A generous donor has fully funded this project!
When it rains at Dolma Ling Nunnery, it pours! The nunnery is located in the foothills of the Himalayas near Dharamsala in northern India. This area has one of the heaviest monsoons in India.
Here’s a video taken in July 2018 by the Nuns’ Media Team showing the monsoon rains. This area is near the top of the nunnery complex and the main prayer hall is visible on the right. The all-important drainage channels run around and through the nunnery. They prevent flooding and keep the buildings safe and sound. We are so grateful to the donor who funded this project!
The photograph below shows what the same area of Dolma Ling Nunnery looks like in the dry season. You can see the little bridge behind the nun which, in the monsoon video, is almost under water.
Nun studying outdoors near one of the many drainage channels that run around and through Dolma Ling Nunnery. Photo by Dustin Kujawski taken in October 2017.
In 2017, during the monsoon, the stream and drainage channels, which run through the nunnery past the cow barn and behind the medical clinic and guesthouse, became seriously eroded.
The snowy mountain peaks of the nearby Dhauladhar range of the Indian Himalayas rise above Dolma Ling Nunnery. The area receives one of the heaviest monsoons in India. Photo courtesy of Dustin Kujawski.
The nunnery was planned and constructed with careful concern for the natural environment and dedication to creating a natural peaceful garden in which the nuns can live and study. The nuns work hard to preserve the natural resources and to maintain the streams, which run through the nunnery property delighting residents and visitors alike.
The nuns of Dolma Ling Nunnery clean the nunnery paths and drainage ditches daily. Photo courtesy of Dustin Kujawski
However, during heavy monsoon rains and other downpours, the drainage system that runs throughout the nunnery, takes a battering. Thanks to a generous donor, the nuns were able to undertake vital repairs to the drainage system in 2018, before the onset of another rainy season. The drainage system was sealed to prevent water seeping out onto the paths and to prevent flooding.
The nunnery has a complex network of deep drainage ditches. They have now been repaired and sealed in advance of the next monsoon season. Photo courtesy of Nuns Media Team.
Here’s another short video showing monsoon rains at the nunnery and the all-important drainage system.