Tibetans celebrate New Year's Day, International Labor Day on May 1 and National Day on October 1 with the other Chinese. In addition, they have their own traditional festivals.

Tibetan New Year. From the first to the 15th day of the first month of the Tibetan calendar, marks the most exciting Tibetan festival, which is like Christmas in the West. All houses are decorated with lanterns and colored streamers and every family prepares delicious food and gives auspicious offerings. People, jubilantly clad in new clothes, wish each other good luck for the coming year. The Tibetan New Year follows one month after the New Year of the Gregorian calendar.

Grand Summons Ceremony. Held in the first month of the Tibetan calendar, it is the largest Buddhist festival in Tibet. Monks and laity from all over Tibet and even from outside meet in the Jokhang Monastery in Lhasa to recite sutras, debate on philosophical and ethic issues and offer praise to Buddha. Alms are given on this day. A dyke consolidation ceremony is held by the Lhasa River. Other activities include greeting the image of Qamba Buddha statues and butter lantern shows.

Saga Dawa Festival. Falling on the 15th day of the fourth month of Tibetan calendar, this is the most sacred day to celebrate Sakyamuni's birth, attainment of enlightenment and death. Buddhist followers go to Lhasa to rotate prayer wheels in the morning and row boats, sing and dance, and have picnics by the Dragon King Pool in the afternoon.

Lingka Festival. On the 15th day of the fifth month of the Tibetan calendar, people dressed in their holiday best take buttered tea, highland barley wine and food for picnics in the lingka parks.

Holy Mountain Circumambulation Festival. On the fourth day of the sixth month of the Tibetan calendar, people rotate the prayer wheel while walking around the Holy Mountain to commemorate Sakyamuni's first summons. The mountain, unique in shape, has 108 sacred springs,108 holy sites and numerous legends.

Shoton Festival. Early in the seventh month of the Tibetan calendar, monks and laity in Lhasa drink sour milk and watch Tibetan opera. They first pay homage to Buddha at the Zhaibung Monastery, then move to Norbu Lingka Park where Tibetan opera troupes from all corners of Tibet present their performances. Therefore, it is also called the Tibetan Opera Festival. The activities last about one week.

Bathing Festival. During the first 10 days of the seventh month of the Tibetan calendar,old and young baths or swim in rivers and streams and sing and dance on the riverside until sunset.

Ong-kor Festival. It is also called the Bumper Harvest Festival. Celebrated in the eighth month of the Tibetan calendar, the festival sees farmers dress in new clothes to carry Buddhist statues and walk around their fields, reciting sutras. Afterwards they gather in their villages to dance and drink. In some places, horse and yak races and wrestling also take place.

Lamp Festival. This falls on the 25th day of the 12th month of the Tibetan calendar. It is said that this was the day when Zongkapa, founder of the Yellow Sect, gained enlightenment and entered Buddhahood. To commemorate him, Tibetans light rows of butter lamps on the roofs and window sills of their homes and recite sutras.

(This article appears on page 21, No. 21, 1994)