RUMTEK MONASTERY GANGTOK SIKKIM

Rumtek 24 kms. from Gangtok in Sikkim, is the seat of his holiness, the XVIth Gyawla Karmapa, the head of the Karma Kagyu order of Tibetan Buddhism. The monastery Pemagyantse is 140 kms. West of Gangtok. The nearest airport to Gangtok is at Bagdogra (124 kms.) and the nearest railhead is at Siliguri (114 kms.) and New Jalpaiguri (126 kms.).
Rumtek is a famous monastery, all over the world, especially among the Tibetan Buddhists, and is situated near Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim. Originally called the Dharma Chakra Centre, it includes a beautiful shrine temple and a monastery for the monks. The 16th Karmapa built the monastery. The place got an existence in the Buddhist pilgrimage map, especially after Chinese habitation in Tibet and subsequent relocations of some Tibetan religious gurus to Sikkim.