Tibet Autonomous Region, China
Mount Kailash stands far from the bustling world, in the remote highlands of Tibet. It itself looks like a pyramid, the faces are located on the cardinal points, and the cracks on the southern wall fold into a swastika, an ancient sacred symbol. Kailash is considered sacred in four religions at once. Hindus believe that the god Shiva lives on the top of the mountain with his wife Parvati. Buddhists call it the abode of the Buddha in the form of the wrathful deity Chakrasamvara. According to the Bon tradition, the founder of this religion, Shenrab Miwo, descended from heaven to Kailash. In Jainism, Kailash is revered as the place where the first Tirthankara achieved liberation.
Kailash pulls pilgrims like a magnet, but not to climb to the top – that would be sacrilege. Around the mountain they make “kora” – ritual walks. At the same time, Buddhists and Hindus walk clockwise, and Jains and Bonts – to meet them.
