The Pemayangtse monastery is situated near the town of Pelling, one of the oldest and the most important monasteries of Sikkim. Built in the year 1705, the monastery belongs to the Nyingmapa sect of Mahayana     Buddhism and it was founded by Gyalwa Lhatsum Chempo, one of the three lamas to have performed the     Consecration Ceremony of the first Chogyal (King) Phuntsog Namgyal at Yuksam in 1642.

The unique feature of the monastery is that there is an intricately carved wooden structure located on the top floor     displaying a heavenly sphere known as ‘Zangdokpalri’.  It is believed that ‘Zangdokpalri’ is a reproduction in the     concrete form that appeared in the vision of Gyalwa Lhatsum Chempo. The monastery houses a good collection of wall     paintings, sculptures, precious images, thankas and a huge gold plated statue of Guru Padsambhava.

The monastery was built for "pure monks" (ta-tshang) meaning "monks of pure Tibetan lineage", celibate and without any physical abnormality. This practice is still retained. Only the monks of Pemayangtse Monastery are entitled to the title "ta-tshang". The head lama of this monastery had the unique privilege of anointing the Chogyals of the erstwhile monarchy of Sikkim with holy water. Pemayangtse means "Perfect Sublime Lotus", and is said to represent one of the four plexus of the human body.