February 19, 2020
Losar—Tibetan New Year —begins on Monday February 24th 2020, so the nuns at the Arya Kshema Winter Dharma Gathering will be taking a break from their intensive study programme.
As soon as the morning’s teaching programme by His Holiness the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa concluded, the nuns leapt into action. The Tergar shrine room had to be reorganised for the special Mahakala Puja which precedes Losar and all the necessary equipment, musical instruments and furniture had to be carried from the storeroom at the Monlam Pavillion across to Tergar Monastery.
Meanwhile, in the Monlam kitchen building, the dough for the special Losar biscuits—kabsay—had to be made in bulk and fried.
1. Bringing the trestle tables for the offerings
2. Everything has to be brought from the storeroom under the Monlam Pavillion, across to Tergar Monastery shrine hall.
3. Hand held drums
4. Instruments - the great hand drums for the Mahakala Puja
5. Preparing the shrine room
6. Preparing the Mahakala shrine
7. Torma
8. Torma for the Gutor
9. Time for practising
10. The dough for the kabsay has to be made by hand
11. The kabsay is fried in bulk and then dried