Naropa is the largest Buddhist festival of region
Preeti Verma Lal
In a stark landscape hemmed with chestnut-colored mountains, one day piety ambled in. To the sound of cymbals, oboe, trumpet and bells. Lamas in yellow hats, monks in maroon robes, women adorned with perakh (headdress with turquoise stones), the pious with prayers wheels in hand and devout with a murmur of a prayer on his lips. Curious onlookers and solemn devotees. Everyone was headed to the where piety had stepped in for the 5-day Naropa Festival. At the Hemis Monastery in Leh.
Naropa (1016-1100) was an Indian scholar-saint who became the Chancellor of Nalanda University but later left the materialistic world and his family for the path of enlightenment. At the age of 40, he met his Guru Talopa and attained enlightenment 12 years later. His teaching of the Six Yogas of Naropa are considered to be one of the fundamental pillars of the Vajrayana Buddhist tradition.
Known as the Kumbh of the Himalayas, the Naropa Festival, the largest Buddhist festival in the Himalayan region, is held every 12 years at the Hemis Monastery. The last Naropa Festival was held in 2016. The 2018 Festival could mark the beginning of an annual tradition of hosting the festival which included spiritual discourses, traditional dance performances, prayers, archery, fashion shows and performances by eminent singers of the Hindi film industry.
The Naropa Festival also marked the official launch of the Naropa Fellowship, a one-year residential program for post-graduate candidates. The inaugural Founding Class of 50 fellows commenced on September 1
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