Ladakh LG extends Losar greetings, wishes peace and prosperity on Tibetan New Year

Leh, Dec 20:  Ladakh Lt Governor (L-G) Kavinder Gupta on Saturday extended his best wishes to the people on the occasion of Losar, a significant festival in the region that marks the beginning of the Tibetan New Year.

The L-G conveyed his hopes for peace and harmony for everyone on this auspicious occasion.

In a post on X, he said: "On the auspicious occasion of Losar, the traditional New Year celebrated with devotion & joy across Ladakh, I extend my warmest greetings & best wishes to the people of Ladakh & all those observing this festival. May the Losar usher in peace, prosperity, and harmony for all".

Losar in Ladakh is the vibrant Tibetan New Year and a major Buddhist festival, celebrated with prayers, traditional music, masked dances known as cham, feasting, and rituals that symbolise the welcoming of prosperity and the banishing of evil spirits.

The festival is usually observed around December or January and transforms the region with lights, cultural performances, and deep spiritual fervour in monasteries and homes.

The celebrations involve cleaning homes, making dough models of the sun and moon, preparing special meals, and organising evening torchlight processions known as 'Metho'.

Losar offers a unique opportunity to witness Ladakh's rich Buddhist culture come alive, blending ancient traditions with joyous celebrations and community gatherings.

Historically, Losar predates the arrival of Buddhism in Tibet and has its origins in a winter incense-burning custom of the Bon religion. The Tibetan New Year is calculated by adding the current year to 127 BCE, which marks the founding of the Yarlung dynasty.

During the reign of the ninth Tibetan king, Pude Gungyal (317–398), this custom is believed to have merged with a harvest festival, eventually forming the annual Losar celebration.

Losar is observed over a span of 15 days, with the main festivities taking place during the first three days. On the first day of Losar, a traditional beverage called changkol is prepared from chhaang, a Tibetan-Nepali equivalent of beer.

The second day is known as the King's Losar, or gyalpo losar. The festival is traditionally preceded by a five-day practice of Vajrakilaya.

Because the Uyghurs adopted the Chinese calendar, and the Mongols and Tibetans adopted the Uyghur calendar, Losar often coincides with or falls close to the Chinese New Year and the Mongolian New Year.

However, the traditions associated with Losar are distinct to Tibet and predate both Indian and Chinese cultural influences.

--IANS