(Moderate Level Trek) - 18 day trip

Mani Rimdu takes it's origins, by word, from the monks of Rongphu (Rongbuk) Monastery situated on the north side of Mt Everest, Tibet and contained many elements associated with the Tibetan 'Cham' festival, around the pre-Buddhist period of the Bon religion. Many Sherpa people remember themselves, or the generations before them, crossing over the high passes to Rongphu to witness the religious shows including Mani Rimdu.

The festival first started occurring in Nepal around 1930 at Tengboche and then Thami monasteries. It evolved and changed over the next two decades to a form that was set in 1950 and is as much as what we see today. It is thought that the main emphasis or purpose of Mani Rimdu is a consecration of rites, or demonstration of a series of Buddhist moral and ethical values, to both those participating and spectating; believers or non-believers of Buddhist faith. Mani Rimdu (or the original name Mani Rildrup) is in fact the name of the 'consecration of life' ceremony that opens the festival. This ceremony is sometimes performed at other times of year; seeking blessings of the gods at times of harvest and so on. Comparisons of Mani Rimdu have been made with plays of the Catholic church that tell stories of the Devil and the Angel, Virtue and Vice, Good and Evil, Redemption and Punishment.

Monks of the monastery dress up in costumes and masks depicting divine characters and perform a story set to live band music. The dances are quite physical in heavy costumes, and lengthy, necessitating the performers to be very fit, notwithstanding that both Tengboche and Chiwang Gompas are at altitude!

A day is set aside for rehearsals, and the gompa is used as a preparation area for all performers. Here they lay out all the many costumes in order of performance, and rest and rehydrate with a local chang beer that elevates them to an almost euphoric state in their performance. There are not usually more than sixteen performers that participate in a series of thirteen dramas, which can go for more than seven hours. It is a ceremony and event not to be missed.

ITINERARY

DAY 1 : Arrive in Kathmandu

DAY 2 : In Kathmandu

DAY 3-16 : Fly to Phaphlu,trekking to Mani Rimdu Festival,namche khumjung tyangboche,fly back to kathmandu from luklato

DAY 17 : sightseeing

DAY 18 : Trip concludes Kathmandu