Losar Festival 2020

Losar Festival 2020 – Tibetan New Year

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When is Losar Celebrated?

In the year 2020 Losar will be celebrated from Monday, 24 February and ends on Wednesday, 26 February.

What is Losar ?

Losar means New Year (lo - year, sar - new) in Tibetan. It is the most important festival in the Tibetan calendar.The origins of Losar can be traced back to pre-Buddhist period and the Bon religion and was most likely celebrated to mark the winter solstice. 

To mark the beginning of the end of winter, festivities included offering large quantities of incense to the local spirits and deities. When the region converted to Buddhism, the date was shifted by Buddhist monks to match up with their lunar calendar.

The Tibetan New Year period lasts for fifteen days, with the first three days and New Year's Eve being the main celebrations

On Tibetan New Year's Eve, a custom is making a special noodle dish called guthuk. In the dish are dumplings with different ingredients inside them. Finding a certain ingredient is a light-hearted omen for the coming year. Finding a white coloured ingredient such as rice or salt is considered a good omen; finding a pebble means good luck; finding a chilli means the person is talkative and finding a black ingredient means you have are 'black-heated'. Interestingly, in some European Christmas customs, finding coal in your presents means the same thing.

On Tibetan New Year's Eve, the monks do a protector deities' puja (ceremony) to drive out evil spirits. And begin preparations for the Losar celebrations.On the first day of the New Year, people rise early and place water and offerings on their household altars to ensure a good harvest.

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Eight Auspicious Symbols - Losar Celebrations

1.      Parasol is representative of Royal Dignity.

2.      A pair of golden fish represent the Good Fortune to follow the coming year.

3.      Conch Shell helps in spreading the sound of Dharma.

4.      Lotus Blossom is representative of the clarity of mind that would lead in the path to attain enlightenment or nirvana.

5.      Vase is representative of prosperity and longevity.

6.      Victory Banner is representative of victory over worldly pleasures like lust, desires and fear of death, also leading to nirvana.

7.      The Wheel of Dharma is perhaps the most important Buddhist Symbol. This is representative of the Noble Eightfold Path that would lead to Nirvana, thereby ending all suffering.

8.      The Eternal Knot is representative of the union of wisdom and compassion, reminding one the far-reaching effects thereof.

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Day 1

The devout Tibetan Buddhist begins the New Year by honoring his or her dharma teacher. Guru and disciple greet each other with wishes of peace and progress. It is also traditional to offer sprouted barley seeds and buckets of tsampa (roasted barley flour with butter) and other grains on home altars to ensure a good harvest. Laypeople visit friends to wish them Tashi Delek — "auspicious greetings"; loosely, "very best wishes."

His Holiness the Dalai Lama and other high lamas gather in a ceremony to make offerings to the high dharma protectors (Dharmapala) — in particular, the Dharmapala Palden Lhamo, who is a special protector of Tibet. The day also includes sacred dances and debates of Buddhist philosophy.

Day 2

On the second day, religious ceremonies are held. People visit the local monastery to worship and give gifts to the monks. They also set off firecrackers to rid evil spirits, which are believed to be lurking around. Houses are thoroughly cleared, after which people get dressed, and proceed to have a reunion feast, which is similar in spirit to the Han Chinese New Year feast.

Day 3

On this day, laypeople make special offerings to the dharma protectors. They raise prayer flags from hills, mountains, and rooftops and burn juniper leaves and incense as offerings. The Dharmapalas are praised in chant and song and asked for blessings.

This ends the spiritual observance of Losar. However, the subsequent parties may go on for another 10 to 15 days.

Although Losar itself is a three-day festival, festivities often continue until Chunga Choepa, the Butter Lamp Festival. Chunga Choepa is held 15 days after Losar. Sculpting yak butter is a sacred art in Tibet, and monks perform purification rituals before crafting brightly colored, elaborate works of art that are put on display in monasteries.