Once In Twelve Years Naropa Festival Is All Set To Begin In Himalayas

Once in 12 years: Leh gears up for the

 'Kumbh of Himalayas'

A once-in-12-years carnival of Buddhist spirituality, culture and tradition -- and a grand congregation of Drukpa masters -- is set to begin this week at the 17th century Hemis monastery of Drukpa lineage, the largest such in the Himalayas.

Organisers say the fourth edition of the Naropa festival, a celebration of the 1,000th birth anniversary of the great Indian saint Naropa, is likely to see more than 200,000 devotees, mainly from Ladakh, Bhutan and Nepal, during the week-long celebrations, beginning September 16. It's rightly called the Kumbh of the Himalayas.

The festival also attracts people from across the globe, including celebrities. This time, Hollywood stars Michelle Yeoh and Robert Kennedy Junior will be attending, among others.

The rare public display of six bone ornaments and the unfurling of the ancient silk Thangka of Buddha Amitabha, the largest silk brocade in the Himalayas, are among the main highlights of the Naropa festival.

Explaining the display of six sacred ornaments, spiritual leader Thuksey Rinpoche told IANS: "It's rare indeed since this opportunity comes only once in 12 years." He said the moment saint Naropa achieved enlightenment he was offered the six bone ornaments by Dakinis.

"These ornaments are revered relics of Buddhism and historic symbols of a great Himalayan odyssey. From Naropa, several Buddhist traditions flourished throughout India, Central Asia and beyond. For close to 1,000 years, the six bone ornaments have been used as a relic of devotional support," said the 30-year-old Rinpoche, the spiritual regent to the Gyalwang Drukpa, the 54-year-old spiritual head of the Drukpa Order with over 1,000 monasteries across the Himalayas.

On the millennial birth anniversary of saint Naropa, the 12th Gyalwang Drukpa will don the six ornaments to grant the grand Chakrasamvara empowerment.

Believers say the devotees can attain "liberation on sight" on seeing the six ornaments.

Naropa festival authorities say a Guinness World Record will be broken on September 16 for the largest projected image on to the famed Hemis monastery, 40 km from Leh.

The last record was achieved by the Moscow International Festival "Circle of Light" on October 4, 2015, with a dazzling video animation projected on to the famous Ministry of Defence building.

Over 200 kung fu nuns belonging to various nunneries of the Drukpa sect, who reached Leh this month after traversing 2,500 km on cycles from Kathmandu, will also give drum as well as theatrical performances during the festival.

A Good News From Kerala,Karapuzha Will Be An Official Tourist Destination

Kerala, a destination which is liked by travellers from all parts of the world, will soon be home to this new tourist destination.

We won't be surprised if you haven't really heard of Karapuzha. But those who have visited the Wayanad district of Kerala, might have come across this place and felt pleased to have discovered such a beautiful place.

Whoever knows anything about Karapuzha, would remember the place for its natural beauty. And this lush green landscape owes itself to the presence of the Karapuzha Dam, built on the Karapuzha River, a tributary of the Kabini River.

The good news is, very soon, this place will be an official tourist destination. According to a report by The Hindu, the Irrigation Department is all set to tap the tourism potential of the Karapuzha irrigation project.

Now, don't make the mistake of assuming it will take time to come up. The fact is, an amount of Rs 6.98 crore has already been invested on the area to set up a new tourism site on five hectares of land.

While a rose garden with a view of the dam-top has been set up on four hectares of land, tourist attractions including an open air theatre with a seating capacity of 600, a cafeteria, a children's garden, and stalls for for souvenirs, handicrafts and spices have been set up.

Although the construction work of this project started in 2014, a fund transfer row between the Kerala Irrigation Infrastructure Development Corporation (KIIDC) and the Regional Agriculture Research Station (RARS) delayed it.

While now it seems like a matter of time that the place starts attracting tourists from all parts, beautification of the dam-top and landscaping of the front portion are already on progress. Also being constructed are gazebos, tourism facilitation centre, walkways, and the parking area.

Talking about the tentative opening date of this tourist site, a source from the Irrigation Department told The Hindu, ""We are planning to open the destination to tourists by the first week of November". He also added that an amount of Rs.28 crore for the third phase construction works of the destination and they were preparing a master plan for the proposed project.

The Hindu report further reveals that the a 110-acre front area of the dam site is also being explored by the authorities for further expansion of the tourism project. Also coming up are several adventure activities like powered hang glider, speed boating on the dam, ropeway to connect little islets on the reservoir, and a laser fountain.

Kaziranga National Park Will Open On October First,Instead Of November First

Kaziranga National Park to open on Oct 1, a month earlier than the usual date

This bit of news is sure to make every wildlife enthusiast really happy.

According to a report by The Shillong Times, the government of Assam has decided to throw open the gates of the Kaziranga National Park for tourists from October 1 this year, exactly a month before it usually opens for the year-ending season.

Home to the one-horned rhinos, this UNESCO World Heritage Site is popular among both domestic and international travellers, and it is the same reason why the national park will see an early opening this time, thanks to a directive by the Chief Minister of Assam,Sarbananda Sonowal.

Reportedly, the park authorities and the Assam Forest Department are working hard to make sure that the roads, bridges, and other infrastructure inside the park, which were damaged during the devastating floods earlier this year, are repaired before the tourist season starts.

Apart from the one-horned rhinos, the Kaziranga National Park is known worldwide for its population of elephants, tigers, buffaloes, spotted deer, hog deer, bear, varieties of reptiles, and plenty of winged species. The park received the world attention earlier this year when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Kate Middleton visited it earlier this year.