Dancer wearing mask

Mani Rimdu Festival

Scares children, tourists

Mani Rimdu is generally celebrated by Sherpa in autumn at the Tengboche Monastery in the Everest region. Lamas and Sherpa gather at the monastery for five days. They gather for the welfare of the world. There are plays, masked dances, prayers and feasts. Demons are quelled and the pious are rewarded. It is a very colorful and ideal festival to combine with a trekking expedition in the Everest region.

The dancer in this dance portrays one of the Four Protecting Ghings, defending the Buddhist faith against attack by demons. Shining paper masks hide the faces of the dancers, each a different color and each displaying a constant smile. The dancers’ hops are rhythmically accompanied by the beating of cymbals.

The dancers charge at children in the audience and scare them for fun.  I managed to get a front row seat (on the stone floor) and got good photos and was also teased by the dancers.