By Lhundup Gyalpo
Buddha Purnima, the full moon day of the 4th month of the lunar Calendar, is celebrated as the birth, enlightenment and passing away of the Lord Buddha. Of the many celebratory events that mark the day, one, in particular, is peculiar to Ladakh; the procession of Buddha’s scriptures. People carry thick and heavy volumes, usually wrapped in saffron cloth, over their heads and shoulders and tread across the rugged expanse of Leh town for almost a whole day!
Read moreBy Lhundup Gyalpo
A bunch of yellow and listless leaves rustled in a small eddy by the closed door. The wind blew in a melancholic whirl, whistling in a doleful hum. Nine thirty-two in the morning, the house was still dimly lit, bereft of light; a thick overcast kept the sun away in its sombre folds.
Read moreBy Priya Srivastava
Read moreBy Gauri Sharma
Read moreWritten by Divya Sharma
Read moreBy Shreyansh Pradhan
Written by Tenzin Chonyi
Read moreWritten by Rinchen Angmo
Rainbow body. What could it possibly mean? I had often come across this term, without being able to fathom how one could logistically turn into a rainbow body. I’m no closer than I was, but I suppose I have given it some thought. After all, if we look close enough, we’re bound to notice the creation of rainbows in our everyday experience of the light and sound show called life.
Different schools of Tibetan Buddhism have their own terminology to express the Buddhist notion of emptiness. From what I understand, the Nyingma school expresses it in the form of a rainbow body.
Read moreBy Sonam C
In the early summer of 2018, right after I had finished my Class 12 CBSE Board exams, I went with my family to the village of Malana. When I recall this time, I instinctively tell people “We went on a spiritual tour, like a pilgrimage.” Hardly, anyone believes that a group consisting of me, my sister, my mother, uncle and aunt, my cousin, her husband and her two kids travelled and trekked to Malana to pay our respects to the local god Jamlu.
Read moreWritten by Lungmying Lepcha
A brief analysis of the appearance of the Tibetan national flag in the song “Sadda Haq”.
Rockstar by Imtiaz Ali still remains a classic amongst all the cinephiles. We declare it the Indian or rather better version of Romeo and Juliet .
Read more-Written and photographed by Rinchen Angmo
Pangong Tso is so much more than a water body, it is a living remnant of natural history.
Anyone who’s been to Pangong Tso will testify to it’s limitless beauty. Glittering amidst snow capped mountains, the water body is one of its kinds. Different hues of blue adorn it’s large expanse.
Pangong Tso is not only a beautiful water body but also a living remnant of natural history. According to geography, the Tethys sea was an ancient water body that existed in this part of the world. As the two continents collided to give rise to the Himalayas, the sea was subsumed, except some bits of it which remained as lakes. Other theories trace the origin of high altitude lakes to later tectonic activities. Either way, lakes like Pangong Tso in the Trans-Himalayas are living remnants of natural history.
A poem written by Lungmying Lepcha
I am because
we are
(A quote inspired by Cholhamu Lepcha )
It’s within me “deep inside “
We are not known by our surname
but by our anum Chu (mountains) ,
anom and anum
Aungkyongsong (rivers)
our mother Rungyu and father Rungeet
our eldest brother Anum Kongchen (Mt Kanchenjunga) and
to all the clans connected
within us .
-Written by Rinchen Angmo
Spid is the closest possible translation of spring in Ladakhi, yet the aura that the word carries is markedly different. The word spring has this feeling of freshness. Yet when I think of the word for spring in Ladakhi, that is spid, it reminds me of the windy days in April and of course apricot blossoms. According to my Abile (granny) spid aligns with the first three months of our traditional calendar. Typically, spid is characterised by strong winds known as spid lungs or spring winds. Hence, the Ladakhi image of spring is quite different from the one that is conjured by the English word.
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