Bhumchu festival in Darjeeling

Bhumchu festival in Darjeeling

Darjeeling, the Queen of Hill Station was gifted to the Bristish by Sikkim Monarch. Darjeeling presents a diverse demography comprising of Tibetan, Nepalese, Sikkimese and the Bhutanese. The diverse inhabitants present a homogeneous blend resulting in Darjeeling having one festival or the other every month. Bhumchu festival in Darjeeling is one such festival of the Sikkimese has mingled with Darjeeling culture.

Bum-Chu, one of the most intriguing festivals is celebrated during the first week of March. The Bum-Chu takes place on the 14th and 15th day of the first month of the Tibetan lunar calendar. It comes close on the heels of Lossar, the Tibetan New year in the middle of February. The people of Darjeeling look at Bum-Chu as a blessing and luck of the land. Bhumchu Festival in Darjeeling is very popular and is celebrated with aesthetic devotion and festivity.

Bum means a pot of vase and Chu means water. So Bum-Chu means a pot of water. During the festival, the lamas at Tashiding Monastery open a pot called Phumba containing holy water. People from Darjeeling visit the sacred Tashiding Monastery with chants of Om Mani Padme Hum filling the air. Thousand of Buddhist pilgrim treks their way to the Monastery every spring to have a sip of the holy water collected in the sacred Phumba. The level of water is an indicator of things to come. When the water level is completely up to the brim, it signifies a lot of violence and resultant bloodshed. Even more worse is an empty pot, which symbolizes an imminent famine. Only a half full pot signifies peace and prosperity in the land.

Once the pot and the water level in it are surveyed, the water is distributed to all those present. After this ritual is over, the pot is refilled with water, sealed and kept ready for next year's Bum-Chu festival. The festival also marks the arrival of spring after a harsh winter. Devotees from Nepal, Bhutan and the neighboring hills all come for the blessings. Bhumchu Festival of Darjeeling heralds the arrival of spring in the region.

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