New Tiji Festival Trek

In the heart of Mustang, the Tiji Festival is one of the region’s most vibrant and spiritually significant events, attracting people from all over the villages and even countries to witness the ceremony. 

Are you looking for local travel agency to organize your Tiji Festival Trek to Upper Mustang in the year 2027 and 2028?

The date for New Tiji Festival Trek 2027 and 2028 is already updated. The Tiji festival Trek year 2027 will be celebrating on the july 10th, 11th, and 12th. Inquiry us for 2028 date 

This festival is celebrated twice a year—once by the community (Lo Cho Dhun) known as the Tiji Festival, and once inside the monastery, which is known as the New Tiji Festival. 

The Story of the New Tiji Festival in Mustang

Long ago, in the Mustang, there was only one Tiji festival celebrated, “ the Lho Tso Dhun Tiji.” This festival was a sacred tradition, a time when the local people came together to witness the powerful rituals performed by the monks of Chode Monastery.

In those days, the Lho Tso Dhun community sponsored the festival. They believed in the spiritual strength of the Tiji rituals, which were meant to drive away evil spirits and bring peace and harmony to the land. The festival occurred in an open space among the villagers. The chants of the monks, the swirl of colorful costumes, and the deep beats of drums brought the whole valley to life. But as time passed, the Lho Tso Dhun people could no longer afford to sponsor the grand event. Though the community could not continue their support, the monks felt the importance of keeping the tradition alive. They decided to continue performing the Tiji rituals on their own, quietly within the sacred grounds of the monastery, and the prayers continued to echo through the monastery halls.

Eventually, the Lho Tso Dhun community resumed its sponsorship. The public celebration of the Lho Tso Dhun Tiji Festival returned with all its color and energy, the mask dances, the ceremonies, and the gathering of villagers once more under the open sky. Yet something had changed. The monks had been performing the rituals inside the monastery for several years and believed it was important to continue what had become a new tradition of its own. Rather than stopping one celebration for the other, both were sustained — the original, community-based Lho Tso Dhun Tiji Festival and the monastery-led rituals known as the New Tiji Festival, which, according to the lunar calendar, are celebrated on the 27th, 28th, and 29th of the 3rd month, while another is observed on the 7th, 8th, and 9th of the 5th month, respectively.

And so, because of devotion, resilience, and a deep respect for tradition, Mustang now celebrates not one but two Tiji Festivals every year, each carrying the same sacred purpose, yet each with its unique spirit and story.

Read about the Tiji Festival community. 

Compared to the first Tiji festival (Lo Cho Dhun Tiji festival), this New Tiji Festival attracts a smaller audience, both local people and tourists. This Tiji festival is also celebrated for three days with the same schedule, mask dances, and rituals, but with fewer attendees, less crowding, and a more intimate experience with the same spiritual essence.

Both versions follow the same powerful three-day ritual:

Day 1 – Invocation of the Protector
Monks perform chants and rituals to call upon Dorje Jono, a deity believed to protect the region from evil.

Day 2—Battle Against Evil
Dramatic mask dances depict Dorje Jono’s fight against demonic forces, symbolizing the victory of good over evil.

Day 3 – Banishment of Evil
The climax: a sculpture representing evil is cast out, marking peace and renewal for the land and its people.

Read in detail about the Three Days of Tiji Festival.

Highlight of the Second Tiji Festival trek

• Scenic Travel to the Himalayas
• Witness the Sacred Tiji Festival in Lo-Manthang
• Visit centuries-old monasteries, royal palaces, and mysterious Chosar Caves around Lo-Manthang. 
• Trek through off-the-beaten-path villages like Yara and Tange
• Visit Luri Gompa cave monastery, and cross scenic high-altitude landscapes.
• Pilgrimage to Muktinath Temple
• Taste Local Life in Marpha

Upcoming Second Tiji Festival dates for the years 2027 and 2028 are given below in the table.