Ladakh Fair and Festivals
Most
of the festival events in Ladakh are the annual monastic festivals.
Among non-monastic events count the Losar or New Year celebrations
and the notable Ladakh Festival organized by the Kashmir and Jammu
government. The monastic festivals are dance-dramas in the gompa courtyards.
The performers are the lamas, the monks themselves. Wearing colorful
garments and often frightful, at times comic masks, the monks perform
mimes representing various aspects of the religion, be it the progress
of the individual soul and its purification or the triumph of good
over evil. The events draw spectators from among the local populace,
from near and far, in great numbers for attending these auspicious
events promises spiritual benefits aside the enjoyment of the party
atmosphere. Huge crowds that gather heighten the sense of the occasion.
Most monastic festivals are two-day events. Losar celebrations take
close to one month and the Ladakh Festival is a two-week event. Our
tours are designed around the dates of these unique events, bringing
you the first hand experience of their festive atmosphere and thus
broadening your insight into the cultural heritage of Ladakh
The
festival begins with a spectacular procession in which various cultural
troupes and village contingents participate in full ceremonial costumes,
singing and performing various types of colorful dances to the tune
of the traditional orchestra. Thousands of traditionally attired men
and women line the route of the procession, adding to the carnival
atmosphere. At the polo ground, where the procession terminates, the
participants break into a variety of folk and popular dances, presenting
the best samples of the region's performing arts. Among the regular
programs, including a fortnight of musical concerts, lama dances and
folk ceremonies, the most colorful and exciting are the archery events.
Designed with an objective to revive and promote the richness, depth
and pageantry of Ladakh's centuries-old culture for worldwide appreciation
and enjoyment, the Ladakh Festival offers a unique opportunity to
witness many of Ladakhs traditions and folk heritage in a very
short time and without having to traverse to its often formidable
outlying areas. Our tour brings you to experience the best of it.
Our tour's daily program is not finalized until Kashmir and Jammu
Tourism Department publishes the schedule of events, released usually
about two weeks before the start of the festival.
| Names
of the Festival |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
| Spitok
Gustor (Spituk) |
JAN
31,Feb 01 |
JAN 21,22 |
JAN 9, 10 |
| Dosmoche
(Leh,Likir And Deskit Monasteries) |
MAR 2,3 |
FEB 19,20 |
FEB 8,9 |
| Stok
Guru Tse-Cue (Stok Monastery) |
MAR
14, 15 |
FEB 2,3 |
FEB 19,20 |
| Matho
Nagrang |
MAR
18,19 |
FEB 7,8 |
FEB 24, 25 |
| Budha
Purnima |
JUNE 15 |
MAY 4 |
MAY 25 |
| Hemis
TSE-CHU |
JUL
10,11 |
JUN 29,30 |
JUN 18,19 |
| Yuru
Kabgyat (Lamayuru) |
JUN
28,29 |
JUN 16,17 |
JUN 5,6 |
| Zanskar
Karsha Gustor |
JUL
27,28 |
JUL 16,17 |
JUL 6,7 |
| Ph-Yang
Tsedup (Phyang) |
JUL
28,29 |
JUL 16. 17 |
JUL 6, 7 |
| Korzok
Gustor (Tsomoriri Lake) |
AUT
2,3 |
JUL 22, 23 |
JUL 11,12 |
| Dak-Thok
Tse-Chu |
AUG
8,9 |
JUL 28, 29 |
JUL 18,19 |
| Sant
Naro Nasjal (Sani Monastery - Zanskar) |
AUG 12,13 |
AUG 1,2 |
JUL 21, 22 |
| Ladakh Festivals |
1 - 15 SEP (EVERY YEAR) |
1 - 15 SEP (EVERY YEAR) |
1 - 15 SEP (EVERY YEAR) |
| Shachukul
Gustor |
JUL 17, 18 |
JUL 5, 6 |
JUN 25, 26 |
| Thiksay
Gustor |
NOV 13, 14 |
NOV 1,2 |
NOV 20,21 |
| Chemrey
Angchok |
NOV
23,24 |
NOV 11,12 |
NOV 30,DEC 1 |
| Galdan
Namchot |
DEC
20 |
DEC 8 |
DEC 27 |
| Losar |
DEC
25 |
DEC 14 |
JAN 2 |
|