Local belief holds that the ground upon which Likir Monastery sits is shaped by a serpent. This, according to legend, is why the hill has its distinctive shape. The very name, Likir, derived from Klu-Khil or Kul Naga (meaning snake coil), hints at this serpentine connection. The story goes that Jokpo, a snake king of local lore, once rested on this hill, shaping it into the form of his coils.
Founded in 1065 by Lama Duiwang Chosje during the reign of King Lachen Gyalpo, Likir began as a Kadam-pa institution, following the teachings of Atisha. In 1470, when King Lotos Chokdan was in power, Lama Lhawang Lotos arrived from Central Tibet and brought Likir into the Gelug-pa fold.
The rituals at Likir based on Sutra and Tantra ideas. Inside the monastery, you will find statues of Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and deities, as well as sacred texts and stupas representing the Buddha’s body, speech, and mind. And overlooking it all, behind the monastery, stands the Maitreya (the future Buddha): a 23-metre high figure in gilded gold, completed in 1999.
