Tibet Losar Festival 2013, Tibetan New Year

July,27 2016 BY Master Catherine Jigme 0 COMMENTS

Losar Festival or Tibetan New Year is the biggest event for Tibetan people in the year. Losar literally means New Year in Tibetan Language. The Tibet Losar Festival 2013 will fall on February 9, 2013 on solar calendar.

Celebrated with great fervor the Losar Festival is filled with age old ceremonies that commemorate the struggle between good and evil. The Tibetan people come out on the streets and chant, pass fire torches, dance and sing - a time for general merriment essentially!

The last day of the preceding year is a day to prepare for the coming New Year. The monasteries are all deckled up in the finest decorations and a Blessing Ceremony is performed on the first day of Losar. Homes are freshly painted, families dress up in new clothes, good food and special dishes are cooked and there is a wonderful air of expectation of what the New Year holds. So come to Tibet and be a part of the gaiety and joy that fills the streets of Lhasa!

The Story of Losar

The word of Losar is a Tibetan word which means New Year. The word is composed of two characters: Lo and Sar. Lo means Year and Sar means New. The celebration of Losar can be traced back to Tibetan pre-Buddhist period. At that time, Tibetans were followers of the Bon religion, and held a spiritual ceremony every winter. During the ceremonies, people burnt a large quantity of incense to appease the local spirits, deities and protectors. Later, this religious festival developed into an annual Buddhist festival, solar, in the reign of Pude Gungyal, the ninth King of Tibet.

The festival is also believed to have begun when an old woman called Belma introduced the measurement of time to Tibet based on the moon's phases. This festival was held in autumn, when the apricot trees blossomed. It may have been the first celebration of the traditional farmers' festival. It was during this period that the arts of cultivation of soil were first introduced to Tibet. Religious ceremonies started to celebrate these new capabilities, and these celebrations are believed to lead to the Losar festival.

If you are interested in the Losar Festival, it is best to travel to Tibet during this event. Tibet travel org have designed a Tibet tour calendar 2013 including the 2013 Tibetan New Year Tour.

About the Author - Master Catherine Jigme

With exceptional passion and outstanding leadership, Mrs. Catherine has dedicated herself to Tibet inbound tourism and China tour for 15 years. As one of the handful females who see great potential of Chinese inbound tourism, Catherine has made great contribution to promoting Tibet tourism and enhancing the employment of Tibetans and prosperity of local Tibetan community.

Over the years, she travelled overseas with Tibet Tourism Bureau many times to promote Tibet tourism. Currently, Catherine works as the marketing director of Tibet Vista, an opinion leader behind the whole team of Tibet Vista.

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