Places of Interests and Traditional Festivals

cctv.com 08-30-2005 14:25

What are the most popular places in Tibet?

Lhasa,?Nyingchi, Xigaze, Shannan , Qamdo ,Nagqu ,Nagri etc. are all popular places in Tibet, for both normal and trekking itineraries. For expedition, Mt. Everest and Mt. Kailish are the most exciting and accessible areas. What historical and scenic sites are there to see in Tibet?

A: Monasteries are an integral part of Tibetan culture and a must for a tour of Tibet. The Potala Palace in Lhasa is the religious center of Tibet. This majestic and magnificent building spans Mount Potala, and is the primary monastery of Tibet. The Jokhang and Ramoqe monasteries in Lhasa were first constructed at the time of the Tubo Kingdom. The Jokhang Monastery has a large collection of precious cultural relics, the most famous being a gold statue of Sakyamuni, brought to Tibet by Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty when she married Songtsan Gampo, the king of the Tubo Kingdom. The Sera is another famous monastery in Lhasa.

The Samyai Monastery, built in the 8th century, has historic significance. This monastery comprises a cluster of unique buildings. It was built according to the formation of the world as described in Buddhist scriptures, and has great architectural value. The Gandain Monastery is the earliest of the six largest monasteries of the Yellow Sect, and marks its founding on the basis of Tsongkhapa's religious reform. The Drepung Monastery is the largest of the six Yellow Sect monasteries. It has developed into a Buddhist seminary and trains large numbers of monks who wish to enter the Tibetan Buddhism order. The Zhaxi Lhunbo Monastery in Xigaze is also one of the six famous monasteries of the Yellow Sect. It has remained the home temple of the Panchen Lama since the fourth Panchen.

 Other famous monasteries include the Sagya, Toling, Xalu, Baiqoi, Changzhug, Sading, Lhasa Mosque and the remains of the Pabangka.

Other sites well worth visiting include Yamzhog Yumoc Lake, the sacred Mapam Yumco Lake, the sacred Gangdise Mountain, the city remains of the ancient Guge Kingdom, the Tibetan King Mausoleum, the Karo remains of the Neolithic Age, Norbu Lingka (the former summer palace of the Dalai Lama), and the Ngari Prefecure, which has been dubbed the 'roof over the roof of the world.'

Besides sightseeing, Tibet also offers mountaineering, river adventure tours, skiing, bicycling, trekking, horseback riding, boating, hunting, and hot spring tours, and festival programs at the Lhasa Shoton Festival, Qangtang Horse Race Art Festival and Shannan Yalong Cultural and Art Festival.

Will Barkhor Market in Lhasa be open in winter?

A: Barkhor Market opens year round. Have a nice shopping there. What are the important Tibetan festivals? A: In general, Tibetan festivals have a strong ethnic and religious flavor. The first day of the first month of the Tibetan calendar is known as the King's New Year. This is the most important festival of the year. Early on New year's day morning, Tibetan men and women, dressed in their holiday best, go out to exchange New year greetings and good wishes. They also go to the monastery, or sing and dance on the street, but may not visit relatives and friends.

The 15th day of the first month is the Butter Lantern Festival. During the day, people go to the monastery, while at night, a butter lantern fair is held on Lhasa's Barkor Street, which is lined with racks displaying various butter sculptures, depicting deities, human figures, birds and animals, and plants and flowers. Puppet shows are also performed to add a festive atmosphere. In rural areas, people participate in antiphonal singing contests, which sometimes go on for days at a time. this is the most celebrated festival in Lhasa.

The fourth month of the Tibetan calendar is Buddhist Month, the 15th day of which is the anniversary of Sakyamuni's birth and nirvana. During this month the Tibetan people pray for bumper harvest. The 15th day of the fifth month of the Tibetan calendar is the Lingka Festival, or the World Happiness Day, when people dress in their best and go picnicking in parks.

The Shoton Festival lasts from the first to the 30th day of the seventh month. It is concurrent with the summer prayer meetings of the three most famous monasteries in Lhasa. Since a large amount of yogurt needs to be supplied to lamas attending the prayer meetings, and Tibetan operas are performed on these occasions, the festival is named Shoton- sho meaning yogurt, and ton meaning meeting. At this time, professional and amateur performing troupes gather at Norbu Lingka to stage Tibetan operas. Around the 10th day of the month, the troupes go out to perform in cities, towns, monasteries and suburbs. Nowadays, trade fairs are also held during the Shoton Festival.

The eighth month of the Tibetan calendar is the Harvest Thanksgiving Festival, when Tibetan people sing and dance, stage songfests, hold horse races and bull fights, put on archery, stone carrying and wrestling matches and other folk sports activities to celebrate harvest. The 15th day of the 10th month is the Goddess Festival, when religious rites are held. Women are especially active at this festival, since they consider it as their own celebration. The 25th day of the of the month is the Butter Lamp Festival, which commemorates the enlightenment of Tsongkhapa, when people place burning butter lamps on the roofs of monasteries and their homes. The 29th day of the 12th month is the Ghost-Dispelling Festival, when monasteries sponsor ceremonial dances to dispel evil spirits and pray for a bountiful harvest in the coming year. Ceremony at the Potala Palace is always the grandest.

Festival	Date	Tibetan calendar	for what?
Tsang Losar Tsang New Year	Jan 14	12/1	Tibetan New Year of Tsang area around Shigatse
Losar Tibetan New Year	Feb 13	1/1	A Happy New Year! Tashi Delek!
Monlam Great Prayer Festival	Feb 16-27	1/4-15	New year ceremonies are held in monasteries. 'Monlam Chenmo' of Lhasa has been prohibited by Chinese authorities
Chotrul Duechen (Cho-nga choepa) Butter Lamp Festival	Feb 27	1/15	Celebrating Buddha's Miracle Day with butter lamps and butter sculptures
Jampa Dendren Maitreya Buddha's Day	Mar 8	1/25	The end of the Monlam Festival. The Maitreya image of Jokhang Temple is borne around the Barkor circuit.
Tibetan Uprising Day	Mar 10	xxx	Remember the 1959 Bloodshed in Lhasa!
Saga Dawa	May 13- Jun 26	4/15	Buddha Shakyamuni's birth, enlightenment and Parinirvana
Dartsedo Horse Racing Festival	Jun 20		A horse racing festival at Dartsedo (Kangding, Sichuan)
Dzamling Chizang Universal Prayer Day	Jun 24	5/15	Burning 'sang', incense on hills for the World's peace
Samye Festival	Jun 24	5/15	Annual festival at Samye monastery
Tashi Lhunpo Thangka Festival	Jun 24-26	5/15-	A huge thangka is shown at Tashi Lhunpo monastery, Shigatse.
Gyantse Arrow Shooting Festival	Jun 30		Anual festival at Gyantse
Birthday of H.H. the Dalai Lama	Jul 6	xxx	No official celebration inside Tibet, but celebrated so heartily...
Choekhor Duechen Six-Four Festival	Jul 14	6/4	Buddha Shakyamuni's First teaching
Birth of Guru Rinpoche	Jul 19	6/10	Mainly celebrated at Nyingmapa monasteries
Ganden Siu Thang Ganden Thangka	Jul 24	6/15	A huge thangka is shown at Ganden monastery.
Nagchu Horse Racing Festival	Jul 25-29		Horse racing festival for Changthang nomads
Tashi Lhungpo Dance Festival	Aug 1		Cham (religious mask dance) is perform at Tashi Lhunpo monastery, Shigatse.
Shoton Yoghurt Festival	Aug 8-15	6/30-	The great thangka is shown at Drepung and Sera monastery. Tibetan opera contest is hold at Norbulingka.
Damshung Horse Racing Festival	Aug 17		Horse racing festival for Changthang nomads
Bathing Week	Sep 8-14	7-8	Washing away the grime by bathing in rivers
Onkor Harvest Festival	?	8/1-	Farmers' event including horse racing. Dates depend on villages.
Lha-bab Due-chen	Oct 28	9/22	Buddha Shakyamuni's descent from heaven
Kongpo Losar Kongpo New Year	Nov 5		Tibetan New Year celebration in Kongpo area
Palden Lhamo	Nov 18	10/15	Celebration for Palden Lhamo, the protective deity of Tibet
Tsongkapa Festival (Nga cho Chenmo) (Butter Lamp Festival)	Dec 29	10/25	Death of Tsongkapa, the founder of Gelugpa order
Gutor (Nganpa guzom)	Mar 1, 2003	12/29	averting Nine bad Omens and the negativity of the old year

Editor:Wang Ping  Source: