Karsha Monastery

Karsha Monastery, also called Karsha Chamspaling, lies about 11 km north of Padum in Zanskar, above the Doda River, which flows down from the Drang-Drung Glacier at the Pensi La. No monastery in Zanskar is larger or more important; it belongs to the Gelug order; its founder was Phagspa Shesrab, a translator, though tradition also links the site with Padmasambhava, and ancient rock carvings are found here.

The oldest surviving building is the Avalokiteshvara temple, Chuk-shik-jal, whose wall paintings appear to date from the time of Rinchen Zangpo, between the 10th and 11th centuries. A statue of Lhaso Cho Rinpoche in one of the chapels was brought from Lhasa in the 1960s and crowned with gold set with carnelian and turquoise. The main festival, Karsha Gustor, features masked cham dances over four days in the eleventh Tibetan month, usually in January.