Losar


Losar 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.
The variation of the festival in Nepal is called Lhochhar and is observed about eight weeks earlier than the Tibetan Losar.

History

Losar predates the arrival of Buddhism in Tibet and has its roots in a winter incense-burning custom of the Bon religion. During the reign of the ninth Tibetan king, Pude Gungyal, it is said that this custom merged with a harvest festival to form the annual Losar festival.
The 14th Dalai Lama frames the importance of consulting the Nechung Oracle for Losar:
Tenzin Wangyal frames his experience of Tibetan cultural practice of Losar in relation to elemental celebrations and offerings to Nāga :
being performed in Lachung during the Buddhist festival of Losar

Practice

Losar is celebrated for 15 days, with the main celebrations on the first three days. On the first day of Losar, a beverage called changkol is made from chhaang. The second day of Losar is known as King's Losar . Losar is traditionally preceded by the five-day practice of Vajrakilaya. Because the Uyghurs adopted the Chinese calendar, and the Mongols and Tibetans adopted the Uyghur calendar, Losar occurs near or on the same day as the Chinese New Year and the Mongolian New Year, but the traditions of Losar are unique to Tibet, and predate both Indian and Chinese influences. Originally, ancient celebrations of Losar occurred solely on the winter solstice, and was only moved to coincide with the Chinese and Mongolian New Year by a leader of the Gelug school of Buddhism.
As well as that, the Sherpas are associated with Losar and enjoy Losar in the high altitudes of the Nepal Himalayan Range. Prior to the Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1950, Losar began with a morning ritual ceremony at Namgyal Monastery, led by the Dalai Lama and other high-ranking lamas, with government officials participating, to honor the Dharmapala Palden Lhamo. After the Dalai Lama was exiled, many monasteries were destroyed and monks imprisoned. Since that time, Tibetan Buddhist practice in Tibet has been difficult to observe publicly.
In Tibet, various customs are associated with the holiday:
Losar customs in Bhutan are similar to, but distinct from, customs in neighboring Tibet. Modern celebration of the holiday began in Bhutan in 1637, when Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal commemorated the completion of the Punakha Dzong with an inaugural ceremony, in which "Bhutanese came from all over the country to bring offerings of produce from their various regions, a tradition that is still reflected in the wide variety of foods consumed during the ritual Losar meals." Traditional foods consumed on the occasion include sugarcane and green bananas, which are considered auspicious. In Bhutan, picnicking, dancing, singing, dart-playing, archery, and the giving of offerings are all traditions.

Dates

The Tibetan calendar is a lunisolar calendar. Losar is celebrated on the first through third days of the first lunar month.
Gregorian YearYear of Rabjung 60-year CycleTibetan YearLosar Date***Gender, Element, and Animal
2008rab byung 17 lo 222135February 7Male Earth Mouse/Rat**
2009rab byung 17 lo 232136February 25Female Earth Ox
2010rab byung 17 lo 242137February 14Male Iron Tiger
2011rab byung 17 lo 252138March 5Female Iron Hare/Rabbit**
2012rab byung 17 lo 262139February 22Male Water Dragon
2013rab byung 17 lo 272140February 11Female Water Snake
2014rab byung 17 lo 282141March 2Male Wood Horse
2015rab byung 17 lo 292142February 18/19Female Wood Sheep/Goat**
2016rab byung 17 lo 302143February 9Male Fire Monkey
2017rab byung 17 lo 312144February 27Female Fire Bird/Rooster
2018rab byung 17 lo 322145February 16Male Earth Dog
2019rab byung 17 lo 332146February 5Female Earth Pig/Boar**
2020rab byung 17 lo 342147February 24Male Iron Mouse/Rat**