Linka Festival

A Brief Introduction to Linka Festival

Linka Festival falls on the 15th day of the 5th month in Tibetan lunar calendar. In Tibetan, Linka Festival is called "Zangmu Linjisang", meaning the world incense-burning day or world happy day. It is said that Linka Festival is to memorize that master Padmasambhava's conquering all the demons in Tibet in the 5th month in one Monkey Year of Tibetan calendar.

General Celebrating Way in Linka Festival

The nature-loving Tibetan people are all good at singing and dancing. In the Linka Festival, all of them will dressed in festival costumes, bring the barley wine, buttered tea as well as many other delicious food outdoors. They pitch tents, eating and drinking, singing and dancing, appreciating the beauty of nature. There are also some folk artists coming to perform. The festival always lasts for as long as one month.

Celebrating Sites during Linka Festival in Different Places

Linka Festival is the most common recreational way for the Tibetans, usually from the June to the September of solar calendar. Yet different places in Tibet observe it in different times and different ways.

People in Lhasa area usually celebrate Linka Festival in the nearby woods of Norbulingka, People's Garden, Longwangtan Garden, Drepung Monastery, Sera Monastery. While people in Shigatse area will always gather out of the new Pachen Palace and in the orchards inside the Gangjian Orchard Hotel. People in Tsedang County observe Linka Festival on the bank of Yarlung Zangbo River or at the foot of Gongbu Rishen Mountain.

Development of Ways Celebrating Linka Festival

It is said that the oldest activities when celebrating the Linka Festival is that in sunny and warm days, the male adults in Shigatse area rose up early in the morning and rode on donkeys to a cave in the outer suburbs to pay respects to master Padmasambhava. While the women and children would take some food and come to the outside of the city to greet the men. After that, they would gather and observe the Linka Festival together.

Later, people have added some match on ride donkey, horse and toxophily match etc. The people from eastern Tibet like trekking or travel in carriage for one or two days in forest for the Linka Festival.

Now people will travel out with family for about one week for the Linka festival. More colorful recreational activities are also added, such as the playing Tibetan cards, telling stories, playing games and so on. In fact, there are lots of activities for the Linka Festival, but godliness and entertainment are the topics of it. Before the Linka Festival, people will go to Linka to choose and prepare place for camping and tools.