Monlam festival is the religious festival in Lhasa started by Je Tsongkhapa, The founder of the Gelugpa Sect of the Tibetan Buddhism in Tibet. He initiated the first Monlam in the year 1409. It is said he has used all the money offered by the devotee to him to take the crown jewels for the Main Buddha statue in the Jokhang temple.
Since then every year They would celebrate seven days religious festival of Monlam in Jokhang temple in Lhasa. The main goal of this Great Prayer Festival is to pray for World Peace, Long lives of all the Holy gurus in all the tradition and for survival and spreading of Teachings of Buddha.
For the festival, Tens of Thousands of monks from Sera Monastery, Drepung Monastery, and Ganden Monastery would come down to Lhasa. There will all participate in the festival. In the festival, there will be prayers, teachings, Cham dance and Examination of Lharampa Geshe, The highest degrees of Buddhist Philosophy in Gelugpa tradition. There will be a display of butter sculpture in the Barkhor street.
On the fifteen days of the Tibetan New Year is the end of a week-long festival. The day of the fifteenth day is considered a butter lamp festival in Lhasa. This butter lamp festival marks the end of Both Tibetan New Year and the Monlam festival.
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