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Festivals of Ladakh
Ladakh Tourism >> Festivals of Ladakh
In Ladakh every occasion marriage, birth, harvesting, commemoration of head
Lamas founding of the monastery, Losar (new year) and flowering is marked by
feasting, dancing and the singing of folksongs that forms a part of its living
heritage. Most of the festivals are held in winter but some popular festival
take place in summer too. The monastic festivals are the heart of all the festivals.
They are performed by Monks wearing colorful silk garments and different facial
mask.
Hemis Festival
Hemis festival is one of the most famous monastic festivals in June to commemorate
birth of Guru Padmasambhava, the founder of Tantric Buddhism in Tibet. The sacred
dance drama of the life and mission is performed wearing facial masks and colorful
brocades robes. The three-day festival takes place from 9th to 11th. Especially
the monkey year festival, which comes in a cycle of 12 years. During it the
four-storey thanka of Guru Padma Sambhava is hung in the courtyard and other
precious thankas are also exhibited.
Thiksey, Karsha and Spituk Gustor
Gustors take place at Thiksey, Spituk and Karsha in different months of
the year. The festival takes place for two days. The celebration is to mark
the victory over evils. The mask worn by the dancers represent the Guardians,
Protectors and the Gods and Goddesses. The festival ends with the symbolic assassination
of evils and burning of the effigy of evils.
Dosmochey
Dosmochey is celebrated in Leh (Leh Palace), Liker (Lower Ladakh) and Deskit
(Nubra valley) monasteries in February.The most famous among all is Leh Dosmochey,
which is celebrated for two days in the courtyards of the Leh palace. The monks
from different monasteries perform the Chams every year turn by turn. The festival
takes place in the end and starting of the Tibetan New Year. The monks of Takthok
monastery prepares the offering with Thread crosses which binds all the evil,
hungry ghosts and guard against natural disaster in the coming year. On the
second day of the festival, the offerings are taken out of the town in a procession
and burn it while people whistle to chase away the evil spirits.
Matho Nagrang
Matho Nagrang is celebrated on the 15th day of the 1st month of Tibetan
calander, at Matho monastery, the only monastery of the Sakya School of Tibetan
Buddhism. During these two days of festival mask dances are performed by monks
of the monastery wearing colorful silk brocaded robes and mask in different
forms of God and Goddesses. The festival is famous because of appearance of
the two oracles during the festival after full month meditation in complete
isolation. The two oracles appear in the courtyard accompanying mask dancers
and predict future events and people from far and away come to seek advice to
perform ritual to tackle with disasters.
Stok Guru Tsechu
The monks of Stok and Spituk monasteries also celebrate Stok Gruru Tsechu
for two days with mask dances performed. It is also held in Feb. around a week
before the Matho Nagrang. During the festival two oracle appears, but they are
laymen from the same village prepared by monks to receive the spirit of the
deities.
Phyang Tsedup
Phyang Tsedup takes place in July / August. Like other monasteries, monks
wearing colorful brocade robes and Mask in the form of different god and goddesses
perform mask dances. The huge thanka of Skyoba Giksten Gonbo is hung in the
courtyard during the festival.
Yuru Kabgyat
The 2-day festival takes place in July in Lamayuru monastery around 125
kms. from Leh. Monks like other monastic festival perform mask dances. During
the festival monks perform prayer and rituals to get rid of disaster and peace
in the world.
Losar Celebration
The Losar (New Year) celebration is followed by Galdan Namchot, the birth
anniversary of Tsogkha pa who introduced Gelukpa School of order. During Namchot
people illuminate their houses, monasteries and mountains and make offerings
in the houses and monasteries.
The Losar festival is celebrated in the eleventh month of Tibetan calendar,
two months ahead of Tibetan New Year. In early 17th century, King Jamyang Namgyal
decided to lead an expedition against the Baltistan forces in winter; therefore
he decided to celebrate the festival two months before. Later it became a tradition
and being celebrated in the eleventh month.
The festival lasts for around a month, during which Gods, deities, ancestors
and even the animals are fed without fail. Images of Ibex are made as auspicious
symbol, walls of the kitchens are dotted and are believed to bring prosperity
in coming year. The Metho (procession of fire) is thrown out chanting slogans
and chasing hungry ghosts and evil spirits, and they return with rocks of ice
as auspicious symbol and these are kept in the store. In some villages there
is a tradition of making Old men and women, from this snow which last for a
week. Over all the Losar all children and young and olds enjoy and celebrate
the festival. All family members get together to celebrate if someone missing
will have their cups filled with tea by their name.
Ladakh Festival
Ladakh festival takes place in September 1-15 every year in Leh and villages.
The inauguration ceremony takes place in Leh on large scale with the procession
of various cultural troupes from different part of Ladakh. It passes through
Leh Market dancing, singing with traditional music, in colorful traditional
Ladakhi dresses, and finishes at Polo ground after performing their best dances
and songs. The festival last for 15 days with regular program in different villages.
The program includes Archery, Polo, and Mask Dances from the monasteries, traditional
dances by cultural troupes from Villages. There are series of musical concert
and dance program in Leh town.
Sindhu Darshan (Visit Indus) Festival
Sindhu Darshan is three-day festival held from 1st to 3rd June, in Shey
Manla around 8 kms. from Leh on the bank of Indus river. For the first time
it was organized in October 1997, as a symbol of unity and Communal harmony
and national integration. Whilst promoting domestic tourism in Ladakh. It is
also a symbolic salute to brave soldiers of India who have been fighting not
only with enemies in the in the human form but also in the form of nature.
During this festival artists from different parts of the country perform traditional
dances and people from all religions, castes and regions participate.
Other Festivals
There are a number of other festivals that take place in Ladakh. Some of
the festivals that are held in Ladakh include Lamayuru, which takes place in
July. Phiyang takes place in July-August, after 10 days of Phiyang, another
festival Tak-thok is held. The special feature of Phiyang festival is the exhibition
of thangka, which is done every year unlike the Hemis, where thangka is exhibited
once in 12 years.
