Overview
Monlam Festival, also known as the Great Prayer Festival is the grandest religious festival in Tibet during the new year. It has its origin in a prayer meeting organized at Jokhang Monastery by Tsong Khapa, founder of the Gelukpa Sect, in 1409. Thousands of monks from far and near will gather for prayers, theological debates and examination for Geshe, a doctoral degree in Buddhist theology at monasteries and pilgrims will come to listen to sermons. This tour of Monlam Festival will provide us a chance to join colorfully dressed pilgrims and monks in a variety of religious ceremonies at Tibetan monasteries in Amdo. The highlight of the festival is the 'Exposing of the Buddha' ceremony, a thangka of Buddha measuring 90 ft of length and 60 ft of width will be unfurled on a hillside. The festival will be accompanied by lively Cham dances and prayer assemblies throughout the entire period of two weeks.
Outline Itinerary
Day 01: Arrival Beijing
Day 02 Beijing Sightseeing
Day 03: Beijing Sightseeing
Day 04: Flight to Xining
Day 05: Xining – Rebgong
Day 06: Rebgong (Gormar Gonpa & Exposing the Buddha)
Day 07: Rebgong (Wutun Monastery & Thangka Painting Arts)
Day 08: Rebgong (Gormar Monastery & Cham Dance)
Day 09: Rebgong – Xining (or alternative to Xiahe, Lanzhou)
Get Inspired
https://plateautours.com/destinations/qinghai-amdo/amdo-new-year-of-monlam-festival#sigProIdfd6ed31778
Detail Itinerary
Day 01:: Arrival Beijing
Upon arrive at Beijing, the capital of China, you will be met by the local guide and driver and then transfer to the hotel. Rest time is free leisure or rest in the hotel for jet leg
Day 02: Beijing Sightseeing
Visit Tian'anmen Square and the Forbidden City. Pedicab tour in Beijing's Hutong, wander around Houhai Lake, climb to the local bell tower for a birds view of the old Beijing area. Visit a local family in Hutong, learn how to make traditional food of dumplings with the hostess. Then visit Summer Palace. Dinner will be served as the famous Beijing Roasted Duck.
Day 03:: Beijing Sightseeing
Visit Temple of Heaven, view the local people doing exercises there. Then we drive the vicinity of Beijing to visit Mutianyu section of the Great Wall. In the afternoon return to Beijing downtown, rest time is free leisure
Day 04:: Flight to Xining
Day 05:: Xining – Rebgong
Heads on to Tongren via Youning Gongpa. Before reaching the town, we will make a stop in Wutun village and visit two small monasteries. Here is thought to be the heart of Tibetan Rebgong-art, famous for its beautiful artwork of Buddhist Thangka painting and painted statues. Later visit Rongwo Monastery, the biggest in Amdo region. This Gelugpa sect. monastery currently houses 500 monks and was initially constructed from 1301 in Yuan Dynasty.
Day 06:: Rebgong (Gormar Gonpa & Exposing the Buddha)
Morning experience lively and largely breakfast party that local Tibetans bring their milk tea and dine in the monastery together over the new year talks. Today's highlight is the grand ceremony of Exposing the Buddha at the Gormar Gonpa in the afternoon. Tibetans traditionally place a huge painting or embroidery of the Buddha Tangka on the slope of a hill to share the benefit of Buddhism with all the creature in the air which we could not see they are existed.
Day 07:: Rebgong (Wutun Monastery & Thangka Painting Arts)
The Wutun Monastery is known for its beautiful Buddhist artwork of Thangka. Monks are trained at a very young age to pass on this tradition for generations. We will meet a few outstanding Thangka painters and communicate on Tibetan arts with them in this monastery.
Day 08:: Rebgong (Gormar Monastery & Cham Dance)
Today we join local Tibetans in Gormar Monastery for their Cham Dance. The Cham Dance calls on traditions that date back over 500 years, initially created by the fourth Panchen Lama, performances as sacred masked dances, music, healing chants and spectacular richly ornamented multi-colored costumes. The dancers use symbolic hand gestures known as madras to transmit healing powers from the deities.
Day 09:: Rebgong – Xining (or alternative to Xiahe, Lanzhou)
Today drive back to Xining or take the alternative route to Xiahe and Lanzhou. Then take the connected flight for departure.
