Poo, Himachal Pradesh

Poo, or Pooh, also known as Spuwa (altitude 2,662 metres or 8,736 ft), is a small town in Kinnaur district, Himachal Pradesh, India. The approximate population given within a 7 km radius of the town is 1,192.[1]

Poo
Town
Poo is located in Himachal Pradesh
Poo
Poo
Location in Himachal Pradesh, India
Poo is located in India
Poo
Poo
Poo (India)
Coordinates: 31.7667°N 78.5833°E / 31.7667; 78.5833
Country India
StateHimachal Pradesh
DistrictKinnaur
Government
  BodyNagar Palika
Elevation
2,262 m (7,421 ft)
Population
  Total1,192
Languages
  OfficialHindi
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
Poo Town, Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh, India.
Sakya Muni Buddha Puh Gompa
Ancient Wooden door - Puh Gompa

Poo is 58 km from Powari village along National Highway 22. It is known for its natural environment, green fields, apricot orchards, vineyards and almond trees. Inscriptions suggest that Poo was an important trading center in the early 11th century.

When A. H. Francke arrived in Poo from the south in July, 1910, it was the first village he found where the language was "entirely Tibetan".[2]

There is an ancient temple, the Lotsaba-bai-lha-khang, dedicated to Shakyamuni or Buddha and attributed to the translator (or Lotsaba), Rinchen Zangpo (958–1055).[3] The shrine has wooden columns supporting a high ceiling. It has murals and a painted door from the period of Rinchen Zangpo (10th to 11th century), though they are in a poor state of preservation.[4]

There is a local pre-Buddhist deity, Dablā, who has no dwelling or altar in Poo (although he has a devata temple devoted to him at Kanum).[5] His only manifestation is a pole with a small idol set on its upper portion and adorned with yak tail hair and long pieces of coloured cloth.[6]

References

  1. Poo, India Page. fallingrain.com
  2. Francke (1914), p. 18.
  3. Francke (1914), p. 20.
  4. Handa (1987), pp. 108–109.
  5. Handa (1987), p. 108.
  6. Kinnaur / Pooh. himachalhotels.in

Bibliography

  • Francke, A. H. (1914, 1926). Antiquities of Indian Tibet. Two Volumes. Calcutta. 1972 reprint: S. Chand, New Delhi.
  • Handa, O. C. (1987). Buddhist Monasteries in Himachal Pradesh. Indus Publishing Company, New Delhi.
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