Lahaul & Spiti is known for its rich cultural heritage and diverse traditions. Fairs and festivals form an important part of community life and bring together local communities, pilgrims, traders, artists and visitors from neighbouring regions.
Ladarcha Fair
Traditionally, the Ladarcha Fair was held at Kibber Maidan in Spiti during the month of July. Traders from Ladakh, Rampur-Bushahr and Spiti would gather at the fair to exchange and barter their agricultural and other local produce.
Following changes in traditional cross-border trade, the fair is now held at Kaza, the headquarters of the Spiti Sub-Division, generally during the third week of August.
The fair attracts visitors and traders from Kullu, Lahaul and Kinnaur and has evolved into an important cultural gathering that brings together the traditions and communities of Spiti, Ladakh, Kinnaur and the Indian plains.
Pauri Fair
The Pauri Fair is traditionally celebrated during the summer, generally in the third week of August every year. Historically, it was one of the most prominent fairs of Lahaul and attracted people from different communities not only from Lahaul but also from Chamba and Kullu.
The fair combines pilgrimage, religious observances and cultural festivities and is closely associated with the Triloknath Temple.
Preparations begin at least a week in advance, with many devotees leaving their homes a day before the main celebrations. Devotees visit the temple to seek darshan of Triloknath, regarded as Shiva, the Lord of the Three Worlds, by Hindu devotees and as Avalokiteshvara in the Buddhist tradition.
After paying their respects, devotees undertake circumambulation of the temple’s prayer-wheel gallery between the inner and outer walls. Pilgrims traditionally complete three or seven clockwise circumambulations while rotating the prayer wheels and reciting mantras, including “Om Mani Padme Hum.”
Ghee and mustard-oil lamps are kept continuously lit inside the temple. Devotees contribute money, ghee and oil towards their maintenance. Following the religious ceremonies, the fair begins with temporary shops, tea stalls and other establishments being set up at the fairground.
In the evening, pilgrims and visitors participate in traditional dances accompanied by folk and devotional songs.
On the second morning, a traditional procession is taken out, led by the Thakur of Triloknath riding a decorated horse. The procession proceeds to a site associated with the traditional belief that seven deities, the youngest being Trilokinath, appeared from seven springs.
This procession is considered one of the most significant rituals associated with the fair. After the procession, participants return to the fairground for further festivities. Some visitors leave after the procession, while others remain until the conclusion of the fair on the third day.
Tribal Fair, Keylong
The Tribal Fair at Keylong is celebrated annually in connection with Independence Day, generally from 14 to 16 August, at Keylong, the headquarters of Lahaul & Spiti district.
People from different parts of the valley participate in the celebrations, while visitors from across India and abroad also gather to experience the region’s cultural traditions.
The fair is celebrated at the state level and features a wide range of cultural programmes, traditional performances and artistic presentations.
To enrich the celebrations, artists and cultural groups from Chandigarh, Dharamshala, Leh, Chamba, Kullu and Spiti, along with local artistes, participate in the event.
Tsheshu Fairs
Tsheshu Fairs are celebrated at several monasteries, including Shashur, Gemur, Kyi, Kardang, Tabo and Mane, generally during the month of June.
Large numbers of devotees and visitors gather at the monasteries during these occasions.
One of the principal attractions is the traditional masked dance, performed by Buddhist monks in colourful costumes and masks representing various birds, animals and other symbolic figures. These performances form an important part of the region’s Buddhist cultural and religious traditions.
Festival of Light — Halda and Khogla
While the festival of lights known as Diwali is celebrated across India, Lahaul has its own traditional festivals associated with the lighting of torches and the worship of local deities.
In different parts of Lahaul, these traditions are known as Halda and Khogla and are generally celebrated during the second and third weeks of January. The exact date is traditionally determined by the local Lama. In the Pattan Valley, the festival is associated with Magh Purnima.
For Halda, branches of pencil cedar are cut into strips and tied together into bundles to form torches. In the evening, the torches prepared by individual households are lit and brought together at a central location.
The ceremony may be repeated several times, with each gathering traditionally associated with the honouring of different deities.
After the ceremony, villagers return to their homes. The festival reflects the region’s traditional beliefs, community bonds and distinctive cultural practices.
Fagli
Fagli, locally known as Kus or Kuns, is one of the important traditional festivals of the Pattan Valley.
The festival is generally celebrated after Khogla, on Amavasya (the new moon) during the first or second week of February.
During Fagli, houses are decorated and oil lamps are lit. A ceremonial structure known as Baraza is prepared using a bamboo stick approximately two to three feet high. A white cloth is draped around the structure and decorated with jewellery and marigold flowers.
The Baraza symbolically represents Shikhara Appa, regarded as the grandmother of the peak, whose presence is traditionally believed to bring prosperity to the household.
As part of the traditional rituals, the head of the family and their spouse rise early in the morning to prepare Totu, a preparation made from roasted barley flour and buttermilk, along with Kwari.
Totu is taken to the roof of the house and offered to the deities. Kwari is traditionally offered to crows, while Totu is subsequently distributed among family members as prasad.
The couple also pay their annual respects to the household’s cows and sheep, expressing gratitude for and acknowledging their traditional dependence on these animals.
Other members of the family pay their respects to elders by bowing and touching their feet. After breakfast, families traditionally visit elderly members of the village. The wider village community then comes together, visiting households and exchanging traditional food such as Marchu, a local puri.
Each day of the festival has its own significance. One of the days is known as Punha, symbolically representing the ploughing of fields. Since the fields remain covered with snow during this period, symbolic ploughing is performed indoors using green willow sticks representing bullocks, a yoke and a plough.
Festivities continue in the following weeks through gatherings among relatives and friends, accompanied by the exchange of marigold flowers and other gifts.
Gothsi (Gochi)
Gothsi, also known as Gochi, is a traditional festival of the Bhaga Valley, celebrated in February in households where a son was born during the preceding year.
Villagers gather in the morning for the traditional ceremonies. A preparation made from Sattu (roasted barley flour) is placed in a large plate and carried by four people to the site of the village deity, which may traditionally be represented by a stone idol, tree or bush.
A young girl dressed in traditional attire and adorned with ornaments accompanies the group and carries a pot of Chhang, a traditional local beverage.
The procession is accompanied by people carrying burning pencil-cedar wood and cedar leaves tied together in a lambskin.
The woman who has given birth to the first son of the year, dressed in traditional attire, also participates in the ceremony and pays homage to the village deity.
The village priest, known as Labdagpa, performs the traditional worship using a bow and arrow. The prepared dough is then broken and offered as part of the traditional ritual.
The lambskin is placed on a tree or bush near the village deity and is ceremonially shot at with arrows. Lohars traditionally accompany the ceremony by playing drums.
After the worship of the village deity is completed, the gathering disperses. Relatives and friends then visit households where male children have been born during the preceding year. Traditional social gatherings, music, dancing and community celebrations continue as part of the festival.