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Mount Kailash is enigmatic. It is majestic. And it is mysterious. Located in western Tibet near Lake Manasarovar and Lake Rakshastal, Mount Kailash, at an elevation of 6,656 meters, is one of the most sacred mountains on the planet and a pilgrimage for four faiths: Jains, Buddhists, Hindus, and the Tibetan religion of Bon.
Mount Kailash is unequivocally beautiful. But it is also full of mystery. It is the only mountain that is detached from the Himalayan range of mountains and is undoubtedly the most mysterious of all the mountain ranges in the entire Himalayas. Mount Kailash is an experience. There are definitely some mind-boggling facts about Mount Kailash, and the Kailash Mountain mystery has been entwined with folklore as far as history goes. The significance of the mountain is as interesting as the Mount Kailash mystery, which remains obscure and mystifying.
Here are 8 mysteries of Mount Kailash
1. Mount Kailash is sacred
The precious snow mountain is revered by numerous religions and is universally considered divine. It is sacred and is a holy pilgrimage for four religions: Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, and the Tibetan religions of Bon. It is one of the most famous peaks, and the Kailash ranges are spread across India and Tibet. Due to its holiness nature, climbing the mountain is forbidden.
2. It is the Stairway to Heaven
Did you know that Mount Kailash is believed to be a ‘Stairway to Heaven’? According to Hindu mythology, the mountain is the holy abode of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. Mount Kailash is majestic in its stature and grandeur. Made up of black rocks, Mount Kailash is a stunning diamond-shaped mountain surrounded by a rugged exquisite landscape.
3. Mount Kailash is unclimbable
The indomitable Mount Kailash cannot be conquered. It is not the highest mountain, and yet, it is unconquerable. There are definitely many myths and lores attached to climbing Mount Kailash.
Climbing the mountain is forbidden due to the fear of trespassing the sanctity of the sacred mountain and disrupting the divine energies resting atop it. Interestingly there have been several trekkers in the past who tried to climb the sacred mountain, but no one reached the summit successfully except for the 11th-century Tibetan sage Milarepa. It is said that when Milarepa returned, he warned everyone to avoid bothering the God resting on the peak.
4. Mount Kailash looks like a pyramid
The shape of Mount Kailash seems strange, so much so that it elicited a theory that the mountain was man-made, at least the top of it. According to many researchers and scientists, the shape of Mount Kailash comes across as too symmetrical and perfect for it to be a natural occurrence. And it is actually a man-made vacuum pyramid consisting of 100 smaller pyramids. According to initial estimates, the direct height of the mountain’s pyramid complex is somewhere between 100 and 1,800 meters, whereas the Egyptian pyramid is only about 146 meters. If this is ever proven to be true, Mount Kailash would be larger than any pyramid known to humankind.
5. Mount Kailash is Earth’s energy center
Mount Kailash’s mystery goes deeper. The sacred mountain is considered to be the axis of the universe and the center of the world. Mount Kailash is believed to be the axis of existence, the focal point where the earth submerges in heaven. In fact, Google Maps and NASA pictures reveal that Mount Kailash is the navel of the world and the earth’s energy center. NASA also stated that ‘the face of Lord Shiva’ appears on the sacred snow mountain.
Mount Kailash is said to be connected to several other monuments across the globe, including the spectacular Stonehenge in the United Kingdom, which is exactly 6666 kilometers away from the mountain. Or the North Pole, which is also 6666 kilometers away from Mount Kailash, and the South Pole, which is 13332 kilometers away from the peak.
6. Witness the marvel of time travel
Another very fascinating fact about Mount Kailash is that you can witness time travel here! Many scientists believe that the process of aging accelerates here, and the air of the holy mountain actually contributes to it. It has been seen that people who have spent more than twelve hours here have experienced hair and fingernail growth which usually take about two weeks in normal human life. This claim is backed by a story of a few climbers from Siberia. The story goes as a group of climbers of Siberian origin ahead of the forbidden point and immediately aged by a few decades. And a year later, they died of old age, shockingly! This increases the bewilderment and adds to the great Kailash Mountain mystery.
7. The creation of the symbols OM and Swastika
In Hindu mythology, it is believed that Lord Shiva is the supreme lord who can create, protect, and transform the universe and can also annihilate the universe.
Mysteriously, the snow on the mountain naturally forms the sacred OM (ॐ) symbol on the hard granite. The symbol can also be seen on the south ridge of the sacred mountain. It is believed to demonstrate the embodiment of Lord Shiva’s presence.
What’s more? When the sun sets, the scared mountain casts a shadow that has a striking resemblance to the religious symbol of Swastika, considered auspicious amongst Hindus.
8. The uncanny resemblance of the mountain lakes with Yin-Yang
At the foot of Mount Kailash, you can see two pristine lakes, Lake Manasarovar and Lake Rakshastal, which are a sight to behold, alluring universe’s extraordinary creation. It is believed that Lake Manasarovar, which is also the highest freshwater lake in the world, was originally created in the thoughts of the Hindu gods holding deep spiritual significance, wherein Lake Rakshastal is known in mythology as the ghost lake. Rakshastal is also a saltwater lake devoid of aquatic and marine life. Lake Manasarovar is shaped like the sun, while Lake Rakshastal is shaped like the moon. Both lakes personify the light and the dark or the two sides of human nature – the good and the evil hence the Yin and the Yang.
