Bylakuppe is home to two of the many Tibetian settlements in India, established by Lugsum Samdupling (in 1961) and Dickyi Larsoe (in 1969). It is located to the west of the Mysore district in the Indian state of Karnataka. The twin town Kushalanagara is about 6 kilometers from Bylakuppe. Bylakuppe is a small town. It has a police station, commercial banks, a telephone exchange, a post office, lodges and hotels. Transport facilities such as buses, auto-rickshaws and taxis are also available.
Bylakuppe is situated on the state highway 88 and is well connected to most of the major cities in south-India. Bus facilities are available from major towns like Mysore, Bengaluru, Mangalore, Chennai, Panaji, etc. Following are the distances between Bylakuppe and other cities in kilometers: Mysore (82), Bengaluru (220), Mangalore (172), Mandya (122), Chennai (585), Hassan (80), Mercera (36), Kasaragod (145).According to a demographic survey carried out by the Central Tibetan Administration's Planning Commission in 1998, the refugees in the two settlements made up a population of 10,727 individuals at that time.
However, it is unclear whether these figures included the Tibetan population in the monasteries. The settlements were established on land leased by the state government to accommodate some of the Tibetan refugees who came to resettle in India after 1959. Bylakuppe consists of a number of agricultural settlements / small camps close to each other, and has a number of monasteries, nunneries and temples in all the major Tibetan Buddhist traditions.
Most notable among them are the large educational monastic institution Sera, the smaller Tashilunpo monastery (both in the Gelukpa tradition) and Namdroling monastery (in the Nyingma tradition). Bylakuppe also has many buddhist universities for advanced buddhist practices. Some of them are serajey, seramey, nalanda etc. Post monsoon season is the best time to visit. September to February is the apt time.You can visit the monastery during the day and see and temple and talk to monks.
But lay people cannot stay overnight in monastery compound. However, there are hotels just outside the monastery and still more hotels little further away from monastery.Tibet, the name itself conjures up exotic images and tales; this country is least explored by outsiders, and is surprisingly, still out of bounds for most of the world! Fortunately however, one does not need to travel all the way to Tibet to get a taste of what it is like. Close to Kushalnagar in Coorg is Bylakuppe, the second largest Tibetan settlement in India.
Most notable among them are the large educational monastic institution Sera, the smaller Tashilunpo monastery (both in the Gelukpa tradition) and Namdroling monastery (in the Nyingma tradition). Bylakuppe also has many buddhist universities for advanced buddhist practices. Some of them are serajey, seramey, nalanda etc. Post monsoon season is the best time to visit. September to February is the apt time.You can visit the monastery during the day and see and temple and talk to monks.
