Zezhol Monastery

History

The Zezhol Monastery has a long history of about 3,000 years. During the 14th century, the monastery was rebuilt by a famous hierarch of the Bon religion. Legend has it that Amitabha once preached Buddhism on Mt. Zezhol and predicted that Mt. Zezhol would play a very important role in the development of the Bon religion and that many great Bon masters would appear there. As expected, about 80 masters of the Bon religion appeared in history. So far, four Buddhist colleges have been established in the monastery by the 43rd Zezhol living Buddha, who was also the abbot of the monastery. In the colleges, monks study Buddhist sutras and practice Buddhism. In addition, the monastery teaches Bon sutras and imparts the method of practicing its mystic Yoga.

Culture

The Zezhol Monastery features its holy religious dancing - naked group dancing. Called Heaven and Hell, it is performed every twelve years. This spectacular dancing displays the scene in which Yama (the king of Hell) judges all humans' sins and good deeds and decides where they should go after death. Numerous tourists and Bon followers come to the monastery to appreciate the holy dancing, believing that the religious dancing will bring them rebirth after they die.