Reting Monastery

Founded in 1056 by Drom Tonpa, the Reting Monastery is an important monastery located right on the beautiful Lhasa River. The temple was built to serve as the seat of the Kadampa lineage. Drom Tonpa, a student of Atisha, brought relics with him to the site and established it as the first major monastery of the Sarma revival movement. The monastery has a long and detailed history. It was responsible for the Reting Rinpoche, an abbot of the school, which led the search to find the 14th Dalai Lama. The search team was successful in locating the reincarnate and bringing him to his rightful position. From that point the Reting Rinpoche were candidates for Regent, a high title, during times of minority of a Dalia Lama. The path to Reting used to be only accessible on foot or horseback. A road from the Lhasa highway to Lhunzhub County is now available. The monastery holds a special ceremony, called the Pobentangoor Festival which sees thousands and thousands of believers.

Unfortunately, like many other monasteries on this list, the Reting was destroyed by the Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution. But recent reconstruction efforts have partially restored some of the grounds.

Admission: 30rmb
Hours: 9:00am – 5:00pm