Heinrich Harrer, an Austrian climber, breaks out of prison and travels to the holy city of Lhasa. He is employed as an instructor to the 14th Dalai Lama and soon becomes his close confidante.
After a Buddhist boy in the highlands of northern India discovers that he is the reincarnation of a centuries-old Tibetan monk, his godfather takes him on a journey to discover his past.
A group of nuns struggle to establish a convent in the Himalayas, while isolation, extreme weather, altitude, and culture clashes all conspire to drive the well-intentioned missionaries mad.