Brockman/>
 
▲[[File:Mansarovar map.jpg|thumb|Map of the Manasarovar region]]
Lake Mansarovar is relatively round in shape with a circumference of {{convert|88|km|mi|1|abbr=on}}. Its depth reaches a maximum of {{convert|90|m|ft|abbr=on}}{{citation needed|date=February 2012}} and its surface area is {{convert|320|km2|1|abbr=on}}. It is connected to nearby [[Lake Rakshastal]] by the natural [[Ganga Chhu]] channel. Lake Mansarovar is near the source of the [[Sutlej]], which is the easternmost large tributary of the [[Indus River|Indus]]. Nearby are the sources of the [[Brahmaputra River]], the [[Indus River]], and the [[Karnali River|Karnali]], an important tributary of the [[Ganges]].{{cn|date=August 2021}}
 
Lake Manasarovar is located in [[Ngari Prefecture]], [[Tibet Autonomous Region]] of China.<ref name="Brit">{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Lake-Mapam|title=Mount Kailas|encyclopedia=[[Britannica]]|access-date=1 December 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Mount Kailash: the White Mirror|first=Nyima|last=Samkar|year=2020|isbn=978-9-38702-385-7|publisher=[[Library of Tibetan Works and Archives]]|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=83r3DwAAQBAJ|page=3|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820044027/https://books.google.com/books?id=83r3DwAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> It is located in the southwest region of Tibet north of the western [[tripoint]] of the border between China, India and Nepal.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.deccanchronicle.com/opinion/columnists/claude-arpi-china-playing-new-border-games-close-to-mt-kailash-883053|title=China playing new border games close to Mt Kailash|work=[[Deccan Chronicle]]|access-date=1 March 2024|date=23 February 2024|author=Claude Arpi|archive-date=28 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240228080736/https://www.deccanchronicle.com/opinion/columnists/claude-arpi-china-playing-new-border-games-close-to-mt-kailash-883053|url-status=live}}</ref> It is visible from the Lapcha La pass above the [[Limi|Limi valley]] in Nepal on a clear day.<ref>{{cite news|title=Limi-Lapcha could be an alternative route to Kailash Manasarovar|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/limi-lapcha-could-be-an-alternative-route-to-kailash-manasarovar|access-date=9 August 2022|work=[[The Himalayan Times]]|date=13 March 2021|archive-date=28 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220528050405/https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/limi-lapcha-could-be-an-alternative-route-to-kailash-manasarovar|url-status=live}}</ref> The freshwater lake lies at {{cvt|4600|m}} above mean sea level on the mostly saline lake-studded [[Tibetan Plateau]] and is one of the highest freshwater lakes in Asia.<ref name="Brit"/><ref name="Brockman">{{cite book|last=Brockman|first=Norbert|date=2011|title=Encyclopedia of Sacred Places, Volume 1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M8HSEAAAQBAJ|publisher=[[ABC-Clio]]|isbn=978-1-59884-654-6|page=356|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=19 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240819081710/https://books.google.com/books?id=M8HSEAAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author-link=Gene Likens|last=Likens|first=Gene|year=2009|title=Encyclopedia of Inland Waters|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o4p6f22jla8C|publisher=[[Elsevier Science]]|isbn=978-0-12370-626-3|page=505|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820072828/https://books.google.com/books?id=o4p6f22jla8C|url-status=live}}</ref>
Lake Mansarovar overflows into [[Lake Rakshastal|Lake Rakshasta]]<nowiki/>l which is a salt-water [[endorheic basin|endorheic lake]]. When the level of Lake Rakshastal matched that of Lake Mansarovar, these (very narrowly) combined lakes overflowed into the Sutlej basin.{{cn|date=August 2021}}
 
Spread over a surface area of {{cvt|320|km2}}, Lake Manasarovar is relatively round in shape with a circumference of {{cvt|88|km}} and a maximum depth of {{cvt|100|m}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://pithoragarh.nic.in/lake-mansarovar/|title=Lake Mansarovar|work=[[Government of Uttarakhand]]|access-date=1 June 2024|archive-date=18 May 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240518235411/https://pithoragarh.nic.in/lake-mansarovar/|url-status=live}}</ref> Manasarovar overflows into the salt-water [[endorheic basin|endorheic lake]] of [[Lake Rakshastal|Rakshastal]] via the natural [[Ganga Chhu]] channel.<ref name="Brockman"/><ref>{{cite book|author-link=Gene Likens|last=Likens|first=Gene|year=2010|title=Lake Ecosystem Ecology: A Global Perspective|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OzJOqh90RuwC|publisher=[[Elsevier Science]]|isbn=978-0-12382-003-7|page=294|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820042402/https://books.google.com/books?id=OzJOqh90RuwC|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=A Comprehensive Survey of Rock Art in Upper Tibet: Volume III|author=John Vincent Bellezza|publisher=[[Archaeopress]]|year=2024|isbn=978-1-80327-774-5}}</ref> The major rivers rising from the region include [[Yarlung Tsangpo]] (which becomes the [[Brahmaputra]]), the [[Indus]], the [[Sutlej]] and the [[Karnali River|Karnali]], a tributary of [[Ganges]].<ref name="Freeman">{{cite journal|url=https://www.alpinejournal.org.uk/Contents/Contents_2003_files/AJ%202003%20103-110%20Freeman-Attwood%20Gangdise.pdf|title=Gangdise Mountains|journal=[[Alpine Journal]]|author=Freeman Attwood|year=2003|volume=4|pages=103–109|access-date=17 March 2024|archive-date=13 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221113213210/https://www.alpinejournal.org.uk/Contents/Contents_2003_files/AJ%202003%20103-110%20Freeman-Attwood%20Gangdise.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Singh |first=Dhruv Sen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ridFDwAAQBAJ&q=indus+river+system |title=The Indian Rivers: Scientific and Socio-economic Aspects |publisher=[[Springer Publishing]]|isbn=978-9-81102-984-4|page=15}}</ref>
Lake Mansarovar and Mount Kailash are visible from the Lapcha La pass, located above the [[Limi|Limi valley]] in the district of Humla, Nepal.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bubriski |first=Kevin |title=Kailash Yatra: a Long Walk to Mt Kailash through Humla |publisher=Penguin Random House |year=2018 |isbn=978-0670091119 |location=New Delhi |pages=1}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=You are being redirected... |url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/limi-lapcha-could-be-an-alternative-route-to-kailash-manasarovar |access-date=2022-08-05 |website=thehimalayantimes.com|date=13 March 2021 }}</ref>
 
== Climate ==▼
In May 2020, India inaugurated a new 80&nbsp;km long motorable road from [[Dharchula]] to [[Lipulekh Pass]] along the [[Line of Actual Control|India-China border]] under the geostrategic [[India-China Border Roads]] project to the [[#Religious significance|Kailas]]-[[Mount Kailash#Religious significance|Manasarovar]] in Tibet.<ref name="kalu1">Suhasini Haidar, [https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/new-road-to-kailash-mansarovar-runs-into-diplomatic-trouble/article31545943.ece New road to Kailash Mansarovar runs into diplomatic trouble], The Hindu, 9 May 2020.</ref>
The weather is fairly dry during April to June with day time temperatures of more than {{cvt|5|°C}} and night time temperatures close to {{cvt|0|°C}}. The temperature starts to decrease in October with January being the coldest. Winters have day time temperatures below freezing with colder nights.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tibettour.org/tibet-weather/best-time-to-visit-kailash.html|title=Tibet Weather|access-date=1 June 2024|work=Tibet tour}}</ref> [[Monsoons]] bring rain from late June to August with cold winds.<ref name="GOI">{{cite report|url=https://www.mea.gov.in/Uploads/PublicationDocs/19148_Kailash_Mansarovar_Yatra_A_Guidebook_12-05-2006.pdf|date=12 May 2006|access-date=1 June 2024|title=Kailash Yatra|publisher=[[Government of India]]|page=60}}</ref>
 
[[Climate change|Global warming]] is described as happening more rapidly on the Tibetan Plateau than anywhere else in the world.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Qiu|first=Jane|date=1 July 2008|title=China: The third pole|journal=Nature|volume=454|issue=7203|pages=393–396|doi=10.1038/454393a|pmid=18650887|issn=1476-4687|doi-access=free|bibcode=2008Natur.454..393Q }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/sep/15/tibetan-plateau-glacier-melt-ipcc-report-third-pole|title=The world has a third pole – and it's melting quickly|date=15 September 2019|access-date=1 June 2024|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820122915/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/sep/15/tibetan-plateau-glacier-melt-ipcc-report-third-pole|url-status=live}}</ref> According to locals, the land around the region has been growing warmer in recent years with winters not as cold as it used to be.<ref>{{cite news|date=9 January 2019|title=Ignoring climate change in the Himalayas|url=https://www.thethirdpole.net/en/climate/ignoring-climate-change-in-the-himalayas/|access-date=6 August 2022|publisher=The Third Pole|archive-date=6 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806214227/https://www.thethirdpole.net/en/climate/ignoring-climate-change-in-the-himalayas/|url-status=live}}</ref> The retreating [[glacier]]s and thawing of the [[permafrost]] in the Tibet region might lead to uncertain effects on water resources of the region. These effects along with population explosion and tourism has put severe stress on the fragile ecosystem.<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1088/1748-9326/abf7f0|title=Accelerating permafrost collapse on the eastern Tibetan Plateau|date=23 April 2021|author=Tanguang Gao|journal=Environmental Research Letters|volume=16|issue=5 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2021ERL....16e4023G }}</ref><ref>{{cite report|title=Kailash Sacred Landscape Conservation Initiative: Feasibility Assessment Report|url=http://www.icimod.org/resources/528|publisher=[[ICIMOD]]|date=22 June 2009|pages=4|access-date=1 June 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820122913/http://www.icimod.org/resources/528|url-status=live}}</ref>
▲==Climate==
 
{{Weather box|width=auto
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== AccessReligious significance ==
Lake Manasarovar lies near Mount Kailash, and is an integral part of a Kailash-Manasarovar pilgrimage.
 
==History= andHinduism texts===
{{main|Panch Sarovar}}
There is no mention of the lake (or its location) in Vedic literature or ancient Sanskrit and Prakrit texts. Though colonial era and modern texts state Manasarovar to be among the most sacred sites of Indian religions, particularly Hinduism, this status is not found in early Indian texts prior to texts authored in the 1st millennium CE.<ref name="mckayp375">Alex McKay (2015), Kailas Histories, Brill Academic, pp. 375–379 with footnotes</ref><ref name=mckay165/> Instead, the early Buddhist, Hindu and Jain texts mention a mythical Mount Meru and Lake ''Manasa''. The mythical ''Manasa'' lake is described as one created through the mind of [[Brahma]] as the preferred abode of his vahana ''[[Hamsa (bird)|hamsa]]''.<ref>Eckard Schleberger, ''Die Indische Götterwelt.'' Eugen Diederich Verlag. 1997 {{in lang|de}}</ref>
 
In Hindu literature, Mansarovar is mentioned by name in the [[Hindu epic]]s ''[[Ramayana]]'' and ''[[Mahabharata]]''.{{sfn|Allen|2013|p=3}} Though modern texts state the lake to be among the most sacred sites of Hinduism, there is no explicit mention of the lake in early [[Vedic literature]]. The ''[[Rigveda]]'' mentions that the Indus River flows north because of [[Indra]], a geographical reality only in the Tibet region. According to [[Frits Staal]], this makes it likely that some of the ancient Vedic people traced the route of the Indus river and had seen the valley near Mount Kailash.<ref name="Mckay">{{cite book|first=Alex|last=McKay|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l3HsCgAAQBAJ|title=Kailas Histories: Renunciate Traditions and the Construction of Himalayan Sacred Geography|year=2015|isbn=978-9-00430-618-9|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]]|pages=165–168, 375–379|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820042406/https://books.google.com/books?id=l3HsCgAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> The early Hindu texts mention a mythical [[Mount Meru]] and lake Manasa. The mythical Manasa lake is described as one created through the mind of [[Brahma]] as the preferred abode of his vahana [[Hamsa (bird)|hamsa]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Eckard Schleberger|title=Die Indische Götterwelt|publisher=Eugen Diederich Verlag|year=1997|language=de}}</ref> In the ''Ramayana'', [[Vishvamitra]] tells [[Rama]] that Bramha created a lake out of his consciousness (Manas), hence the name Manas Sarovar (lake of consciousness) and a river was born out of that lake called [[Ghaghara|Sarayu]], which flowed through the kingdom of [[Ayodhya (Ramayana)|Ayodhya]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Ramayana|author=[[Valmiki]]|chapter=Balakanda}}</ref>
While there is no explicit mention of this lake or the nearby mountain in ancient Sanskrit texts, there is indirect mention of this region of Tibet in hymn 2.15 of the ''[[Rigveda]]''. There it says that the Indus River keeps flowing north because of [[Indra|Indra's]] power, a geographical reality only in Tibet. This is in the context of ''Himavant'' (or the Himalayas). According to [[Frits Staal]], a [[Sanskrit]] and [[Vedas|Vedic]] studies scholar, this makes it likely that some among the ancient Vedic people traced the Indus river route and had seen the valley near Mount Kailash. However, there is no mention of this lake or it being a ''tirtha'' (pilgrimage site).<ref name="mckay165" />
 
Mount Kailash on the banks of Lake Manasarovar is believed to be the abode of [[Shiva]]. This is where the holy river [[Ganges]] was tamed by Shiva and sent to nourish the fertile valleys below the [[Himalayas]].<ref name="Brockman"/><ref>{{cite book|title=Indian paintings from the Punjab Hills : a survey and history of Pahari miniature painting|first=W. G.|last=Archer|author-link=W. G. Archer|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=1973|isbn=978-0-85667-002-2|url=https://archive.org/details/dli.pahar.3437/page/232/mode/2up|page=365}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Flood|first=Gavin|author-link=Gavin Flood|title=An Introduction to Hinduism|url=https://archive.org/details/introductiontohi0000floo_n5j0|url-access=registration|year=1996|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|isbn= 978-0-52143-878-0|page=161}}</ref>
Typically, major historic pilgrimage sites that were frequented by Buddhists, Hindus and Jains attracted discussion in their respective texts and the construction of infrastructure by wealthy patrons or kings. In Hinduism, these are the ''mahatmya'' chapters in the ''[[Puranas]]'', and the infrastructure includes [[Temple|temples]], [[Dharmasala|dharmasalas]], [[Ashram|ashrams]] and pilgrimage facilities. At least until the 1930s, there was no evidence of such structures in the Kailash-Manasarovar region.<ref name=mckay165>Alex McKay (2013). Pilgrimage in Tibet. Taylor and Francis, {{ISBN| 9781315027180}}, pp. 165–168</ref>
 
=== In Buddhism and Bon ===▼
[[File:Lake Manasarovar, Tibet map in French and Persian detail from 1784 Tiefenthaler Map of the Ganges and Ghaghara Rivers, India (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|An 18th-century map of lake Manasarovar by the Jesuit [[Joseph Tiefenthaler]].]]▼
[[File:Manasarovar lake.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.5|View of the lake from Chiu Gompa Monastery]]▼
▲[[File:Mt Kailash sat.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Satellite view of lakes Manasarovar (right) and Rakshastal with [[Mount Kailash]] in the background]]
The earliest verifiable reports that confirm that this lake site attracted pilgrims are those of the Buddhists. According to [[Luciano Petech]], Tibetan records confirm that [[Buddhism|Buddhists]] considered the region now identified as Kailasa and Manasarovar to be their sacred geography by the late 12th-century, with many reports of Buddhist monks meditating in the Go-zul cave of Kailash and circumambulating the mountain.
 
Lake Manasarovar and Mount Kailash are central to Buddhist cosmology, and a major pilgrimage site for some Buddhist traditions.<ref>{{cite book|first=Robert|last=Buswell|author-link=Robert Buswell Jr.|title=Encyclopedia of Buddhism: A-L|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L34YAAAAIAAJ|year=2004|publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers]]|isbn=978-0-02865-719-6|pages=407–408|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820043521/https://books.google.com/books?id=L34YAAAAIAAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> Kailash is known as the mythological [[Mount Meru (Buddhism)|Mount Meru]].<ref name="Govinda">{{cite book|last1=Govinda|first1=Lama Anagarika|author-link=Anagarika Govinda|year=1966|title=The Way of the White Clouds: A Buddhist Pilgrim in Tibet|publisher=[[Shambhala Publications]]|isbn=978-0-87773-007-1|url=https://archive.org/details/wayofthewhitecloudsabuddhistpilgrimintibetlamaanagarikagovindashambala_202003_545_R/page/n7/mode/2up|page=198}}</ref> In Buddhism, Kailash represents the father of the world and Lake Mansarovar symbolizes the mother.<ref name="Brockman"/> According to mythology, [[Maya (mother of the Buddha)|Maya]] bathed at Manasarovar to purify herself before [[The Buddha|Buddha]] could enter her womb.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Mayhew|first1=Bradley|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0uFzBgAAQBAJ&dq=lake+manasarovar&pg=PT386|title=Lonely Planet Tibet|last2=Kelly|first2=Robert|publisher=[[Lonely Planet]]|year=2015|isbn=978-1-74360-498-4|access-date=28 May 2023|archive-date=30 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230630085011/https://books.google.com/books?id=0uFzBgAAQBAJ&dq=lake+manasarovar&pg=PT386|url-status=live}}</ref> Numerous sites in the region are associated with [[Padmasambhava]], who is credited with establishing Tantric Buddhism in Tibet in the 8th century CE.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Padmasambhava|title=Padmasambhava|publisher=[[Britannica]]|access-date=1 June 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820072743/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Padmasambhava|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5Gu9M-IrLigC |first1=Amy |last1=Heller |first2=Giacomella|last2=Orofino|first3=Charles|last3=Ramble|title=Discoveries in Western Tibet and the Western Himalayas|year=2003|isbn=978-9-00415-520-6|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |page=187}}</ref> [[Vajrayana]] Buddhists believe that saint [[Milarepa]] ({{circa|1052|1135}}) had a challenge with Naro Böncham, a follower of [[Bön]] religion on the banks of Manasarovar.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qKx7EAAAQBAJ|title=The Fourteenth Dalai Lama's Stages of the Path, Volume 1|author-link=Tenzing Gyatso|last=Gyatso|first=Tenzing|year=2022|isbn=978-1-61429-793-2|publisher=[[Wisdom Publications]]|page=395|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820044042/https://books.google.com/books?id=qKx7EAAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u9gdAAAAMAAJ|title=The Tibet Guide|first=Stephen|last=Batchelor|year=1987|isbn=978-0-86171-046-1|publisher=[[Wisdom Publications]]|page=367|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820043524/https://books.google.com/books?id=u9gdAAAAMAAJ|url-status=live}}</ref>
According to Alex McKay, the possible synthesis of esoteric [[Buddhism]] and [[Shaivism]] in [[Nepal]], [[Tibet]] and eastern region of India may have expanded and brought Kailash and lake Manasarovar into the shared sacred geography for both Buddhists and [[Hindus]]. The 13th-century text ''Mahanirvana Tantra'' dedicates it first chapter to Kailash and Manasarovar lake as a pilgrimage site. This may have been coupled with the re-discovery of its importance to major rivers on the subcontinent.<ref>Alex McKay (2013). Pilgrimage in Tibet. Taylor and Francis, {{ISBN| 9781315027180}}, pp. 175–176</ref>▼
 
For the Bon people, the region was the centre of the ancient Bon empire of [[Zhang Zhung]] and is associated with the holy place of [[Zhang Zhung Meri]] deity.<ref name="Albinia">{{cite book|first=Alice|last=Albinia|author-link=Alice Albinia|title=Empires of the Indus: The Story of a River|year=2008|publisher=[[John Murray (publishing house)|John Murray]]|isbn=978-0-71956-003-3|url=https://archive.org/details/san_0976/page/n5/mode/2up|page=288}}</ref><ref name="Allen">{{cite book|author-link=Charles Allen (writer)|last=Allen|first=Charles|year=2013 |orig-date=1982 |title=A Mountain in Tibet: The Search for Mount Kailas and the Sources of the Great Rivers of Asia|publisher=[[Little, Brown Book Group|Abacus]]|isbn=978-1-40552-497-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nCZrEg5F_XEC|pages=3–8|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820043523/https://books.google.com/books?id=nCZrEg5F_XEC|url-status=live}}</ref> As per Tibetan beliefs, the region was the source of the mythical Lion, Horse, Peacock, and Elephant Rivers.<ref name="Govinda"/> When [[Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche|Tonpa Shenrab]], the founder of the Bon religion, visited Tibet for the first time and bathed in the lake.<ref name="Mckay"/>
Between 1901 and 1905, southern Tibet became strategically important to the [[British Empire]]. The colonial era officials decided to encourage and assist [[Religion|religious]] pilgrimage to this lake and Kailash with comments such as "a [[devotee]] will be the pioneer of trade". By 1907, about 150 pilgrims a year visited this site, a number significantly higher than those in the 19th century. The number of Indian pilgrims grew to 730 by 1930. Pilgrimage road and facilities to this lake and Kailash were constructed by Indians, in cooperation with Tibetan monks and officials, along the route after 1930.<ref>Alex McKay (2013). Pilgrimage in Tibet. Taylor and Francis, {{ISBN| 9781315027180}}, pp. 177–181</ref>
 
=== In Jainism ===▼
== Religious significance ==
In [[Jainism]], Lake Manasarovar is associated with its founder and the first [[Tirthankara]], [[Rishabhanatha]].<ref name="Brockman"/><ref name="Albinia"/> As per Jain scriptures, he attained [[nirvana]] on the Ashtapad Mountain.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Rishabhanatha|title=Rishabhanatha|encyclopedia=[[Britannica]]|access-date=1 June 2024|archive-date=19 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170519135604/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Rishabhanatha|url-status=live}}</ref> It is believed by Jains that after Rishabhanatha attained nirvana, his son emperor [[Bharata Chakravartin|Bharata]] had constructed three stupas and twenty four shrines of the 24 tirthankaras in the region.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OGsrAAAAIAAJ|title=Riṣabha Deva, the Founder of Jainism|author-link=Champat Rai Jain|first=Champat|last=Rai|year=1929|publisher=Indian Press|page=178|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820042416/https://books.google.com/books?id=OGsrAAAAIAAJ|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=y4aVRLGhf-8C&pg=RA1-PA273|title=Faith & Philosophy of Jainism|isbn=978-8-17835-723-2|last1=Jain|first1=Arun Kumar|year=2009|publisher=Kalpaz Publications|page=273|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820042400/https://books.google.com/books?id=y4aVRLGhf-8C&pg=RA1-PA273|url-status=live}}</ref> There are other stories related to the region relating to [[Mahavira]], Kumar and Sagar, Tapas Kher Parna, [[Ravana]] and [[Mandodari]], among many others.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/lifestyle/report-lost-tirth-of-jains-traced-to-himalayas-1631581|title='Lost' tirth of Jains traced to Himalayas - Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis|date=30 December 2011|work=DNA India|access-date=29 April 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815022808/http://www.dnaindia.com/lifestyle/report-lost-tirth-of-jains-traced-to-himalayas-1631581|archive-date=15 August 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~pluralsm/affiliates/jainism/ritual/shantikalash.htm|title=Jainism Literature Center - Rituals|access-date=3 December 2018|archive-date=16 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190816172741/https://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~pluralsm/affiliates/jainism/ritual/shantikalash.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MEvZaVmBQtgC|title=India: Art and Culture, 1300-1900|isbn=978-0-03006-114-1|author-link=Stuart Cary Welch|last1=Welch|first1=Stuart Cary|year=1985|publisher=[[Metropolitan Museum of Art]]|page=71|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820043008/https://books.google.com/books?id=MEvZaVmBQtgC|url-status=live}}</ref>
▲[[File:Manasarovar lake.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.5|View from Chiu Gompa Monastery]]
 
{{sfn|Rai|1929|p=178}}
 
== Pilgrimage ==
▲[[File:Lake Manasarovar, Tibet map in French and Persian detail from 1784 Tiefenthaler Map of the Ganges and Ghaghara Rivers, India (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|An 18th-century map of lake Manasarovar by the Jesuit [[Joseph Tiefenthaler]].]]
 
The lake has been mentioned in various Hindu and Buddhist religious literature.<ref name="Allen"/> It was part of one of the oldest pilgrimage routes, which has been in existence for many years.<ref name="Brockman"/><ref name="Thubron">{{cite book|author-link=Colin Thubron|last1=Thubron|first1=Colin|year=2011|title=To a Mountain in Tibet|publisher=[[Chatto & Windus]]|isbn=978-0-70118-380-6|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tLDvdbZJIV8C|page=6|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820072842/https://books.google.com/books?id=tLDvdbZJIV8C|url-status=live}}</ref> Though modern texts state the lake to be among the most sacred sites of various religions, there is no explicit mention of the lake being a pilgrimage site in early literature. Typically, historic pilgrimage sites that were frequented by Buddhists, Hindus and Jains attracted discussion in their respective texts and the construction of infrastructure by wealthy patrons or kings. The Hindu ''[[Puranas]]'' indicate various infrastructure, such as [[temple]]s, [[dharmasala]]s, [[ashram]]s, and pilgrimage facilities at such sites. But at least until the 1930s, there was no evidence of such structures in the Kailash-Manasarovar region.<ref name="Mckay"/> According to [[Luciano Petech]], Tibetan records indicate that the region was considered to be their sacred geography by the late 12th-century, with reports of Buddhist monks meditating in the Go-zul cave of Kailash and circumambulating the mountain.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V1GkmBOQLkAC|title=China and Tibet in the Early XVIIIth Century: History of the Establishment of Chinese Protectorate in Tibet|isbn=978-9-00403-442-6|author-link=
▲Luciano Petech|author=Luciano Petech|year=1972|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]]}}</ref> According to Alex McKay, the possible synthesis of esoteric [[Buddhism]] and [[Shaivism]] in [[Nepal]], [[Tibet]] and eastern region of India may have expanded and brought Kailash and lake Manasarovar into the shared sacred geography for both Buddhists and [[Hindus]]. The 13th-century text ''Mahanirvana Tantra'' dedicates it first chapter to Kailash and Manasarovar lake as a pilgrimage site. This may have been coupled with the re-discovery of its importance to major rivers on the subcontinent.<ref>Alex McKay (2013). Pilgrimage in Tibet. Taylor and Francis, {{ISBN| 9781315027180}}, pp. 175–176<name="Mckay"/ref>
 
▲[[File:Gurla Mandhata & Manasarovar.jpg|thumb|left|thumb|MountLake Manasarovar with [[Naimona'nyi]] (Gurla Mandhata) and Lake Manasarovar]]]]
=== In Hinduism ===
Lake Manasarovar and Mount Kailash are believed to be the abode of Shiva. This is where the holy river the [[Ganges]] is believed to be tamed by [[Shiva]] and sent to nourish the fertile valleys below the [[Himalayas]]. It is sometimes conflated with [[Mount Meru|Meru]].<ref name=Brockman/> For the Khas, Hindu shamans of the nearby region of [[Humla District|Humla]] (northwest [[Nepal]]), a ritual bath in Lake Manasarovar is an important step in gaining their shamanic powers.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bubriski |first1=Kevin |title=Kailash Yatra: a Long Walk to Mt Kailash through Humla |last2=Pandey |first2=Abhimanyu |publisher=Penguin Random House |year=2018 |isbn=978-0670091119 |location=New Delhi |pages=33}}</ref>
 
Due to its perceived sacredness to various religions, people undertake a pilgrimage called ''yatra'' to the Kailash-Manasarovar.<ref name="UK">{{cite web|url=https://pithoragarh.nic.in/kailash-mansarovar-yatra/|title=Kailash Mansarovar Yatra|publisher=[[Government of Uttarakhand]]|access-date=1 December 2023|archive-date=8 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231208084651/https://pithoragarh.nic.in/kailash-mansarovar-yatra/|url-status=live}}</ref> Pilgrimage to the mountain increased in the 1930s but was affected later due to both China and [[the British Empire]] claiming the region.<ref name="Mckay"/> Religious pilgrimages to Mount Kailas and Manasarovar were permitted by China after [[Annexation of Tibet by the People's Republic of China|its occupation of Tibet]] in 1950-51. While pilgrimage from India was guaranteed by the [[1954 Sino-Indian Agreement]], access was restricted after the subsequent [[1959 Tibetan uprising]], and the borders were closed after the [[Sino-Indian War]] in 1962.<ref name="Thubron"/><ref>{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Kailas-Range|title=Mount Kailas|encyclopedia=[[Britannica]]|access-date=1 December 2023|archive-date=1 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601185353/https://www.britannica.com/place/Kailas-Range|url-status=live}}</ref> After nearly two decades, pilgrimage from India was allowed in 1981 after an agreement between the governments of [[Government of India|India]] and China.<ref name="UK"/><ref name="Thubron"/> The pilgrimage was suspended for three years since 2020 due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kailash-mansarovar-yatra-unlikely-to-resume-this-year-say-officials/article65299618.ece|title=Kailash-Mansarovar yatra unlikely to resume this year, say officials|date=7 April 2022|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|access-date=1 June 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820043445/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kailash-mansarovar-yatra-unlikely-to-resume-this-year-say-officials/article65299618.ece|url-status=live}}</ref> The route was re-opened in 2023 with new regulations.<ref name="Open">{{cite news|url=https://kathmandupost.com/money/2023/05/08/pilgrims-to-kailash-discouraged-by-new-chinese-regulations|title=Pilgrims to Kailash discouraged by new Chinese rules|date=8 May 2023|access-date=1 June 2024|work=[[Kathmandu Post]]|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820041748/https://kathmandupost.com/money/2023/05/08/pilgrims-to-kailash-discouraged-by-new-chinese-regulations|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/kailash-masarovar-yatra-opening-next-month-8616920/|title=Kailash Masarovar Yatra hits hurdles ahead of opening next month|date=19 May 2023|access-date=1 December 2023|newspaper=[[The Indian Express]]|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820043451/https://indianexpress.com/article/india/kailash-masarovar-yatra-opening-next-month-8616920/|url-status=live}}</ref> Since the reopening of the pilgrimage route from India in 1981, the numbers of pilgrims going on the annual yatra has grown considerably.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Zomer|first1=Robert|title=Kailash Sacred Landscape Conservation Initiative: Feasibility Assessment Report|last2=Oli|first2=Krishna Prasad|url=https://lib.icimod.org/record/26968/files/attachment_761.pdf?type=primary|publisher=[[International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development]]|year=2011|page=10|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820043844/https://lib.icimod.org/record/26968/files/attachment_761.pdf?type=primary|url-status=live}}</ref> Before the closure in 2020, several thousand pilgrims from India were going to this pilgrimage every year.<ref>{{cite news|title=Kailash Manasarovar Yatra likely to see record numbers|url=https://kathmandupost.com/money/2018/05/16/kailash-manasarovar-yatra-likely-to-see-record-numbers|access-date=4 August 2022|work=[[Kathmandu Post]]|archive-date=4 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220804220717/https://kathmandupost.com/money/2018/05/16/kailash-manasarovar-yatra-likely-to-see-record-numbers|url-status=live}}</ref>
=== In the Bon religion ===
The [[Bon]] religion is also associated with the holy place of [[Zhang Zhung Meri]] sacred deity. When [[Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche|Tonpa Shenrab]], the founder of the Bon religion, visited Tibet for the first time and bathed in the lake.
 
[[File:Manasarovar with small temples.jpg|Small templesthumb|Temples and stupa nearon the lake shore]]▼
▲=== In Buddhism ===
[[Buddhism|Buddhists]] associate the lake as the [[mother]] principle, with Kailash as the father principle. The [[Yamantaka]] shrine here is one of the eight [[Guardian angel|guardian]] [[Deity|deities]], who is shown in the act of a sexual embrace to unite [[compassion]] and [[wisdom]]. A traditional 32-mile circuit around the mountain, called ''kora'', is believed to be particularly holy walk.<ref name=Brockman/> According to legend, [[Maya (mother of the Buddha)|Queen Maya]] bathed at Manasarovar before she gave birth to [[The Buddha|Buddha]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Mayhew |first1=Bradley |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0uFzBgAAQBAJ&dq=lake+manasarovar&pg=PT386 |title=Lonely Planet Tibet |last2=Kelly |first2=Robert |publisher=Lonely Planet |year=2015|isbn=9781743604984 }}</ref>
 
In India, the pilgrimage is organized by the Government of India and is permitted between June and September.<ref name="UK"/> Since 2015, aspiring pilgrims from India were required to apply in advance to the [[Ministry of External Affairs (India)|Ministry of External Affairs]] and specific number of passes were issued to pilgrims by computerized random selection with preference given to first timers.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/first-time-pilgrims-get-preference-for-mansarovar-yatra/article27142893.ece|title=First-time pilgrims get preference for Mansarovar Yatra|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|date=16 May 2019|access-date=1 June 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820041757/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/first-time-pilgrims-get-preference-for-mansarovar-yatra/article27142893.ece|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Mansarovar Yatra: First-time pilgrims get preference in computerized draw of lots|newspaper=[[The Economic Times]]|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/mansarovar-yatra-first-time-pilgrims-get-preference-in-computerised-draw-of-lots/articleshow/69344332.cms?from=mdr|access-date=4 August 2022|archive-date=4 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220804220716/https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/mansarovar-yatra-first-time-pilgrims-get-preference-in-computerised-draw-of-lots/articleshow/69344332.cms?from=mdr|url-status=live}}</ref> Pilgrims from India travel through two routes opened for the purpose, with border crossings at [[Lipulekh Pass|Lipu Lekh pass]] in [[Uttarakhand]] and the [[Nathu La|Nathu La pass]] in [[Sikkim]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Kailash Manasarovar Yatra|url=https://kmy.gov.in/kmy/?lang=en|access-date=4 August 2022|publisher=[[Government of India]]|archive-date=17 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220617011329/https://kmy.gov.in/kmy/?lang=en|url-status=live}}</ref> Since 2020, a motorable road is available till the Lipu Lekh pass through the Indian side of the Mahakali valley, before crossing over to China.<ref>{{cite news|date=11 May 2020|title=New road to Kailash Mansarovar via Lipulekh Pass and why Nepal is objecting to it|url=https://theprint.in/opinion/new-road-to-kailash-mansarovar-via-lipulekh-pass-and-why-nepal-is-objecting-to-it/418638/|access-date=6 August 2022|work=[[The Print]]|archive-date=6 August 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806130517/https://theprint.in/opinion/new-road-to-kailash-mansarovar-via-lipulekh-pass-and-why-nepal-is-objecting-to-it/418638/|url-status=live}}</ref> The Nathu La route was opened in 2015 and involves traveling to [[Gangtok]] before crossing the Nathu La pass into China.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/alternate-route-for-kailash-mansarovar-yatra-will-become-operational-next-month-pm-modi-763281|title=Alternate Route for Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra Will Become Operational Next Month: PM Modi|work=[[NDTV]]|date=15 May 2015|access-date=1 December 2023|archive-date=17 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240317113052/https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/alternate-route-for-kailash-mansarovar-yatra-will-become-operational-next-month-pm-modi-763281|url-status=live}}</ref>
The lake has a few [[vihara|monasteries]] on its shores, the most notable of which is the ancient Chiu Monastery built on a steep hill, looking as if it has been [[Carving|carved]] right out of the rock.
 
[[File:ManasarovarKailashPrayerFlags.jpg|thumb|left|Buddhist [[Prayer flag]]s on the shore]]▼
▲=== In Jainism ===
In [[Jainism]], Lake Manasarovar is associated with the first [[Tirthankara]], [[Rishabha]].<ref name=Brockman/> As per Jain scriptures, the first Tirthankar, Bhagwan Rishabhdev, had attained [[nirvana]] on the Ashtapad Mountain. The son of Bhagwan Rishabhdev, [[Bharata Chakravartin|Chakravati Bharat]], had built a palace adorned with gems on the Ashtapad Mountain located in the [[Himalayas]]. There are many stories related to Ashtapad Maha Tirth like Kumar and Sagar's sons, Tapas Kher Parna, [[Ravana|Ravan]] and [[Mandodari|Mandodri]] Bhakti, among many others.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dnaindia.com/lifestyle/report-lost-tirth-of-jains-traced-to-himalayas-1631581|title='Lost' tirth of Jains traced to Himalayas - Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis|date=30 December 2011|website=dnaindia.com|access-date=29 April 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815022808/http://www.dnaindia.com/lifestyle/report-lost-tirth-of-jains-traced-to-himalayas-1631581|archive-date=15 August 2017}}</ref>
 
As the [[April 2015 Nepal earthquake|April 2015 Nepal Earthquake]] resulted in the closure of the border crossing at [[Tatopani, Sindhupalchok|Tatopani]]-[[Zhangmu|Zangmu]], the pilgrimage from Nepal is generally done from the nearby [[Humla District|Humla district]] in northwestern Nepal.<ref name="Bubriski"/><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CTYFEQAAQBAJ|title=Kathmandu Chronicle:Reclaiming India–Nepal Relations|first1=K.V.|last1=Rajan|first2=Atul|last2=Thakuir|year=2024|isbn=978-9-35708-708-7|publisher=[[Penguin Random House]]|page=86|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820042412/https://books.google.com/books?id=CTYFEQAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref> Another route exists through the crossing at [[Rasuwa District|Rasuwa]]-[[Kyirong Town|Gyirong]].<ref>{{cite news|title=A Personal Account of Border Crossing Reveals the Deep Ties Between Nepal, China|url=https://thewire.in/world/all-roads-lead-north-nepal-china|access-date=9 August 2022|work=[[The Wire (India)|The Wire]]|archive-date=4 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210804190739/https://thewire.in/world/all-roads-lead-north-nepal-china|url-status=live}}</ref> Pilgrims could reach [[Lhasa]] by air before the journey to Lake Manasarovar.<ref name="Open"/>
==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Mountains yaks Manasarovar pilgrimage trail.jpg|The trail to Manasarovar lake
▲File:Manasarovar with small temples.jpg|Small temples and stupa near the lake
▲File:ManasarovarKailashPrayerFlags.jpg|Buddhist [[Prayer flag]]s on the shore
File:Kailash stupa and temples, Manasarovar pilgrimage trail.jpg|Monuments and Mount Kailash near the lake
File:Mount Kailash sunset from Manasarovar lake.jpg|Mount Kailash sunset
</gallery>
 
The pilgrimage involves trekking towards Lake Mansarovar and a circumambulation of Mount Kailash. The path around Mount Kailash is {{cvt|53|km}} long.<ref name="UK"/> The circumambulation known as ''kora'', is made in a clockwise direction by Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains, while Bönpos circumambulate the mountain in a counterclockwise direction.<ref name="Govinda"/><ref>{{cite book|title=The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot|first=Robert|last=Macfarlane|year=2012|isbn=978-0-241-14553-1|publisher=[[Penguin Books]]|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7AQ0tyT1w3UC|pages=259–288|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=19 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240819081853/https://books.google.com/books?id=7AQ0tyT1w3UC|url-status=live}}</ref> Pilgrims believe that bathing in the lake and circling the mountain is a spiritually beneficial practice that can bring various positive effects, such as the cleansing of one's sins.<ref name="Thurman">{{cite book|author-link1=Robert Thurman|last1=Thurman|first1=Robert|first2=Tad|last2=Wise|title=Circling the Sacred Mountain: A Spiritual Adventure Through the Himalayas|publisher=[[Bantam Books]]|year=1999|isbn=978-0-55337-850-4|url=https://archive.org/details/circlingsacredmo00robe/page/n7/mode/2up|page=32}}</ref><ref name="UK"/><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=APYDLwkiFBkC|title=Hindus of the Himalayas: Ethnography and Change|author-link=Gerald Berreman|first=Gerald Duane|last=Berreman|year=1972|publisher=[[University of California Press]]|isbn=978-0-52001-423-7|page=15|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=20 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240820043516/https://books.google.com/books?id=APYDLwkiFBkC|url-status=live}}</ref> For the Khas people of the nearby region of [[Humla District|Humla]] in northwest Nepal, a ritual bath in the lake is an important step in gaining their shamanic powers.<ref name="Bubriski">{{cite book|author-link1=Kevin Bubriski|last1=Bubriski|first1=Kevin|last2=Pandey|first2=Abhimanyu|title=Kailash Yatra: a Long Walk to Mount Kailash through Humla|publisher=[[Penguin Random House]]|year=2018|isbn=978-0-67009-111-9|url=https://lib.icimod.org/record/33919/files/icimodKailashYatra.pdf?type=primary|page=33|access-date=20 August 2024|archive-date=5 July 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240705164547/https://lib.icimod.org/record/33919/files/icimodKailashYatra.pdf?type=primary|url-status=live}}</ref> There are many [[stupa]]s, flag poles, [[Buddhist monasteries]] and praying stations on the banks of the lake, many of which were destroyed during the [[Cultural Revolution]] of China from 1966 to 1976.<ref name="Brockman"/>
==See also==
* [[Mount Kailash]]
* [[Adi Kailash]]
* [[Char Dham]]
* [[Hindu pilgrimage sites in India]]
* [[Kalapani territory]]
* [[Rakshas Tal]]
* [[Yatra]]
 
== Notes ==
Line 163 ⟶ 152:
== External links ==
{{Commons category|Lake Manasarovar}}
* {{Wikivoyage- inline|Mount_Kailash}}
 
{{Clear}}
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