Dosmoche

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Dosmoche/ Dosmochhey
Cham dance during Dosmoche festival 2018 in Leh Palace
Observed byBuddhists
TypeReligious festival
New year
Commemoration
Significancebeing celebrated for peace and prosperity in the coming Ladakhi new year
BeginsFebruary
EndsFebruary
Date28th and 29th day of the 12th month of the Tibetan lunar calendar every year
FrequencyAnnual

Dosmoche is a Buddhist festival celebrated in Ladakh, India. It is celebrated in Leh, Likir and Diskit monasteries.[1] It is the last festival of New Year Celebrations, the other one is Losar.[2] The two-day Dosmoche festival is a gazetted holiday for Leh district and Zanskar Sub Division. Dosmoche is also known as the "Festival of Scapegoat" and is one of Ladakh's most popular prayer festivals.[3] This festival is also celebrated to purify the town from evil spirits.

History

Dosmoche was started by the rulers of Ladakh.[4] The festival was started during kingdom of King Lhachen Gongdup/ Lha-chen-Dnos-grub (1295–1320).[5][4] He fought two battles with invaders from Nyungti (Kullu of Himachal Pradesh) to inhibit the exterminatory forces of the battles.[4] Sacred mask dances, known as Cham dance, are carried out in the courtyard of the old chapel, below the gates of the Leh Palace.[6] Lamas are drawn from different monasteries from across Ladakh on a rotation basis for this festival.

Celebrations

High pitched sound of

Mahayana Buddhism.[7]

At a one-kilometre stretch from Moti-Market to the other end of

tambola, lotteries and shopping.[7]

Schedule

Since Ladakh follows the Tibetan lunar calendar and Dosmoche festival comes on the twenty-eighth and twenty-ninth day of the twelfth month of the Tibetan calendar, every year the festival falls on a different date of the Gregorian calendar.[9]

Year Date
2014 27–28 February
2015 17–18 February
2016 6–7 February
2017 24–25 February
2018 13–14 February
2019 2–3 February
2020 21–22 February
2021 12–13 February
2022 28 February - 1 March
2023 18–19 February

Gallery

References

  1. ^ "Leh, Likir Dosmoche begins". Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  2. ^ "Dosmoche Festival". Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  3. ^ "Dosmoche: Festival of the Scapegoat". Ladakh-Leh.com. Retrieved 5 November 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Ladakh celebrates winter festival of 'Dosmoche'". Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  5. .
  6. ^ "Likir Festival in Likir Gompa". india.com. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  7. ^ a b c "'Leh, Likir Dosmoche begins'". Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  8. .
  9. ^ "Calendar of Monastic festival". Leh official website. Retrieved 1 March 2018.