An amazing corner of the unity of nature and man, harmony and self-contemplation lies within the walls of the Kopan Monastery, a popular place in Nepal for studying Tibetan Buddhism. The cloister of meditation is located to the north of the Boudnath Stupa, which is one of the main Buddhist shrines of the Kathmandu valley, on top of a hill, and the view from it is amazing.

The monastery got its name in honor of the name of this very hill and was founded by the lamas of Tubten Yeshe and Tubten Sopa Rinpoche. Nearby is the Khacho Ghaki Ling Convent. Today, more than 500 monks and nuns live and study in the walls of both monasteries, but pilgrims from all over the world began to come here from the 1970s.

How to get there

You can take a taxi for 750 rupees from Kathmandu Airport to Kopan. The monastery is open from 9 am to 7 pm. So, as Copan is located in the suburb of Kathmandu, you can reach it in 20 minutes by car from the Budnath stupa. It costs 200 rupees.

Visit rules and meditation courses

For those who do not particularly understand what it means to live in a monastery, the ministers of Kopan worked and published a kind of manual and a set of rules of conduct. The monastery is considered the "spiritual oasis" of Kathmandu, the International Center for the Study of Buddhist Philosophy and Meditation.

Local meditation courses are based on the traditional Lamrim exercise. The most popular courses lasting 7-10 days, which take place every 2 months. Classes are accompanied by an intensive 3-day meditative dive under the guidance of experienced masters. The abbot of the monastery is Lama Lhundrub. The favorable atmosphere, the silence that reigns within the walls of the monastery, helps not to disturb the peace of this monastery.

Also here you can go through a fasting course in solitude (Nung-nyes) and thereby purify both body and spirit. The cost of the seven-day courses is $ 80, 10 days in the monastery will cost $ 110.

Accommodation

The monks are accommodating several people in each room with amenities on the floor, however, there are rooms and with an individual shower and toilet. The cost of a bed is 2, 5 dollars per knock, a separate room - from $ 10 per day. The food in the monastery is traditional Nepalese, that is, vegetarian.