Mani Rimdu
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| Mani Rimdu | |
|---|---|
| Official name | Mani Rimdu |
| Observed by | Sherpas |
| Type | Ethnic, Cultural |
| Significance | To mark the founding of Buddhism by Guru Rinpoche Padmasambhava. |
| Date | Starts day after Khojagrat Purnima (15th day of Dashain) |
| Frequency | Annual |
| First time | Early 1900 |
| Started by | Sherpas of Tibet |
Mani Rimdu is a 19-day festival celebrated by Buddhists in the Everest region of Nepal to mark the founding of Buddhism by Guru Rinpoche Padmasambhava.[1]
Magnificent shows are put up on at the monasteries of Tengboche, Thame and Chiwong. The Mani-rimdu festival consists of a series of thirteen acts involving various elements of religious ceremonialism, dance and drama.[2] A huge crowd of Lamas and Sherpa meet at the monastery for the welfare of the world. They enjoy the festival with masked dances, prayers and feasts.[3]
Mani Rimdu is observed from the first day of the tenth month of the Tibetan lunar calendar which falls between October and November under the English calendar.[4]
Mani Rimdu began at Rongpuk Monastery in Tibet in the early 1900s, at the initiative of Ngawang Tenzin Norbu, who had studied in Mindroling Monastery, in Central Tibet. Like much of Rongpuk Monastery practice, most of the rituals that comprise Mani Rimdu find their source at Mindroling Monastery, the great Nyingma monastery in Central Tibet.[5]
Development
In the 1980s-1990s, Richard J. Kohn worked on university research focused on the Mani Rimdu. The Mani Rimdu festival is performed in the Sherpa and Tibetan monasteries of Solu Khumbu District in the Everest region of Nepal: Chiwong, Thami, Tengboche Monastery. Nowadays, Mani Rimdu is the biggest event of the year for the Sherpas of the Khumbu region.[5]
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