The Tibetan people celebrate the Tibetan New Year according to their own calendar, usually around the Spring Festival. Preparations for the New Year begin at the beginning of December in the Tibetan calendar, such as brewing highland barley wine, frying fruits with white flour and ghee, and making various snacks, called Kasai in Tibetan. Each family also puts dyed wheat ears, highland barley seedlings and sheep heads made of butter flowers in the hall. This marks the good harvest of the past year and hopes for another good harvest in the new year.
On the day before New Year's Eve, when the sun is about to set, every household dumps all the sewage and dirt on both sides. They believe that this is the guarantee for the prosperity of human beings and the growth of all things. On New Year's Eve, the whole family sat together to have a reunion dinner. Tibetans like to eat fried cakes, milk cakes, finger meat, fresh milk and other foods. Everything is available.
According to the traditional habits of the Tibetan people, the housewife is the first to get up in the morning on the first day of the Lunar New Year. After washing, she goes to the river or well to draw new water. Who can be the first to get the new water? Carrying it back not only brings good luck to the whole family, but also indicates good weather in the new year. The livestock are then fed and the whole family is awakened. The whole family, men, women, old and young, all dressed up in festive costumes and sat down in order of seniority. Before eating on New Year's Day, each person must dip a little tsampa noodles in his mouth to show that he is Yusun who eats tsampa. At this time, the elder brought a grain bucket called Zhusu Qima, which contained tsampa, ginseng fruit, fried broad beans, fried wheat grains and other foods. There were also highland barley ears on it. Each person grabbed a little bit and threw it into the air. , meaning to offer sacrifices to the gods, and then grab some to eat yourself. The elders wished Tashi Delek (good luck and good luck) one by one. The younger generation wishes the old man Tashi Delepeng Songcuo (good luck and good deeds). After the New Year ceremony, the whole family sits together again, drinking highland barley wine, eating ginseng fruit and other foods to celebrate the New Year. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the whole family gathers behind closed doors and does not visit each other. Starting from the second day of the Lunar New Year, we pay New Year greetings to each other and last for three to five days. Girls and sisters-in-law often go together in groups and use various methods to snatch the men's things, but the men are not allowed to express any objection. Through this food-grabbing activity, some young men and women exchanged feelings and enhanced friendship. At night, young herdsmen sing ancient songs around the yellow fire, or dance Guozhuang dance and Xianzi dance to their heart's content.
During the Tibetan New Year, Tibetan operas are performed in various places, and various competitions such as wrestling, throwing, tug-of-war, horse racing and archery are also held. In Lhasa, Tibetan residents put up new prayer flags on their roofs early in the morning to pray for a bumper harvest and good luck in the new year. The prayer flags are made of blue, white, red, green and yellow cloth, which symbolize blue sky, white clouds, red fire, green water and loess, and have Tibetan scriptures printed on them. When planting prayer flags, five-color prayer cloths are usually draped on the branches, and then the branches covered with five-color cloths are inserted on the roof. After setting up the prayer flags, offerings such as highland barley wine and fried noodles are placed on the roof, and vanilla is burned. Then they dance and sing to wish for good weather and good luck in the year ahead.
In front of the Jokhang Temple in the city center, prayer flags flutter on prayer flag columns more than ten meters high. There is an endless stream of people praying, and believers circle the prayer flag pillars devoutly. Walking silently.