Tashilhunpo Monastery is located in Shigatse around 250 km away from the capital of Tibet Lhasa.

It is situated on the foot of Drolmari and was built by 1st Dalai Lama in the year 1447.

It is also known as a seat of the Panchen Lama who is considered to be the second most important religious leader of Tibet.

As you enter Tashilhunpo Monastery you will find a wall which was built by the order of the first Dalai Lama in the year 1468.

For 3 day in May(14th, 15th, 16th) of every year, according to the Tibetan calendar, the wall displays images of Lord Buddha.

Also as you enter Tashilhunpo Monastery you will see the mighty building with white walls and the shining golden roof.

The Maitreya Chapel holds the biggest statue of a sitting Maitreya Buddha, almost 86 ft in height.

When you know that it is purely handcrafted by around 900 craftsmen and took more than 9 years in its construction how could you fail to be impressed?

The other attraction of the monastery is the Stupa tomb of the tenth Panchen Lama.

It lies east of the chapel and is covered with 614 kg of gold and innumerable number of jewels and precious stones.