Surrounded by snow-capped Himalayan peaks and the vast expanse of blue sky. Remote, quiet, and austere, Mu Gumba or Monastery has remained largely unknown to tourists and untouched by the onslaught of modernity.

More than a hundred years old, Mu was established by the previous incarnation of Lama Drugpa Rinpoche and was once home to a thriving community of Buddhist monks in lifelong retreat, practicing in pristine solitude.

Today, like so many endangered spiritual sanctuaries across the planet, only three monks remain, maintaining the unbroken lineage and protecting the treasures entrusted to Mu.

Precious texts, ancient thangka paintings, ritual implements, rare statues, including the fabled self-spoken Tara who grants blessings, are among the sacred relics still housed in the main shrine room.

But as the old buildings fall into disrepair as the unrelenting weather encroaches, all the precious relics and the practice sanctuary that Mu safeguards are being threatened.