Kaza

What is the meaning of the name Spiti Valley?

Travel Route: Dhankar — Kaza — Langza — Hikkim — Komic

Dhankar

Dhankar is a fort village, perched high over the intersection between Spiti and Pin Valleys. At the top of the hill, we found a great spot to meditate.

Dhankar, Spiti Valley

Kaza, the capital of Spiti Valley

The word ‘Spiti’ means the ‘middle country’ — a name given for its location between India and Tibet. Spiti Valley is a high-altitude desert, bare, rugged, and inhospitable. It has been only about 20 years since foreigners were allowed permits to visit Spiti Valley. The government allocates priorities and allows major subsides to the Valley. As it is often the case, locals are ambivalent about the changes. On the one hand, a desire to advance their life’s quality and on the other hand, they want to maintain their environment and old-style way of life. In his novel, ‘Kim’ Rudyard Kipling called Spiti Valley: ‘a world within a world’ and a ‘place where the gods live.’

On the road from Dhankar to Kaza, Spiti Valley

Langza, Hikkim, and Komic

Three small villages, Langza, Hikkim, and Komic, are situated over 4000m in altitude. It’s an image of a desolated beauty, and indeed the villages have been in practical isolation for centuries. They are a cluster of whitewashed mud-brick homes situated amid barley and green pea fields. Spiti Valley has had introvertive culture, and life has remained focused around its several monasteries.

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