Dharamsala City Map Poster

About Dharamsala

Dharamshala is known as a "Little Lhasa" due to its cultural, linguistic and religious similarities with Tibet. It is nicknamed "The Queen of the Hills", or simply "The Hill Station". According to local legend, Dharamshala was founded by the ninth Sikh guru, Guru Ravidas in 1478. The city used to be called Bhagsu. In 1822 it was renamed Dharmshala (or Dharamsala) after an image of Lord Buddha that was placed on a large rock there by a Nepalese Buddhist Lama under instructions from the then Maharaja of Lahaul and Spiti; who later became one of the most important figures in bringing Buddhism back into India during his travels across Ladakh and Sikkim between 1846-1850 CE.. Another theory states that it came from 'Dhamma Sala', which means 'meeting place' for dharma (Buddhist teachings).