Since early May, there have been crowds of pilgrims around Mt Kailash circumambulating the holy mountain. "It is believed that if you circle the mountain in the year of the Iron Horse, it is equivalent to circling the mountain 13 times so you can do the inner kora," says Manod K Shrestha, who recently returned from the area.

Mt Kailash is considered the supreme pilgrim's destination for Tibetan Buddhism, Hindus and Tibetan followers of the Bon-po religion, and this year, there was an unbroken human circle moving around its base. Located in the far west of the Tibetan plateau, 1,600 km from Lhasa and about 1,000 km from Zhangmou, Mt Kailash is believed to be a manifestation of Dachok, a tantric god and Lake Mansorovar is supposed to be the manifestation of the god's consort. Hindus believe it to be the abode of Lord Shiva.