Mani Rimdu Festival is the famous festival of Sherpa people who belong to Nying-Mapa sect of Tibetan Buddhist which is performed in the monastery. This festival falls in the month of October/November every year. In this festival Monks meditate for nine days which is followed by public blessing and the world renowned mask dance at Tengboche monastery. it is also celebrated in the Chiwang monastery of the Everest region. In this festival the monks of Everest region perform various rituals with singing and dancing. It is believed that this festival was first celebrated in 1930 Tengboche monastery of Everest region. It is originated in Rongbukh Monastery in Tibet. Mani Rimdu festival trek provides the opportunity to the visitors to get insight into the Sherpa culture as well as enjoy the colorful Mani Rimdu festival. In this trek you also get opportunity to observe and enjoy the excellent view of the towering mountains like Mt. Everest (8848m)-the highest mountain of the world, Lhotse, Makalu, Ama Dablam etc.

Mani Rimdu Festival Trek offers the excellent combination of beautiful natural scenery, trekking experience in the Himalayan region and coming into contact with the Sherpa people and their unique culture. This cultural trekking commences with the scenic flight from Kathmandu to Lukla. This trek takes you through the most popular villages of the Everest region where you can enjoy friendliness behavior of the local Sherpa people. They have a rich culture and interesting traditions that must be experienced. On the way you can enjoy the blooming rhododendron forest and explore varieties of flora and fauna. In the world heritage site Sagarmatha national park you can encounter rare wild animals and birds like red panda, snow leopard, wild boar, etc. The most attraction of this trekking is the Tengboche monastery where you can explore and enjoy the Mani Rimdu festival.

When Will Mani Rimdu Start in 2023?

Mani Rimdu is also observed on the first day of the tenth month of the Tibetan lunar calendar which falls in between October and November every year. The festival lasts for nineteen long days. However, it is celebrated for three days.

The date of the Mani Rimdu is also fixed as per the Tibetan Lunar Calendar. The head Lama in the Tyangboche Monastery announced the dates. At Tengboche the Mani Rimdu will be performed in the 9th Tibetan month which falls in the month of October or November of the English Calendar. As per Nepalese calendar, the festival falls at Kartik or Mangsir.

This festival is also celebrated at the full moon of Autumn. To calculate the date in the easy way , this festival will be immediately at the Kojrapat Purnima which is on the last day which is the 15th day of Vijaya dashami which is the Full moon day in Dashain.

In 2023, Mani Rimdu is fixed for 29 October 2023. For all 19 days during the festival continuous pooja are performed by the monks to bless the Mandala, the Mani Rilwu which is sacred pills, the Tshereel which is the pills for long life and the Torma. Torma are figures made mostly of flour and butter which are used in tantric rituals or as offerings at the Tibetan Buddhism. They are generally dyed in several colors, often with white or red as main body of the torma.

Mani Rimdu is the legendary event that is the founding of Buddhism in Tibet by Guru Rinpoche who is also known as Padmasambhava. It is believed that Buddhism is recreated during Mani Rimdu.

Mani Rimdu Origin

Mani Rimdu will begin in Rongpuk Monastery in Tibet at the early 1900s, at the initiative of Ngawang Tenzin Norbu, who had studied in the famous Mindroling Monastery which is at Central Tibet. Like much of Rongpuk Monastery practice, most of the rituals which is comprise Mani Rimdu find their source in Mindroling Monastery, the great Nyingma monastery at Central Tibet

Mani Rimdu Festival Trek in Everest