Heritage Site · Qing period
Khamar Monastery
The Gobi monastery of the poet and Nyingma master Danzanravjaa, founded in 1820, burned in 1937 and rebuilt after 1990.
- Location
- Khatanbulag, Dornogovi aimag
- Period
- Qing period
- Date
- Founded 1820; rebuilt after 1990
History
Danzanravjaa (1803–1856), the poet, playwright and Nyingma lama, founded Khamar Monastery in 1820, when he was seventeen. He believed the place held a spiritual energy fostered by the Gobi.
At its height it had more than 80 temples and some 500 monks, with a public library, a museum and a hall for poetry recitals.
In 1937, during Choibalsan's purges, the lamas were expelled and the complex was burned. The present monastery was built after the democratic revolution of 1990, and restoration continues.
What to See
- The rebuilt temples and the Övgön Suvarga stupa, said to hold Danzanravjaa's relics
- The caves to the north, used for meditation retreats of 108 days
- The open Gobi landscape that drew Danzanravjaa here
Visiting
- About 45 km south of Sainshand, the centre of Dornogovi, reached by 4x4 in under an hour; there is no regular public transport.
- Late April to October is the practical season; Gobi winters are harsh.
Also in the Region
Gobi
Natural site
Khongoryn Els
The great dune field of the southern Gobi, up to 80 metres high and known for the sound of its moving sand.
Natural site
Yolyn Am
A deep, narrow gorge in the Gobi mountains where an ice field forms each winter, named after the lammergeier.
Late Cretaceous fossils
Flaming Cliffs
Red sandstone cliffs in the Gobi, famous for the first discovery of dinosaur eggs, made by Roy Chapman Andrews's expeditions in the 1920s.
Khalkha khanates
Ongi Monastery
Twin monasteries facing each other across the Ongi river, once home to more than 1,000 monks, destroyed in 1939 and slowly being rebuilt.