Yerpa Monastery , Lhasa , Tibet Stock Photo

Yerpa , also known as Drak Yerpa , is only a short drive to the east of Lhasa , Tibet , and consists of a monastery and a number of ancient meditation caves that used to house about 300 monks. There are a number of small temples shrines and hermitages and the cliffs contain some of the earliest known meditation sites in Tibet, some dating back to pre-Buddhist times. Among the more famous are those traditionally connected with Songtsen Gampo , His Tibetan queen, Monza Triucham, founded the Dra Yerpa temple here. Yerpa became one of the three most important centres of meditation and retreat in Central Tibet. Several of Guru Rinpoche`s disciples are also said to have meditated here.