Tibetan New Year
:Lhasa, Kumba Tibetan area, Amdo Tibetan area.
Tibetan time: January 1st.
Calendar time: February 5
This year's Tibetan New Year falls on the same day as the Chinese New Year, February 5 on the Gregorian calendar. Tibetan New Year activities begin on January 1 and end on the 15th of the Tibetan calendar, lasting 15 days. During the New Year, various cultural and recreational activities will be held throughout Tibet, such as weightlifting, horseback riding, archery, running and other competitive events. Song and dance performances with national characteristics will also be held at the Potala Palace Square, where the masses will sing and dance together wearing gorgeous national costumes and masks with different shapes and national characteristics.
Merangi Prayer Grand Puja
:Lhasa, Kham Tibetan area, Amdo Tibetan area.
Tibetan calendar time: January 4 - January 25th.
Calendar time: February 8-February 29
Merangmu Prayer Grand Puja is also called Calling Grand Puja. "Merangmu" means prayer and yearning, a prayer for peace, happiness and health. The Merangmu Prayer Puja is one of the most important festivals of the Gelugpa School of Tibetan Buddhism and one of the four events of Buddhism advocated by Master Tsongkhapa. The centerpiece of the assembly is the selection of the highest rank of Tibetan Buddhism, the "Larampa Geshe". Historically, Lhasa's administrative power was taken over by the iron rod lamas of Drepung Monastery.
The Ghee Lantern Festival
The festival is held in Lhasa and Amdo Tibetan areas.
Tibetan calendar date: January 15
Lunar calendar date: February 19
On that day, flowers, birds, fish, insects, and figures carved in colorful ghee will be displayed in the places where Tibetans live to celebrate the ghee-carved Lantern Festival. There are two legends about its origin. One is that Tsongkhapa offered ghee sculptures and lamps to Sakyamuni, the golden Buddha statue in the Dazhao Monastery, and that the ghee sculpture lamps were used to commemorate the Buddha's descending of demons. There is another that butter sculpture lantern is to celebrate the victory of Sakyamuni Buddha and other sects of the Great Debate.
Saga Dawa Festival
:Lhasa, Kham Tibetan area, Amdo Tibetan area.
Tibetan calendar: April 15th.
Calendar date: June 17
There are two opinions on the Saga Dawa Festival: one commemorates the day when Sakyamuni attained enlightenment; the other is in honor of the day when Princess Wencheng arrived in Lhasa. On this day, religious commemorations will be held all over Tibet. Some Yunnan Tibetans even make a pilgrimage to Dharma Mountain in Weixi County, and there is also a ceremony of "turning Jela" (circling the mountain).
Features of Saga Dawa Festival:
Doing good deeds is a feature of the Saga Dawa Festival, so during this special festival, the faithful can be seen everywhere on the streets of Lhasa, perhaps just to pray for blessings, but some even to realize a wish in their hearts.
April 15 of the Tibetan calendar is the climax day of charity. Alms are given from early morning. On this day, Tibetans are more than happy to give alms whenever they come across beggars, whether monks or beggars. Of course, many poor people will not easily let go of this good day. Therefore, Sagadaw Festival has another name: "Poor Man's Day".
Generally speaking, Tibetans who usually like yak meat will be vegetarian on April 8 and 15 of the Tibetan calendar.
Exhibition of Buddha Festival
Held in Lhasa and Shigatse
Time in the Tibetan calendar: May 14-16th.
In the Gregorian calendar: July 14th-16th.
The exhibition of Buddha is one of the grandest ceremonies in Tibetan Buddhism. The whole process of exhibition of Buddha solemn and solemn, showing the Tibetan Buddhist believers in the Buddha incomparable devotion and reverence. Every year before and after the 15th day of the fifth month of the Tibetan calendar, Zashilunbu Temple will hold a grand Buddha exhibition. Three large embroidered Buddha statues, the original Buddha (Infinite Light Buddha), now Buddha (Shakyamuni Buddha) and the future Buddha (Qiangba Buddha), displayed on the sunny side of the wall of the Buddha booth, 32 meters high, 42.5 meters wide at the bottom, 38 meters wide at the top, 3.5 meters thick. Countless believers, bearing in mind the past and the future, shoulder to shoulder, just to get on the Buddha stand to worship the statue of Buddha up close, in order to get a greater blessing.
Zangmulinjisang (Rinca Festival)
Organizing areas: Lhasa, Chamdo and Sangye.
Tibetan calendar: May 15th.
Calendar date: July 16
The Tibetan Rinka Festival is said to commemorate the conquest of all demons in Tibet by Master Lotus Sang in the fifth month of the Year of the Monkey. On this day, the Tibetan people, who love nature and are good at singing and dancing, dressed in festive attire, bring barley wine, ghee tea and all kinds of delicacies to the tree-lined Karin, set up their tents, eat, drink, sing and dance, and enjoy nature to the fullest. Various tents also invite each other, folk artists to perform here. This festival usually lasts up to a month.
Sedon Festival
Location: Lhasa
Tibetan calendar time: June 30th.
Calendar time: August 30 - September 5
Snowdon Festival by the evolution of religious culture, in which the Tibetan language "Snowdon Festival" in the "snow" is yogurt, "rice" is a feast. "is a feast, so also called" yogurt festival ". At first, it was for the people to reward the monks, and then gradually evolved into Tibetan opera performance. During the festival, people gather together, sun Buddha, Tibetan opera, passing by the Karin horse show and other activities, not only can people feast their eyes, the most important thing is to be able to feel in the bustle of the peace of the breeding, to find the answer about the faraway land.
Naqu Horse Racing Festival
Location: Naqu
Tibetan Calendar Time: TBD
Lunar Calendar: August 10th-August 15th.
The Nagchu Horse Racing Festival is one of the biggest traditional festivals in northern Tibet. At the Horse Racing Festival, you can enjoy the national culture worshipped by the Tibetan people and the heroism and passion of Tibetan compatriots. The Horse Racing Festival follows the custom of horse racing and archery held before each expedition of Gesar. Gesar himself was embraced as king by the masses for winning the horse race. Therefore, in the belief of Tibetan hero worship, strength, courage and wisdom become the object of aspiration and worship, and the mark of measuring the value of men. This customary culture of worship is y rooted in the Tibetan people.
Bathing Festival
Location: Lhasa
Tibetan calendar time: July 6-July 12th.
Calendar time: September 16
During the Bathing Festival, Tibetan compatriots, men, women, and children, take a good bath in nearby rivers and streams and play in the water. After bathing, people light a fire, hot ghee tea, drink barley wine, eat sweet poop, talk about the past and present, play string song. Bathing Festival has a history of more than 700 years. It is said that very early in the Tibetan area, there is a famous doctor with excellent medical skills. In order to alleviate people's pain, he often treated people's diseases and saved many patients' lives. He was honored as the King of Medicine because of his great medical skills and his ability to cure diseases and save lives. Soon after Wang Yao's death, the Tibetan region was struck by a plague and countless people and animals died. People became more and more nostalgic for the Medicine King and wished to be cured. One night, a dying patient was inspired by the Medicine King in a dream, saying that bathing in a river when the stars were shining would cure him. The patient did recover after bathing. Word spread and everyone who was sick jumped into the river to bathe and was cured. Later, every year in late summer and early fall, people would bathe in the nearby river. Over time, it became a bathing festival.
Wangwang Festival
Location: All over Tibet
Tibetan calendar time: the end of July
Lunar calendar time: the end of September
"Wangwang" means crops in Tibetan, and is called "wangka" or "hingka" in Tibetan. "Hingka". The word "fruit" means circle, which means circling around the crops that are expected to be harvested. Every year, when crops are ripening all over the world, people wish for a good harvest through this unique ritual of turning the ground and turning the soil. Nowadays, although the Fruit Festival has a religious form of sacrificing to the gods, it has become the main form of folk entertainment and sports activities in the Tibetan people's prayers for a good harvest. In Lhasa, Shannan, Rikaze and other places in Tibet, there has been a custom of fruit festival. There is no exact time, but it depends on the ripening time of the crops.
Buddha Skyfall Festival
Location: all over Tibet
Tibetan calendar: September 22nd.
Calendar date: November 19
The "Heavenly Festival" or "Sky Festival" is known as "Lhagpa Tsering" in Tibetan. On this day, monks recite the customary Buddhist scriptures for a day, welcoming the Buddha back to earth to propagate the Dharma and spread the teachings of the Buddha to all sentient beings. According to Tibetan Buddhism, Ascension Day is one of the major festivals in Buddhism and the most auspicious day. On that day, the deeds of good and evil will increase by a billion times. Therefore, practitioners should seize this day of elevation, cultivate bodhicitta, make offerings to the Three Jewels, and give to all sentient beings to complete the day. During this period, if one can **** with practicing all kinds of good deeds, chanting sutras, releasing people, lighting lamps, and giving alms, all merits and blessings will be rewarded.
Auspicious Heavenly Mother's Day
Location: all over Tibet
Tibetan Calendar: October 15th.
Calendar time: December 12
Auspicious Mother's Day, known as the Tibetan language, "Chasing White Day", also known as "Fairy Day". Every year on October 15 of the Tibetan calendar, all the monks of the Wooden Ru Temple to Lhasa Dazhao Temple to protect the King Zun held a grand annual festival. 14 evening, the monks invited to the statue of the heavenly maiden Bodhisattva to the Shakyamuni Buddha Hall, sitting on the opposite side of the Shakyamuni Buddha. 15 morning, the sun rose, monks and nuns head head to the Bajiao Street. Many well-wishing men and women present offered hatha to the Tenmoku police. After a series of activities to lower their spirits, they returned to the Da Zhao Monastery, where the Tenmoku statue sat on its original throne. On that day, Tibetan girls, in addition to making wishes in front of the goddess statue, will go to Barkhor Street in groups to ask for money in the name of worshipping the goddess, while the men are particularly generous on this day and will not give alms.
Lantern Festival
Location: all over Tibet
Tibetan calendar time: October 25th.
Calendar time: December 21
The Lantern Festival, also known as the "five public holidays", is a religious festival of the Tibetan people in Tibet, Qinghai, Sichuan, Gansu and other provinces and regions. The Lantern Festival commemorates the death of Master Tsongkhapa, the reformer of Buddhism and founder of the Gelug sect. On this day, herdsmen in temples and villages belonging to this sect will light ghee lamps on shrines inside and outside temples and on scriptures in their homes around the clock. During the Lantern Festival, people will put on festive costumes and gather in front of the temples to listen to the Buddhist masters recite the "Six Character Sutra" as if they were praying and kowtowing to the gods.