Onam is an annual harvest and cultural festival related to Hinduism that is celebrated mostly by the people of Kerala. A major annual event for Keralites, it is the official festival of the state and includes a spectrum of cultural events.
Bhai Dooj, Bhai Tika, Bhaubeej, Bhai Beej, Bhai Phonta or Bhratri Dwitiya is a festival celebrated by Hindus on the second lunar day of the Shukla Paksha of Kartika, the eighth month of the Vikram Samvat Hindu calendar or the Shalivahana Shaka calendar. It is celebrated during the Diwali or Tihar festival and Holi festival. The celebrations of this day are similar to the festival of Raksha Bandhan.
Losar also known as Tibetan New Year, is a festival in Tibetan Buddhism. The holiday is celebrated on various dates depending on location tradition. The holiday is a new year's festival, celebrated on the first day of the lunisolar Tibetan calendar, which corresponds to a date in February or March in the Gregorian calendar. In 2020, the new year commenced on the 24th of February and celebrations ran until the 26th of the same month. It also commenced the Year of the Male Iron Rat.
Tibet developed a distinct culture due to its geographic and climatic conditions. While influenced by neighboring cultures from China, India, and Nepal, the Himalayan region's remoteness and inaccessibility have preserved distinct local influences, and stimulated the development of its distinct culture.
Naga Panchami is a day of traditional worship of Nag or snakes observed by Hindus, Jains, and Buddhists throughout India, Nepal, and other countries where Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist adherents live. The worship is offered on the fifth day of bright half of lunar month of Shravana (July/August), according to the Hindu calendar. Some Indian states, such as Karnataka, Rajasthan and Gujarat, celebrate Naga Panchami on the dark half of the same month. As part of the festivities, a Naga or serpent deity made of silver, stone, wood, or a painting is given a reverential bath with milk and their blessings are sought for the welfare of the family. Live snakes, especially cobras, are also worshipped on this day, especially with offerings of milk and generally with the assistance of a snake charmer.
Sakela is one of the main festival of Kirat Rai people, an ethnic group indigenous to Eastern Nepal and Sikkim, Kalimpong, and Darjeeling regions of India. Sakela is celebrated twice a year and is distinguished by two names Ubhauli and Udhauli. Sakela Ubhauli is celebrated during Baisakh Purnima and Sakela Udhauli is celebrated during the full moon day in the month of Mangsir.
Gyalpo (རྒྱལ་པོ) is a term in Tibetic languages that is translated as "king" in English
Public holidays in Bhutan consist of both national holidays and local festivals or tshechus. While national holidays are observed throughout Bhutan, tsechus are only observed in their areas. Bhutan uses its own calendar, a variant of the lunisolar Tibetan calendar. Because it is a lunisolar calendar, dates of some national holidays and most tshechus change from year to year. For example, the new year, Losar, generally falls between February and March.
Guthuk is a stew soup which has various types of ingredients like beans, vegetables, meat etc, or left over harvested grains is used for preparing
Thukpa bhatuk is a common Tibetan cuisine noodle soup that includes small bhatsa noodles. This dish is a common soup made in the winter but is especially important for Tibetan New Year. On Nyi-Shu-Gu, the eve of Losar, the common Tibetan soup, thukpa bhatuk is made with special ingredients to form guthuk. Guthuk is then eaten on Losar to symbolise getting rid of negativities of the past year and invite positives into the new year.
Galdan Namchot is a festival celebrated in Tibet, Nepal, Mongolia and many regions of Himalaya, particularly in Ladakh, India. It is to commemorate the birth as well as parinirvana (death) and the Buddhahood of Je Tsongkhapa, a famous Scholar/teacher of Tibetan Buddhism whose activities led to the formation of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. Galdan Namchot also marks the beginning of the new year celebrations in Ladakh.
Losoong marks the end of harvest season, of the Bhutia tribe, celebrated every year in December.
Sonam Lhosar is a New Year's day festival of the Hyolmo and Tamang people of Nepal as well as Sikkim and Darjeeling regions of India. It falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice which is usually the Magh Sukla Pratipada based on the eastern lunar calendar.
Tamu Lhosar is a new year festival of Gurung people of Nepal. It is celebrated on every 15th Poush (December/January) of the Nepali calendar. Similar to other Lhosars, the Gurung people also represents the years with a cycle of 12 years representing various creatures.
Mani Rimdu is a 19-day festival celebrated by Buddhists in the Everest region of Nepal to mark the founding of Buddhism by Guru Rinpoche Padmasambhava.
The culture of Ladakh refers to the traditional customs, belief systems, and political systems that are followed by Ladakhi people in India. The languages, religions, dance, music, architecture, food, and customs of the Ladakh region are similar to neighboring Tibet. Ladakhi is the traditional language of Ladakh. The popular dances in Ladakh include the khatok chenmo, cham, etc. The people of Ladakh also celebrate several festivals throughout the year, some of the most famous are Hemis Tsechu and Losar.
Mayfung is a New Year festival celebrated on the 21 December by the Balti people in the Baltistan region of Pakistan. It is held to commemorate the end of the longest night of the year and the start of the Balti New Year. Mayfung is traditionally celebrated in Baltistan but also in some parts of Gilgit, Chitral and Tibet in China.
