Dubdi Monastery
Buddhist monastery near Yuksom, Sikkim, India
Dubdi Monastery, occasionally called Yuksom Monastery, is a Buddhist monastery of the Nyingma sect of Tibetan Buddhism near Yuksom, in the Geyzing subdivision of West Sikkim district, in Northeastern India.
The Chogyar Namgyal established the first monastery known as the Dubdi Monastery in 1701, at Yuksom in Sikkim, which is part of Buddhist religious pilgrimage circuit involving the Norbugang Chorten, Pemayangtse Monastery, the Rabdentse ruins, the Sanga Choeling Monastery, the Khecheopalri Lake and the Tashiding Monastery.
Established in 1701, it is professed to be the oldest monastery in Sikkim and is located on the top of a hill which is about an hour's walk (3 kilometres (1.9 mi)) from Yuksom. It was also known as the Hermit's Cell after its ascetic founder Lhatsun Namkha Jigme, who along with two other lamas from Tibet met at Norbugang near Yuksom and crowned Phuntsog Namgyal as the first King or Chogyal of Sikkim at Norbugang Yuksom in 1642. The literal meaning of 'Dubdi' in local language is "the retreat".
History
Dubdi monastery is central to the history of Sikkim as it is closely linked to the founding of the State of Sikkim at Yuksom in the middle of the 17th century by Lhetsum Chenpo and his two associate lamas. Chenpo’s green image is enshrined in the Dubdi monastery as it was established by him to commemorate the founding of the Kingdom of Sikkim. It is the only monastery (purported now as the first monastery built in Sikkim) surviving out of the four built at that time, the other three locations are now identified by: a cluster of four juniper trees was the location where a monastery of Khardokpa sect existed; another location of a monastery established by Lama of Nadakpa sect now seen in the form of a rocky mound and two juniper trees, and the third site has now a chorten, which was originally the location of the residence of the King of Sikkim who was crowned at Yuksom by the three lamas. Monastery had thirty monks some time back. Now to gain access to the monastery, the only monk who stays in the monastery has to be informed in advance.
The public source identifies “Dubdi Monastery” as buddhist monastery near Yuksom, Sikkim, India. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Dubdi, Monastery and Buddhist.
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Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 31, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5310691. Authority coordinates are 27.367, 88.230. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1701 and 1642.
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This entry incorporates text from “Dubdi Monastery” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.