This led to a small discussion about Losar between us, a Tamang and a Sherpa. Lo means ‘year’ and sar means ‘new’. Losar is the New Year as celebrated by Buddhist communities in the Himalaya and Tibetan Plateau. In the Nepal Himalayas, Tamang, Sherpa, Yolmo, Gurung, Bhotiya, Loba, Dolpopa, Mugumpa and many other groups celebrate Losar.  

Three Losars

There are three different Losars: Tolo, Sonam and Gyalpo Losar, all celebrated in winter approximately a month apart. This time, Tolo Losar started in mid-December, Sonam Losar began at the end of January and Gyalpo Losar will start on March 1. The exact dates vary from year to year depending on the lunar calendar.

I shared with my Tamang friend what I learned from my elders about the origin of the Losars.  Tolo Losar is celebrated in mid-winter, taking the winter solstice as the starting point of a new year. Sonam Losar falls between Tolo and Gyalpo Losars and was created to suit the needs of highland farmers for whom the mid-winter Tolo Losar is too cold for celebration and the late season Gyalpo Losar conflicts with their farming work. Gyalpo Losar means ‘King’s Losar’ and this celebration is said to have originated with the military victory of a Mongol conqueror. Therefore, Gyalpo Losar is observed mainly by people who identify with ruling elites, aristocrats and theocrats.

My fellow shopper suddenly raised a question, “Why are Sherpas celebrating Gyalpo Losar in Kathmandu? Weren’t Sherpas traditionally farmers and herders?” The question caught me by surprise. Back in the mountain village where I grew up, villagers always celebrated Sonam Losar. As I lacked a satisfactory answer, I jokingly said, “Early Sherpa immigrants to Kathmandu felt that they ought to celebrate Gyalpo Losar because they had become neighbours of the Gyalpo”. Maybe some Sherpas did celebrate Gyalpo Losar, behaved like aristocrats and dictated the choice of Losar in Kathmandu.

A cross-cultural tool

Whatever the historic and past reasons for choosing which Losar to celebrate and when, Losar is an important cultural heritage for the people of the Himalayan Buddhist communities. The festival has been gaining popularity in Kathmandu with the increasing migration of people from the mountains to the hill cities.

It has become a national-level festival following the recent political change: the government now allows a three-day holiday for Losar.

Such a national festival should contribute to cross-cultural understanding and create unity among people. Primarily a secular event, Losar has the potential to become a festival that can foster that very unity. Unfortunately, the festival has not been serving its role as a unifying celebration as effectively as it could have, because of the way the celebration is organised. The root of the problem lies in the fragmented nature of its celebration.

A one-day holiday is inadequate to prepare for the festival, re-unite families and celebrate as traditions demand. Celebrations begin on the 29th day of the month. The following three days are celebrated at home within the family. Then, festivities expand to the community level. These days, various social organisations hold special programmes on Losar. Therefore, to properly celebrate Losar requires at least five to seven days.

The ‘hijacking’ and claiming ownership of different Losars by particular communities is playing a divisive role instead of an integrative one. When Gurungs march out in the street in their full regalia to celebrate Tamu Losar, Sherpas, Tamangs and others become mute spectators. When Tamangs celebrate Sonam Losar at Tundikhel, other groups feel left out of a celebration that they also own. Similarly, by the time Sherpas organise Gyalpo Losar, Gurungs and Tamangs and others have had enough of celebrations.  

Confused non-celebrators often ask, “How many Losars are there?” “There are three, one for the Gurungs, one for the Tamangs, and one that is still up for grabs,” has become the unfortunate answer.

Unified and integrated

There is a need for Losar to be a unified and integrated celebration. This can be achieved by declaring one of the Losars as the official one. Given that the majority of the Losar celebrators come from farming backgrounds, it makes good cultural sense to choose Sonam Losar. All that is needed is for those who currently celebrate Gyalpo Losar to bring their celebrations forward by a month and Tolo Losar celebrators to delay theirs by a month, and pool the three-day official holiday. An added advantage of choosing Sonam Losar is that many mountain people descend to Kathmandu in winter on pilgrimage or simply to escape the cold. They can join their communities in Kathmandu for Sonam Losar celebration. By the time Gyalpo Losar comes around, they must return home to tend to their farms, livestock and businesses. Furthermore, Sonam Losar coincides with New Year celebrations in China, Korea, Japan, Bhutan and parts of India.

Once we have agreed to an official Losar, requests can be made to the government to add at least two more days of holiday to make it five-days of continuous holidays. This will provide adequate time to bring schoolchildren home and allow scattered family members to gather for the celebration. This will also allow non-celebrators to organise family vacations or carry out concrete activities that are otherwise not possible with the three fragmented days off. Many districts already schedule a winter vacation for schools and this could be made to coincide with Losar.

Incidentally, an integrated and expanded Losar will stimulate the economy to the benefit of producers, traders and artisans alike while boosting the overall socio-cultural importance of the festival. Families and communities can still continue their household-level tendrel (ceremony) during Tolo and Gyalpo Losar if they so wish.  

The history of Losar indicates that ancient societies have adjusted and reorganised their celebrations to suit their needs. There is no reason why the same could not be done now to serve the changing needs and aspirations of present and future generations.

Sherpa is a research scientist at Yale University, US and holds a PhD in Natural Resources from the University of Washington, US