Yuru Kabgyat Festival 2022: Date, Time, Celebrations, History And Significance

Yuru Kabgyat, is the time when your body communicates your feelings through enthralling movements and your soul, through communion with Lord Buddha. It is breathtakingly beautiful and a dance-based festival which is made all the more colourful and vibrant due to the dedicated presence of the monks and Lamas.

Buddhist monks, of all orders, from all over the world, especially from Japan, Tibet, China and Korea gather at Lamayuru. As you surrender to the beauty of Leh, in the tranquil atmosphere of the hillside, the festival begins in the Lamayuru monastery, which is 127 kilometres away from Leh, Ladakh, India. Scroll down to get a panoramic view of the Yurukabgyat Festival.

Yuru Kabgyat Festival 2022: Date, Time

The YuruKabgyat Festival is celebrated on the 17th or18th day of the fifth Tibetan month which coincides with July orAugust, according to the Gregorian calendar. It is a known fact that the dates for Buddhist festivals vary as per the Tibetan calendar, every year. This festival was celebrated on 24 June 2014, a long time ago.

Yuru Kabgyat Festival 2022: History And Significance

If you are searching for a beacon of light to lead you through the mystery of Buddhist tenets and principles, the festival of Yuru brings you an exciting opportunity. Mask dances are widely practised in Bhutan, which belongs predominantly to the Mahayana tradition. This holy dance of Buddhist monks and lamas was introduced to the festive proceedings in the 8th century when the very first Cham dance was performed on stage. This two-day festival lets you combine the serenity and the excitement and at the same time, allows you to savour every moment of the occasion, without a stop.

This festival offers a lot of spiritual benefits, apart from lightening your moods. Mainly you appease the deity, who in turn, will save you and the entire region from all sorts of evil. It would drive away evil and negative energies, protect the people from epidemics, and natural calamities and ensure good health.

Masked dances of today, are in a way, modified versions of the age-old Cham dance. Most importantly the figures of Yama (lord of death) and Padma Sambhava (Buddha the second) are depicted in the dance drama. He is entrusted with the upkeep of horses, animals, and human beings. He is also worshipped for wealth. It keeps you aware of the religious aspects of Buddhism and the different cults within it and elevates your understanding of religion and spirituality to a new level. Your understanding of Buddhist tenets like nonviolence and truthfulness would be enhanced and helps you discover and develop those values from within.

Yuru Kabgyat Festival 2022: Celebrations

Yuru Kabgyat is a dance drama-oriented event that is performed by Lamas and Monks. Chams dance is what makes the celebration complete. The cham dancers wear masks made of papier-Mache with a coat of plastic on it, and dance in circular motions, to the background sounds from the dung Chen, cymbals, long pipes, and drums. The next feature in importance is the mellifluous songs, that are performed by the locals accompanied by drums and other instruments. A huge idol of Buddha is placed in the centre of the altar and worshipped in an elaborate manner. Monks at Lahul, Spiti, Ladakh, and Kinnaur are specially equipped for these colourful events, as their creativity and zest add a dreamy touch and colour to the event.

It is at this time, that the Buddha is invoked into the idol, and special efforts are made to appease him at that point. At the last point, this festival draws to a close with sacrificial offerings and sacred rituals performed to Buddha by the Monks.

Travellers who visit this dance drama festival leave this place, enthralled and overwhelmed. The overpowering sound of the cymbals and drums stirs your emotions to the hilt. You can feel the energy of the event transporting you to the land of Buddha.

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Image sources: ladakhtourism.com