Located in Sakya County southwest of Shigatse, the Sakya Kloster (Sakya Monastery) is the principal monastery of the Sakyapa Sect of Tibetan Buddhism.Originally, the Sakya Kloster comprised both the Northern and Southern Monasteries. In 1073, Khon Konchog Gyalpo, the founder of Sakyapa Sect, built a white palace on a grey clay hill near the northern bank of the Chun Qu River. The locals named the palace 'Sakya' which means grey soil. This was the Northern Monastery but today it is visible only as a ruin.The Southern Monastery was built like a fortress and was surrounded by a moat. Construction of the monastery began in 1268 and was led by Benqen Sagya Sangbo under the commission of Choygal Phakpa, the fifth descendent of Sakyapa Sect. The walls of this monastery were painted in red, white and grey which indicate Manjusri Bodhisattva, Avalokiteshvara and Vajradhara.Sakya Kloster is famed ...