Sherabling Monastery, alias Palpung Monastery, is a Buddhist Monastery near Bir in the Himachal Pradesh state of India. Palpung Monastery was founded by the 8th Kenting Tai Situpa, Chokyi Jugne, in 1727.

The image was taken during the visit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Sherabling Monastery in March 2015. Image Courtesy – Central Tibetan Administration website.

Palpung Monastery is the seat of study for Buddhists and a place for the practice of monkhood. Surrounded by pine forests, the monastery gives visitors an unparalleled sense of peace.

The lineage of the Kenting Tai stupas and the heads of the monastery is traced to Bodhisattva Maitreya, the main disciple of Gautama Buddha. Twelfth Kenting Tai Situpa, Pema Donyo Nyingche Wangpo currently heads the monastery.

The Sherabling Monastery has one of India’s largest indoor Maitreya Buddha statues, having a height of 42 feet or 12.8 meters. The entrance of the Monastery has some of the best Thangka paintings, a form of Buddhist paintings on cotton or silk.

The Monastery is also called Palpung Monastery, as it was originally established in 1727 at Palpung, a city in Tibet. The Monastery was established at its current site in 1975. This Monastery is located near Baijnath Temple, one of the Twelve Jyotirlingas.

How Do I Go to Sherabling Monastery?

Sherabling Monastery is accessible from Bir City and is famous for paragliding. There are bus services from major cities of Himachal Pradesh and also from New Delhi to Baijnath, a town at around 30 kilometers distance from Bir town.