Kumjung Monastery and Yeti

Khumjung Monastery, also known as Samten Choling, is located at an altitude of 3790 meters in the village of Khumjung. According to historical documents, this monastery is the second oldest in the Khumbu region. This gompa was built by some of the “early” Sherpas and is famous for its religious and artistic manuscripts. Like other monasteries, there are many religious festivals throughout the year.

Bigfoot scalp

Khumjung Monastery claims to possess the scalp of a legendary creature known as the Yetty. Now this scalp is kept in the Kumjunga gompa. According to local mythology, there are two types of Bigfoot people - Meh-Teh (or Mite) and Chuti. Sherpas believe that Chutis hunt animals like goats, sheep and yaks. But the bigfoot people of Mech-tech sometimes attack people. So in 1974, Mite attacked a woman from Kumjung while she was grazing yaks in a high-altitude (above 4000 m) summer pasture near Machermo.

The Sherpas believe that these legendary creatures have a significant influence on religious festivals, during which people wear Yeti scalps to drive away evil spirits from the monastery. According to legend, the Yeti scalp was brought to Khumjung from Thame Monastery, where locals went to celebrate the Dumji festival.

Admission

A few years ago, the Monastery Management Committee introduced a mandatory entrance fee (Rs 300 per person) for all foreign visitors to the gompa. Thus, the Yeti scalp became an important source of income for the monastery, which did not own its own land or other business. The funds collected are used primarily for restoration work in the temple and for organizing annual religious festivals.