When you stay at Thiksey Eco Homestay, life flows at a very different rhythm. Just across the fields, the magnificent Thiksey Monastery rises on a hilltop, home to hundreds of monks who live a life of discipline, devotion and peace. Spending time here gives you a rare window into their world, a world that feels both timeless and yet very alive in today’s Ladakh.
Dawn with the Prayers
Monks playing horns and conch shells
Every morning, before the sun spreads its light across the Indus valley, the monastery echoes with chants. Thiksey is the only monastery in Ladakh where morning prayers are conducted every single day. The monks, from the youngest little lamas to the most senior teachers, gather in the main prayer hall. Cymbals clash softly, horns stretch their sound into the cold air and rows of saffron robes move in harmony.
These morning pujas aren’t just rituals; they’re the monks’ way of grounding themselves before the day begins. It’s a rhythm that connects them with the Buddha’s teachings and with each other.
The path of Vows
Young monk serving sattu to a senior lama
After prayers, the monks return to their duties, guided by the vows they’ve taken. A vow in Buddhist tradition isn’t just a promise, it’s a sacred commitment. Every monk has different vows depending on his stage of life. Some are asked to remain in the monastery, while others must spend time in villages, serving communities. These vows shape their days and slowly guide them toward their ultimate goal, nirvana or moksha, freedom from the cycle of life and death.
Work, Study and Discipline
Two young monks together
Life inside the monastery is not idle. Each monk has tasks to fulfill. Some sweep courtyards, some cook, some teach younger monks, while others study scriptures or philosophy. The younger lamas balance their spiritual training with regular schooling, reading, writing, mathematics and science, just like any child. Basic education is a must and only later, usually after the age of 20, do they fully embrace the vows of monkhood.
Through every task, the idea is simple, do your own work, however small, with mindfulness. In the repetition of these practices, monks find inner peace.
Meditation: The heart of it all
Monk playing cymbals in prayer
If there is one thing that lies at the core of a monk’s life, it is meditation. In Buddhism, meditation is the key to patience, concentration and calmness. It is what turns practice into a way of being. In a world where distractions are endless, senior monks often remind younger ones, and even visitors, that meditation is more important than ever. Within the quiet rooms of Thiksey, you will find monks sitting in stillness, letting the mind settle like water in a calm pond.
Guidance of the Seniors
Monk explaining wall paintings to a young lama
Senior monks carry the wisdom of decades of practice. They are the teachers, mentors and guardians of tradition. It is they who pass down the vows to younger monks, explaining not just their meaning but the way to live them in daily life. Their role is immense, like guiding stars in a spiritual journey.
When the world visits
Tourists walk into Thiksey Monastery almost every day, curious to see its architecture, its giant statue of Maitreya Buddha or to attend morning prayers. For monks, tourism is both an opportunity and a challenge. Visitors bring resources that help maintain the monastery, but they also bring modern questions and fast-paced energy. In many ways, both monks and tourists learn from one another, the monks share their world of silence and practice, while the visitors carry back lessons of patience, simplicity and mindfulness.
A different way of being
Thiksey Monastery amidst a serene landscape
What separates a monk from most of us is not just the robe or the prayers. It is the mindset. A monk doesn’t worry about career, possessions or daily hustle. Their thoughts are about reincarnation, about how to live this life so the next one may be closer to liberation. Their aim is clear to walk step by step toward parinirvana, ultimate freedom.
And yet, in their quiet presence, there is something deeply relatable. They laugh, they learn, they grow old. But the difference is that every moment of their life is devoted to becoming better not just for themselves but for the universe around them.
Living at Thiksey Eco Homestay, you don’t just see the monastery from a distance, you feel its pulse. Watching the monks’ way of life is a reminder that peace doesn’t come from rushing ahead but from slowing down, breathing deeply and focusing on what truly matters.