Ever since I was a kid, I was fascinated by myths. Hearing about the time period in which they occur, and events and feats of some godly being depicted in such a magnum opus way felt huge and unreal. But no matter how bizarre and unreal some myths may sound, they sometimes leave proof for the world to see.

The mountainous state of Sikkim has its fair share of myths and legends and luckily I got a chance to witness one of the legends with my very own eyes, but for that, I had to go to Chungthang, the Northern side of the state. Fortunately, one of my friends hails from there so I made plans to stay with him. Back in our college days, he used to tell me stories and folklores about gods and demigods and how they vanquished demons from their land.

Chungthang Myth

According to the Denjong Nye-Yig and Nay-Sol texts, “Chungthang” is derived from the Lepcha language as the top precious plains. The Buddhist Guru Padmasambhava happened to visit Chungthang town in the 7th Century AD before going to Tibet and is said to have left his footprint on a rock where he once rested. What’s supernatural about this is not only the fact that a godly being left his footprint on a rock but the sheer size of the footprint on the rock, which is the size of two huge trucks put together. This huge rock is revered by Buddhists as "Nyedo" and is said to be blessed by Guru Padmasambhava himself. Around the rock, you may see some paddy crops growing, which is supposed to be a miracle as paddy does not grow in these conditions. It is said that Guru Padmasambhava threw a handful of grains of rice at that particular spot and rice has been growing on that piece of land ever since. It is also said that Guru Padmasambhava dug in his walking stick at a place where eventually it grew into a tree, which had a stick-shaped trunk and leaves below the rounded trunk that look like the handle of a stick. A holy water tank was also made to appear here by the Guru. It is also said that Guru Padmasambhava, on one of his journeys, had come across this place and vanquished demons here before proceeding. Thus, the name Tshungthang (now called Chungthang) was bestowed on the place from that moment on.

Heading to Chungthang

I took a service cab from Vajra Stand, Gangtok. Service cabs are one of the important means of transportation for people in and around the state. These service cabs usually run from one district to another and their stands can be found in every major part of any city. The cab fare from Gangtok to Chungthang is approximately INR 300. 

The journey is long and you will be a bit cramped in the cab as it’s packed with people. However, the road condition is pretty neat. You don’t find bumps often but there are some bad roads and turns along the way owing to unavoidable landslides.

Break at Mangan

After a couple of hours, the cab will make a short stop at Mangan, a small town located at the beginning of the northern region of the state. This is your only chance to freshen up, stretch your legs, and eat something as the vehicle won’t make any other stop until you reach Chungthang. I was hungry and since we were going to stop for probably half an hour, I went to a restaurant to get something to eat. Mangan has a handful of good spots around town with retail shops selling essentials from skincare products to socks and mufflers. 

The driver signalled us to return to the vehicle by honking a couple of times and we departed. On the way, I could see emerald rivers running beside the road. Lush green valleys soon began to fade and rocky mountains started to emerge behind those valleys. We were close, I assumed, as the north has a different terrain compared to the capital. Both regions are hilly areas but the Northern mountains are pretty huge, dry, and look more mountainous compared to Gangtok. If you ever get to experience it firsthand you’ll understand it in a better way. After hours of driving, crossing tunnels and tons of bridges, we finally arrived at Chungthang.

Chungthang

Chungthang is not like other tourist spots and doesn’t even look interesting from the outside. It’s just a pit stop for people going further to Lachen or Lachung. Although you may find local and non-local tourists roaming the small town, it’s usually the army who stay most of the time at this place. With the Lepchas and Bhutias forming a majority of the community, armies and tourists are an important part of it as well. The people are humble and it’s cheaper compared with other major cities around the state. I got out of the cab and called my friend soon after. I had arrived at around dusk so the atmosphere had a bluish hue to it. The river was calm and the flow had stopped cause of the dam. Huge mountains towered over the city. The air was cold, and even street dogs had a thick layer of fur covering them that made them look like small mastiffs. Some houses still had ponies and horses to ferry goods. 

My friend and I finally reached his place and he was glad that I took the initiative to experience new things on my own. Since he was tied up with work the next day, I had to venture out on my own but we decided to catch up for lunch. When I went to bed, I had put on double-layered clothes and double blankets for better insulation. I’d recommend anyone who is planning to visit Chungthang to wear body warmers and thermal outfits to help brave the cold. 

If you’re by yourself and want to visit Chungthang then you needn't worry about your stay as the place is packed with lodges and homestays.

Exploration Day 

The next day, after getting directions and landmarks from my friend, I set out to see the site where Guru Padmasambhava’s footprint and cane were located. Fortunately, both were inside a gurudwara of Nanak Lama Sahib. Although Chungthang has a majority of Buddhist residents, people from other religions co-exist in harmony. I went inside the gurudwara through what looked like a Buddhist gate. It had a different atmosphere to it. As I looked around and above, I saw loongtas (mantra relics) swinging in the wind, and as I made my way through the endless prayer wheels, there it was—Nyedo.

Nyedo

The huge rock looked as if it was a giant dough ball that was squashed by a giant being. It really does sound unreal and it sounded unreal to me as well but when I looked at it I couldn’t believe my own eyes. I immediately started imagining the sheer size of Guru Padmasambhava and got ecstatic by the very idea of such a being actually existing at some point in this world. No wonder the tales of gurus and Gods where they vanquish demons, hold mountains, and tear down rivers to travel different parts of the world in such a short amount of time didn’t seem impossible. After that, I didn’t even have to move a muscle to see another site as it was right beside the path I was standing on. On the opposite side of Nyedo, I could see the rice field that was said to have emerged from the seeds that Guru Padmasambhava had thrown. The crop was still immature and I could see the green tips emerging from the moist and muddy ground. Now, cultivating rice isn’t a big deal if it was anywhere considering the temperature and soil that the crops need in order to grow but since Chungthang is located in such rough terrain its highly unsuitable, yet, this particular field where rice grows every year is something of a miracle if you ask me. 

Guru Padmasambhava's Cane

The next mythical site I wanted to check was Guru Padmasambhava's cane. I took a round of the gurudwara and saw that the site was located just a bit far from where I was earlier. You could literally see one of the biggest trees in Chungthang that had its thickest trunks bent in such a way that it actually looked like a cane. The said Cane was so huge that the gurudwara had a big gap for the tree to bend through, which means that it was present there long before modern infrastructure was introduced to the place. It was so old yet the tree didn’t seem to show any signs of degradation. Smaller branches emerged from every part of the trunk. I really tried to measure the tree’s girth by hugging the tree but my hands didn’t even reach halfway. The structure was huge, and if it actually was a cane then I’m sure only a person with a foot size of the Nyedo footprint could use it. The sites, especially the footprint and the cane now turned tree, actually made me consider the fact that maybe the myths that our elders passed to us really have some truth to them.

The day was coming to an end so I called up my friend and told him to meet me for dinner. Instead, he told me he was at a suspension bridge right below his house and said he wanted me to see one more spot before I returned. It is just like any other suspension bridge you’ll find around Sikkim but the view from there, as you’re hanging over River Teesta, was refreshing. The winds and the sound of water crashing below us relaxed our senses. My friend asked me, “How did you like Chungthang? Did the myths hold up?” I said with a smile, “Buddy, if a giant footprint on a rock can’t convince me then I don’t know what will.” He laughed and told me he was happy I still remembered his stories and even more so glad that I came all the way just to see it myself.