The Pilgrimage of Tibetan monks in Dharamshala, India

Abstract

This article focuses on the pilgrimage of Tibetan monks in Dharamshala, India. It attempts to understand the various meanings of the pilgrimage of these monks. The driving forces that push these monks to travel to Dharmsala are investigated. The data is mainly collected from documents and literatures.
It has been found that the aim of the pilgrimage of Tibetan monks is not only to find inner purification or to seek blessings from the sacred place as is often understood. Pilgrimage is also conducted for the purposes of education, to benefit people they love, to assist with the need to spread Vajrayana Buddhism, and to provide a means of escape from political oppression in their homeland due to foreign occupation.