The great sage and Buddhist philosopher Milarepa spent many tyears of his long life (1052-1135) in a cave near the present-day town of Nyalam, singing and composing songs for his many disciples.

The cave has been a scared spot revered by Tibetan Buddhists ever since and you can visit this shrine to Milarepa and his Buddhist teachings easily and quickly from Nyalam Town. The cave itself overlooks a small valley from within the stark brown mountains of this region. Other than a tiny village in the valley, the only other structure is the Pelgye Ling, Phelgye Ling or Pengyeling Monastery,. which was built around the cave.

Colored stones and fragrant offerings of herbs and wild flowers line the path into the cave, which is kept as a shrine by two monks. Within are several icons of Milarepa and Buddhist lore including a statue of Milarepa enclosed in a glass case, an impression in the rock attributed to Milarepa's sitting meditation posture and a hand print said to have been created when Milarepa helped his student prop up the ceiling with a boulder.

The ancient meditation site was restored in the 1970s by Nepalese craftsman