Tibetan New Year
It is the greatest festival in Tibet. In ancient times when the peach tree was in blossom, it was considered as the starting of a new year. Since the systematization of the Tibetan calendar in 1027 AD., the first day of the first month became fixed as the New Year. On the New Year's Day, families unite "auspicious dipper" is offered and the auspicious words "tashi delek" are greeted.
Grand Summons Ceremony
The Great Prayer Festival, falls anywhere from the fourth up to the eleventh day of the first Tibetan month. The event was established in 1049 by Tsong Khapa, the founder of the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama's order , It is the grandest religious festival in Tibet. Religious dances are performed and thousands of monks gather for chanting in front of the Jokhang Temple. Examinations take the form of debates for the Geshe degree, the highest degree in Buddhist theology. Pilgrims crowd to listen to the sermons and to give religious donations.
Butter Oil Lantern Festival
It's held on the 15th of the first lunar month. Huge yak-butter sculptures are placed around Lhasa's Barkhor circuit.
Saga Dawa Festival
It is the holiest in Tibet, there memorable occasions coincide on this day, Buddha's birth and Buddha's enlightenment. Almost every person within Lhasa joins in circumambulations round the city and spends their late afternoon on picnic at "Dzongyab Lukhang" park at the foot of Potala.
Gyantse Horse Race & Archery
Horse race and archery are generally popular in Tibet, and Gyantse enjoys prestige of being the earliest in history by starting in 1408. Contests in early times included horse race, archery, and shooting on gallop followed by a few days' entertainment or picnicking. Presently, ball games, track and field events, folk songs and dances, barter trade are in addition to the above.
Changtang Chachen Horse Race Festival
There are many horse racing festivals in Tibet, the one in Nagqu of Northern Tibet is the greatest. August is the golden season on Northern Tibet's vast grassland. Herdsmen, on their horsebacks, in colorful dresses, carrying tents and local products, pour into Nagqu. Soon they form a city of tents. Various exciting programs are held, such as horse racing, yak racing, archery, horsemanship and commodity fair.
Mountian Worship Festival
The holy mountain festival begins on the fourth day of the sixth Tibetan month and commemorates Sakyamuni's (Buddha's) first sermon. People go to monasteries to pay their respects to the Buddha. Circumambulation around the mountains is a very popular practice during the festival. Picnicking, singing and dancing are also part of the event. Mt.Kailash is a very popular journey at this stage.
Shoton Festival
It is one of the major festivals in Tibet, also known as the Tibetan Opera Festival. The founder of the Gelugpa (Yellow Sect of Buddhism), Tsongkhapa set the rule that Buddhists can cultivate themselves only indoor in summer, to avoid killing other creatures carelessly. This rule must be carried out till the seventh lunar month. Then Buddhists go outdoors, accept yoghurt served by local people, and have fun. Since the middle of 17th century, the Fifth Dalai Lama added opera performance to this festival. Famous Tibetan opera troupes perform in Norbulingka (Dalai Lama's summer palace).
Bathing Festival
It is believed when the sacred planet Venus appears in the sky; the water in the river becomes purest and cures diseases. During its appearance for one week, usually the end of the seventh and beginning of the eighth lunar months, all the people in Tibet go into the river to wash away the grime of the previous year.
Harvest Festival
Is celebrated when the crops ripen,usually around August. The festival is observed only in farming villages. People walk around their fields to thank the gods and deities for a good year's harvest. Singing, dancing, and horse racing are indispensable folk activities
