Tibetan Losar Prayers and Ceremonies in Dharamsala

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This is a guest post about Tibetan Losar celebrations at two Buddhist nunneries in India by Dominique Butet and with photos by Olivier Adam.

Last month, on 19 February 2015, my partner Olivier Adam and I participated in the ceremonies for Tibetan New Year or Losar at Geden Choeling Nunnery in McLeod Ganj, Dharamsala in northern India.

In the very early morning, at 3:30 a.m., the 135 nuns of the nunnery were already sitting in the temple, beginning their Losar puja or prayers with great dedication.

We shared cups of traditional Tibetan salty butter tea with the nuns. Then two nuns brought the offering of tsampa (roasted barley flour) around to everyone so that we could celebrate the start of the new year by throwing tsampa into the air and wishing everyone “Losar Tashi Delek” (Happy New Year) with pure, joyful smiles.

Two nuns carry a chamar bo, an open, decorated box with one half filled with chamar, made of roasted barley flour or tsampa and the other half filled with roasted barley. People are invited to take a pinch of the chemar then offer a blessing with three waves of the hand in the air, then taking a nibble. Photo courtesy of Olivier Adam.

Inside the temple, the sound of the prayers grew to fill the entire space and the nuns’ voices were accompanied by bells and Tibetan hand drums (damaru). We were each served sweet rice with dry fruits, followed by a delicious tsampa soup served with all sorts of nuts and dates. Just as sweet tea was brought to the temple, we were also each given the authentic khapse, the deep-fried pastries served at Losar. They come in all sizes, but the ones we were given looked like two big open ears! (You can learn more about khapse by reading this Tibetan Nuns Project blog about these New Year’s cookies.) Continue reading →

Award-winning artist Miya Ando auctions paintings for Buddhist nuns

Tibetan New Year Cookies or Khapse

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A special part of any Tibetan New Year or Losar celebration is the eating of khapse, deep fried Tibetan cookies. This blog post will give you a glimpse of Dolma Ling Nunnery in India and the some of the preparations by the nuns for Losar. In the days leading up to Losar, the Tibetan nuns, like Tibetan lay people all over the world, will be working hard to prepare large batches of these crispy cookies.

Tibetan Buddhist nuns at Dolma Ling Nunnery in northern India making khapse for Tibetan New Year. Photo from the Tibetan Nuns Project 2014.

Khapse (or khapsay) means literally “mouth-eat” and they are a staple of Tibetan New Year’s celebrations everywhere. While these biscuits are made for other celebrations as well, such as weddings and religious events such as the enthronement of a lama, it’s at Tibetan New Year that they are ubiquitous.

Nuns at Dolma Ling Nunnery making khapse for Tibetan New Year 2014

The dough for the khapse is usually made with flour, eggs, butter and sugar. It is then rolled out and made into different shapes and sizes. The most common shape is the small twisted rectangular pieces which are served to guests.

Tibetan khapse ready for frying. This shape is made by cutting the dough into a narrow rectangle and then making a slit in the middle. Then one side of the khapse is pulled through.

Larger and more elaborate shapes are made as well, including the so-called Donkey Ears or bhungue amcho (also known as khugo). These are large elongated hollow tubes of crispy pastry that are stacked up on the Losar altar as both a food offering and as a decoration. Strings of dried Tibetan cheese are draped over the top.

Stacks of a special type of khapse made by the nuns decorate the Losar altar at Dolma Ling Nunnery in northern India. Photo from the Tibetan Nuns Project 2014.

Traditionally, khapse would be deep fried in butter or mustard oil, but in exile the nuns use corn oil. The deep frying give the cookies their distinctive light brown or yellow color.

Inside the nunnery kitchen at Dolma Ling, the nuns fry large batches of khapse in big vats of hot oil.

You can make khapse at home. For a recipe for Tibetan khapse, visit our friends at YoWangdu Tibetan Culture. Happy Losar!

Vegetarian guthuk soup: A recipe for Tibetan New Year

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To celebrate Losar or Tibetan New Year, we want to share with you a vegetarian recipe for the very popular Tibetan noodle soup, called guthuk. This special soup is eaten on the night of the 29th day of the 12th month, or the eve of Losar.

We’d like to thank our friends, Lobsang and Yolanda at YoWangdu Experience Tibet (www.yowangdu.com) for sharing this recipe with us. They have many wonderful Tibetan recipes on their website.

Guthuk is the only Tibetan food that is eaten only once a year as part of a ritual of dispelling any negativities of the old year and to make way for an auspicious new one. The base of the soup is actually a common noodle soup called thukpa bhatuk, but at the end of the year, this daily favorite is transformed into a special dish that is also a bit of a game.

Vegetarian guthuk soup. Photo and recipe courtesy of YoWangdu.com

Guthuk gets its name from the Tibetan word gu meaning nine and thuk which refers generally to noodle soups, so guthuk is the soup eaten on the 29th day. The gu part of the name also comes from the fact that the soup traditionally has at least nine ingredients. In this vegetarian version of guthuk, the nine main ingredients are mushrooms, celery, labu (daikon radish), peas, tomato, onion, ginger, garlic, and spinach. A traditional guthuk would include meat (yak or beef) and dried cheese. Continue reading →

Tibetan prayer flags made and blessed by nuns

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The Tibetan Nuns Project sells Tibetan prayer flags made and blessed by the Tibetan Buddhist nuns at Dolma Ling Nunnery and Institute, near Dharamsala, northern India.

The nuns have been making prayer flags for many years now and the sale of these specially blessed objects helps provide food, health care, shelter and education for the over 230 nuns who live at the nunnery, as well as help support hundreds of nuns at 6 other nunneries in India.

Making Tibetan prayer flags at Dolma Ling Nunnery and Institute. Sales of prayer flags through the Tibetan Nuns Project online store benefit the nuns at Dolma Ling as well as six other nunneries in India.

Traditionally, prayer flags come in sets of five, with one flag in each of five colors, left to right in this specific order: blue, white, red, green, and yellow. The five colors represent the elements: blue symbolizes the sky and space, white symbolizes the air and wind, red symbolizes fire, green symbolizes water, and yellow symbolizes earth.

Prayer flags are used to promote peace, compassion, strength, and wisdom. Tibetans believe the prayers and mantras will be spread by the wind and bring good will and compassion to benefit all beings.

Prayer flags are made of block-printed fabric using traditional printing techniques going back hundreds of years.

When raising prayer flags it is important to have a good motivation. One should not have selfish or limiting thoughts; when hanging prayer flags one should wish that all beings everywhere will benefit and find happiness.

Tibetan tradition considers prayer flags to be holy. The flags contain sacred texts and symbols and should be treated respectfully. They should not be placed on the ground or put in the trash. When disposing of old prayer flags one should burn them so that the smoke may carry their blessings to the heavens.

You can buy Tibetan prayer flags through the Tibetan Nuns Project online store. They come in a variety of types and sizes of prayer flags as follows:

Mini Prayer Flags

These are perfect for small spaces such as above a desk or computer or in a kitchen window. Each mini flag in the set of 5 has one symbol and one syllable of the mantra OM MANI PADME HUM on it. Probably the oldest Buddhist mantra and still the most widespread among Tibetans is this six-syllable mantra of Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion. This mantra sends blessings of compassion to the six worldly realms. Buy mini prayer flags here.

Windhorse Prayer Flags

The Wind Horse or Lung-ta is the most prevalent symbol used on prayer flags. In the center of the prayer flag is a powerful horse (lung-ta) bearing three flaming jewels on its back. These jewels represent the Buddha, the Dharma (Buddhist teachings), and the Sangha (Buddhist community) which are the three cornerstones of Tibetan philosophical tradition. The horse (Ta) is a symbol of speed and the transformation of bad fortune to good fortune. Surrounding the Lung ta are mantras and Buddhist sacred symbols. In the corners of the prayer flags are images four powerful animals, also known as the Four Dignities: the dragon, the garuda, the tiger, and the snow lion. Windhorse prayer flags made by the nuns are available in three sizes. Buy Windhorse Prayer flags here.

Tara Prayer Flags

Tara represents virtuous and enlightened action. It is said that her compassion for living beings is stronger than a mother’s love for her children. She also brings about longevity, protects earthly travel, and guards her followers on their spiritual journey to enlightenment. The Tara prayer flags have a lovely image of Tara in the center. You can order Tara prayer flags in three sizes here.

Guru Rinpoche Prayer Flags

Padmasambhava, the renowned saint of the eighth century, was a central figure in shaping Buddhism’s history in Tibet. Revered as the second Buddha, Guru Rinpoche (Precious Guru) conquered the local deities and demons of Tibet and bound them by oath to become guardians of Buddhism. Purchase Guru Rinpoche prayer flags in three sizes here.

Gyaltsen Tsenpo Prayer Flags

This is a common prayer flag, especially at New Year, symbolizing new ventures and beginnings. Gyaltsen Tsenpo prayer flags are printed with sutras bestowed by Lord Buddha to Indra, king of the gods to overcome his enemies and achieve victory. Order Gyaltsen Tsenpo prayer flags in three sizes here.

Tibetan malas made and blessed by Buddhist nuns

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Some of our most popular items in the Tibetan Nuns Project online store are our malas or Buddhist prayer beads. The Tibetan Buddhist nuns at Dolma Ling Nunnery and Institute near Dharamsala, India make our long malas and bless both the long and wrist malas.

A selection of the Tibetan malas made and blessed by Buddhist nuns and available through our online store.

Mala is a Sanskrit word meaning “garland”; in Tibetan, a mala is called threngwa. Malas are used to keep track while one recites, chants, or mentally repeats a mantra or the name or names of a deity. Malas are similar to other forms of prayer beads used in various world religions and they are sometimes called the Buddhist rosary. They are employed to focus one’s awareness and concentration during spiritual practice.

Mantras are spiritual syllables or prayers and are usually repeated many times. In Tibetan Buddhism, one mala constitutes 100 recitations of a mantra. There are 8 additional recitations done to ensure proper concentration. One holds the mala with the left hand and begins to recite from the guru bead, clockwise around the mala.

In Tibetan Buddhism, people traditionally use malas with 108 counting beads and a formal, special, three-holed, finishing bead called a “guru” bead or “Buddha” bead. Often the 108-bead malas have additional marker beads that may or may not be counted and that divide the mala into quadrants, constituting a sum of 108 counting beads. Continue reading →

Daughters of Buddha Etsy campaign with photographs of nuns

Q: Why did you start this Etsy campaign ?

A: On August 2014, an exhibition of my photographs “Tibetan Nuns – Resistance and Compassion” opened at the Museum für Völkerkunde in Hamburg, Germany. During the exhibition the museum has been selling postcards and fine art prints of my images. I had the idea to expand this opportunity in an online store to get a bigger audience for these wonderful nuns and to bring wider support to Tibetan Nuns Project.

Olivier Adam and His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Photo of French photographer Olivier Adam showing his exhibition “”Tibetan Nuns – Resistance and Compassion” to His Holiness the Dalai Lama in August 2014 in Hamburg. Photo courtesy of Manuel Bauer.

The exhibition was visited and blessed by His Holiness the Dalai Lama during his teachings in Hamburg in August and has now been extended until February 2015. It was such a precious moment in my life to have a few minutes with His Holiness Dalai Lama to explain this long-term project. Continue reading →

Life at Sherab Choeling Nunnery in Spiti

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In the remote Spiti Valley of Himachal Pradesh in northern India, lies Sherab Choeling Nunnery, currently home to 42 Tibetan Buddhist nuns, many of whom are sponsored by Tibetan Nuns Project supporters.

group of nuns at Sherab Choeling Nunnery in Spiti

Sherab Choeling nuns in 2006

The nunnery is very secluded and lies in the village of Morang (between Manali and Tabor) at 4,000 meters altitude. It was built in 1995 by 20 nuns and their teacher with the intent of addressing the problem of the inadequate education of women in the region. The nunnery was consecrated in 1995 by His Holiness the Dalai Lama who encouraged the nuns to study. There is a main building, a prayer hall, a classroom, an office, a kitchen and a storeroom. In 2006, Sherab Choeling Nunnery approached the Tibetan Nuns Project to help develop their institution and we accepted them into our sponsorship program.

Earlier this year we received lots of photos of daily life at the nunnery that we wanted to share with sponsors of the nuns and with all the Tibetan Nuns Project donors worldwide.

Although the area of Lahaul-Spiti is part of India, ethnically, the people are descended from Tibetans and the majority are devout Buddhists. They have preserved an ancient Tibetan culture, speaking an old dialect of the Tibetan language, as written in Tibetan scriptures.

Sherab Choeling nun teaching a woman in Spiti

Sherab Choeling Nunnery was the first religious educational project for Spiti women. Traditionally women in this region have suffered from many social and educational disadvantages. Many have been deprived of any kind of education, and this institute is the first in Spiti to provide women with the opportunity to overcome these disadvantages.

Sherab Choeling is a non-sectarian nunnery that recognizes the beauty and value in all Buddhist traditions. The nuns at follow a 17-year study program. The curriculum is designed to educate the nuns in Buddhist philosophy, meditation, Tibetan language and literature, in addition to a basic education in English, Hindi and math. The broad education is intended to provide the nuns with necessary skills to educate future generations of nuns and the communities from which they come. Buddhist nuns studying outdoors Sherab Choeling 2014

Many young girls seek admission to Sherab Choeling, but due to lack of facilities and sponsors, it is not possible for all to gain entrance. The Tibetan Nuns Project helps by raising awareness, finding sponsors for the nuns, and helping them to fundraise for the further development of the institute.
Young Tibetan Buddhist nuns in class

This year started with 14 new nuns in the nunnery including three 5-year-olds. Along with Tibetan classes, the younger nuns are also taught mathematics and Hindi up to 5th standard, after which the nuns are introduced to English language classes.

The nuns have difficult living conditions. They often face long harsh winters and heavy snowfalls. During winter the region is cut off from neighboring villages so the nuns must stock up their daily supplies well before the onset of cold weather. Tibetan Buddhist nun working in kitchen

During the coldest months, the nuns hold their classes, prayers and meetings in the kitchen because it is warmer and helps to save wood.

This year, the nuns were able to do more work to complete the new prayer hall. Construction of the prayer hall began several years ago but was suspended in 2012 for lack of funds. The new prayer hall is nearly finished with plans to turn the old nunnery block into a small 3-room retreat center for the nuns. Tibetan Buddhist nun working in greenhouse Sherab Choeling 2014

Several years ago, people from the nearby village donated a piece of land to the nuns where the nuns can grow spinach, beans and potatoes. With help of volunteers, the nuns have been able to set up three greenhouses where they mostly grow spinach. The head nun has also donated her share of a field to the nunnery so the nuns have been able to grow peas and wheat.

The nuns take a one-month annual holiday, during which most return to their families in nearby villages.

We’d like to thank all our sponsors of nuns at Sherab Choeling for their support. We still need more sponsors. To sponsor a nun please visit https://tnp.org/youcanhelp/sponsor/

Inauguration of Retreat Huts at Dolma Ling Nunnery

The meaning of the Tibetan Nuns Project logo

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The Tibetan Nuns Project logo is made up of the syllables E (pronounced “ay” as in “day”) and VAM, written in an ancient Sanskrit script and surrounded by a circle of twenty-one syllables TAM.

E and VAM are seed syllables that symbolize the two essentials needed for enlightenment— wisdom and method, emptiness and compassion, the feminine and the masculine.

Although this essential pairing is expressed in many forms throughout the tradition, E and VAM have a particularly strong and explicit link to the feminine and masculine. Thus we chose them because we are working primarily with women, working to strengthen the feminine, but within a context in which the development, balance, and harmony of both the feminine and the masculine is essential. Wisdom and compassion are the two wings of the bird flying to enlightenment, and without both, fully developed and perfectly balanced, enlightenment is not possible.

Through the online store, the Tibetan Nuns Project sells hoodies with the TNP logo. They are available in 5 sizes from small to XXL and in three colors, forest green, maroon, and black.

The seed syllables E and VAM are surrounded by a circle of twenty-one TAM, the seed syllable of Tara, the feminine embodiment of compassion, twenty-one because the twenty-one forms of Tara are one of her most popular manifestions. The nuns have a particular affinity for Tara and are frequently asked by the Tibetan community to perform Tara rituals on their behalf.

The Tibetan for Tara is “Dolma”, and thus “Dolma Ling”, the name of our main undertaking, the Dolma Ling Nunnery and Institute, means “Place of Tara”.

Visit our online store to see our hoodies available in three colors and two styles with logo large on the back and small on the front.