The Kingdom of Mustang lies where the Himalayas meet the Tibetan plane. The erstwhile Buddhist kingdom was folded into the nation of Nepal in the 18th century, and was off-limits to foreigners until 1992. One of the most mysterious features of the kingdom is the 10,000 or so ancient carved caves located high on the rockface above the Kali Gandaki River. How did people even get to them?
Archeologists believe that the caves in Mustang were used in three general periods. They were first used some 3,000 years ago as burial chambers. Then around 1,000 years ago, they became primarily living quarters, perhaps to escape battles and intruders into the valley. Finally, by the 1400s, most people had moved into traditional villages and the caves became places of meditation. Some of these caves were turned into monasteries such as the Luri Gompa, the Chungsi Cave monastery and the Nyiphuk Cave Monastery, all of which were built around and inside the caves.
Luri Gompa is one of the most famous in Mustang. The monastery is set on a ledge, at least a hundred meter high from the ground, in one of the many natural pillar like sandstone structures. A winding footpath climbs all the way from the bottom of the valley to a single entrance door that leads into two interconnecting chambers. The outer chamber contains a shrine, while the inner chamber —the main treasure of Luri Gompa— is beautifully decorated with a series of paintings depicting Indian Mahasiddhas — saints who were said to have achieved siddhi, or extraordinary powers by meditation. No documentation pertaining to this mysterious gompa or monastery has been found, but the wall paintings appear to be have been made in the 14th century or even earlier.
Read more about this archaeological treasure, and see lots of pictures at Amusing Planet. -via the Presurfer
(Image credit: Flickr user Bob Witlox)