History of Sikkim - 2

 Today we will be continuing our tour to Sikkim's royal and mystic past. Let's begin

The consultation of the Mun Boongthing (the Lepcha Priest) reflects that the Lepchas are the most primitive and autochthons race of Sikkim. It is presumed that more than 3000 B.C. the Lepchas had installed the “stairway to heaven” of clay pot at present day’s Daramdin in west Sikkim. During the ascendancy of the Lepchas, Sikkim was known as “Mayal- Lyang” or the land of hidden treasures.

Traditional Lepcha couple

The geographical extent of Sikkim under Lepcha sovereignty was widely extended. It is been assumed that the region of present-day Nepal and Bhutan was the part of Sikkim and in the south, it was flourished till Malda in present West Bengal. Further, the Chumbi valley of Tibet was also a part of ancient Sikkim. The original inhabitants of Chumbi valley in Tibet were also the Lepchas. Heybum Panu or Dungpemsar was the chieftain and his capital was at Chumbi. Meanwhile, the struggle between the followers of ‘Red Hats’ and the ‘Yellow Hats’ of Buddhism in Tibet forced the Lepchas of Chumbi to take refuge in Sikkim and other places. The Limbuwana, which was known to the Nepalese as Pallo Kirat (far away Kirat), was also a part of ancient Sikkim.