Gtsang New Year

Gtsang New Year in Tibetan calendar, also called “Farmers’ New Year”, starts on the 1st of November in Tibetan calendar, generally at the beginning of the first month according to the Gregorian calendar. It’s the end of the whole year’s hard work, when crops have been harvested and farmers are sharing the happiest moment. Gtsang New Year in Tibetan calendar is deduced from the Buddhism calendar, it’s also an old festival based on the husbandry activities. Activities during the festival are closely related to the husbandry. With lives of peasants becoming better off, people celebrate this festival more and more ceremoniously.

During the Farmers’ New Year’s Days, an outstanding traditional custom is passed on. Housewives who have been working hard for the whole year can have a good rest in the day. With all the housework done by men, women will dress to the nines accepting their husband and children’s greeting, regards and services. All the housewives will receive presents, Hada, and highland barley wine from their families.

The morning fiesta activity of Gtsang New Year in Tibetan calendar is held in the hope of better harvest of crops and the safety of both man and livestock in the coming year. Members of all the families would take the firewood of coal and kind of cattle excrement firewood, climbing to the top of the house to hold the morning fiesta. Cedars, branches of pine, powder of Tsampa, and ghee are spread into the fire constantly. At the same time, various kinds of sacrifices such as fried food made of flour,dried fruits, and fruit candies are sacrificed. In the splendid shineShow at Gtsang New Year Festival of the golden rising sun, fretful smog floats softly over the roofs, and the air is filled with sweet and fragrant Tibetan smell. In such a pleasing morning, the villagers pray in an undertone for the future harvest, safety and happiness.

Later, people will clear up the threshing ground and spread some highland barley, wheat, peas, rapeseeds, and buckwheat on it. They stand on the top floor of the house and sincerely wait for the birds. Farmers of Gtsang believe that birds are the holy spirits sent from the heaven, they can predict if people can reap the harvest or not. If birds like eating a certain kind of crop, the crop is indicated to be a bumper crop. On the contrary, people would not have a good harvest for the crops birds seldom eat. If birds like to eat all kinds of crops, people will welcome a great harvesting year. Tibetans also have another way to judge the condition of crops, that is, filling five big bowls with earth of their own field seven days before the coming year, planting five main crops and covering them. The bowls would not be uncovered until the New Year's Day. Farmers believe that the crops' living conditions in the bowl foretell the situation of the coming year. This activity is also called "Sacrificing God of the earth"(because the information and the predications are given by God of the earth). This is a holy and extremely solemn activity, because it influences farmers' lives deeply in the next year. So when the lids are to be uncovered, the householder must wash his hands clean, and the rest of the families would stand around seriously, without saying anything bad. When the flourishing standing grain flash into people's eyes, a sudden crowd of hurrahs are burst out. All the villagers share the good news happily, and the firecracker is lit up to celebrate this festive moment.

On the second day of the Gtsang New Year in Tibetan calendar, people will fetch the slim branches of willow that are cut down from the wood and sew them on ribbons and prayer flags. Usually, one piece of player flag is different from another in colors, and different colors would have different signs according to the farmers. On the top of the branches, people sew on blue prayer flags which presents the blue sky; and lower, the white prayer flags standing for pure clouds are sew on; the third layer, red prayer flags means fire and the fourth, green means water. On the last layer, yellow prayer flags present the earth. It is men’s business to tie with prayer flags to the willow branches. Women and children are forbidden to help. Men attentively tied the prayer flags to the branches with needles and threads. Then, they will tie the colored threads among the branches. Generally each family would make six prayer flags, one of which would be inserted on the top of the high hill near the village; another, on the shore of the river nearby; the other four, in the four corners of the top floor of their own house. The significance of inserting the withes is to pray for good health and good luck in the coming year; to keep away illness, disasters and evils; and at the same time, to pray God of mountains, God of rivers, God of families, Gods of all, for good harvest, good weather and no disaster.

The traditional Tibetan New Year in Tibetan calendar is an occasion when Tibetan families reunite and expect that the coming year will be a better one. It starts on the 29th day of the twelfth month in Tibetan calendar. Tibetans celebrate this festival passionately and Show at Gtsang New Year Festival ceremoniously. Preparations for the festive event are manifested by special offerings to family shrine deities, painted doors with religious symbols, and other painstaking jobs. In the preparing days, cleaning is also considered important. The kitchen, which is said to be the living room of God of water and God of oven, should especially be well cleaned and decorated. All kinds of cookers and utensils should be washed up shinning, and placed neatly. To strengthen the auspicious atmosphere at the festival, people use flour to draw the wall of the kitchen on picture of eight lucks, which implicates abundant food and longevity.

When the New Year is around the corner, kinds of fried fruits and a cooked head of sheep will be prepared for the display of "Tqosu Tse ma" in the praying hall. "Tqosu Tse ma ", known as the “auspicious crops table”, is inserted with ears and filled with tsampa, seeds of wheat, ginseng, and so on. The highland barley seedlings, which imply good harvest, and the colored sheep head, will be served as well. When the night falls, an exorcising evil ceremony would be held first. People run and yell to get rid of evil spirits from their houses. They believe all the evil things could be driven away at the time.

After that, people eat Guthuk (barley crumb food with filling) on New Year's Eve with their families. Eating Guthuk is funny, because the barley crumbs are stuffed with different fillings to fool someone in the family. The one who happen to discover the stuffing things is required to spit them out at once, this interesting activity amuses all the families and they burst out laughing with extensively happiness. Different shapes and different stuffing have different meanings. Flour bumps with shapes like the sun and the moon indicate integrity and luminosity; bumps with shape of angles means bad temper. If the stuffing is pieces of porcelain, that means a man of eating one’s head off; stuffing of pepper stands for one who likes complaining all the time, and stuffing of wool stands for gentle personality; white stone, for kindness; coal, for cruelty and salt, for a lazy man, things like that. What’s more, “Punishment Wine”(a special drinking custom) is also popular on the first day of Tibetan New Year.

At three or four o’clock before dawn, housewives prepared “Qianggui”(a kind of food stuffed by high-land barley wine, tsampa, ginseng, and butter tea) for each family member before they fall asleep. After that, the first bucket of water of the year will be fetched home and the breakfast will be cooked. After breakfast, all the family members would have their Sunday dresses on, busy preparing for the New Year dinner, then, get around at the table one by one. The hostess will hold the auspicious bucket in the hands and pray with words: “Tashi Delek Pantson tso”(wish every body all the best),and give each member “tsema”. At this time everybody get some tsampa from the auspicious bucket, spreading them to the sky for three People celebrating the Gtsang New Year Festivaltimes and pray in an undertone with words meaning safety, good health and happiness. Later, they taste some tsampa and drop a white spot on one of their own shoulder. Men drop the spot on the right shoulder, and women on the left. After handing out “tsema”, all the family members would sit round together to enjoy the delicious New Year dinner. During the Tibetan New Year in the Tibetan calendar, Tibetans care much for their food, they believe the food they eat at the beginning of the New Year will be available for the whole year. Therefore, people would never hesitate taking out their best food to enjoy during the New Year’s Days.

It is considered to be unlucky breaking something on the first day of the New Year. And it is believed lucky if a “Zhega”(a singing and dancing actor)happen to be at present and sing for them. The“Zhega” will certainly be honored and given good wine and presents. On the first day of the new year, family member will have a happy gathering. They wouldn’t work that day, neither go out nor do any cleaning. On the second day, People visit their neighborhoods and exchange their Tashi Delek blessings. Everybody is delighted saying“Tashi Delek”(All the best) and “ Hlotsa Er Tsang”(Happy new year). To welcome the guests, the hosts serve “Tsehma”, and then highland barley wine and Yak Butter. Feast is the theme during the occasion. On the third day, old prayer flags are replaced with new ones. Other folk activities may be held in some hamlets to celebrate the events. Everybody seems to enjoy the traditional entertainment activities such as playing Tibetan Cards, playing dice, and shuttlecock; some people also like to sing, to chat while tasting highland barley wine and Yak Butter. In the villages near the city, some people play cards and Mahjong for fun; some others watch TV (watching TV has become a new way for entertainment which attracts lots of people there). Young people’s folk songs singing contests and passionate dance makes the festival become better and hotter. Some popular activities like horserace, archery and Tibetan opera performances would be held from the third day of the New Year. The whole festival lasts about ten days, when everybody all over Tibet are singing and dancing to celebrate with fully happiness. All the families and the audience can achieve happiness from this ritual. The whole Tibet seems to be in the pink.

 

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