Enchey Monastery, Lachung

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About Enchey Monastery

The Enchey Monastery was established in 1909 above Gangtok, the capital city of Sikkim in the Northeastern Indian state. It belongs to the Nyingma order of Vajrayana Buddhism. The monastery built around the then small hamlet of Gangtok became a religious centre. The location was blessed by Lama Drupthob Karpo, a renowned exponent of tantric (adept) art in Buddhism with flying powers; initially a small Gompa was established by him after he flew from Maenam Hill in South Sikkim to this site. The literal meaning of Enchey Monastery is the "Solitary Monastery". Its sacredness is attributed to the belief that Khangchendzonga and Yabdean – the protecting deities – reside in this monastery. As, according to a legend, Guru Padmasambhava had subdued the spirits of the Khangchendzonga, Yabdean and Mahākāla here. In view of this legend, the religious significance of Enchey Monastery is deeply ingrained in every household in Gangtok. It is also believed that these powerful deities always fulfil the wishes of the devotees.

Architecture

Earthquake damage

In a reconnaissance report on Sikkim Earthquake of 14 February 2006, it was noted that the Enchey Monastery, apart from other buildings in Sikkim, also suffered severe damages in the 2006 Earthquake (with the maximum intensity of shaking as VII on MSK scale); wide shear and vertical cracks were noted in masonry walls, at corners and near openings. It was not the first time that the monastery, among other masonry structures in Sikkim, was subject to damages by earthquake. Earthquake events in the 1980 and 1988 had also caused damage to the monastery but the repairs done were not adequate, as in 2006, the masonry wall of the building suffered damages again. The report has observed that "The damage seen in and around Gangtok was clearly disproportionate to the size of the earthquake, which was a moderate 5.7 on the Richter scale. This very clearly establishes the high level of seismic vulnerability of the region. Such disproportionate damage is a direct consequence of poor design and construction practices in an inadequate professional environment that is challenged by the lack of trained human resources in the state." Sikkim as a whole, and particularly masonry structures, are vulnerable to suffer damages from such severe earthquakes. Hence, it has been suggested to adopt "safer constructions through choice of appropriate construction systems, incorporation of earthquake resistant technology, use of good construction materials and their quality control, and involvement of competent manpower for design, construction and supervision."The Enchey Monastery, a heritage structure built in stone masonry with 500 mm thick walls, is a double storied structure with timber frames making up the columns and beams in the roof and also in the flooring. Galvanised iron sheet roofing is also supported on wooden trusses. The masonry wall was damaged due to seismic shear. The decorative plaster of the walls also fell off due to cracks in the masonry walls and spoiled some of the beauty of the structure. Grouting of the cracks was suggested as a solution to strengthen the damaged portions of the walls.

Enchey Monastery is located in City of Lachung state of Sikkim which has other variety of things to explore

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