Tibetans celebrate Bathing Festival in Lhasa.

The Bathing Festival usually falls on the first ten days of July according to Tibetan calendar in their traditional ways. Mass bathing starts when the Star of Karma Doiba rises to the sky and ends when the star sets. Legend goes that bathing at this period is good to their health Lasting a week, it is also known as the Bathing Week. The end of the seventh and beginning of the eight lunar months sees locals washing away the grime of the previous year in an act of purification that coincides with the week long appearances of the constellation Pleiades in the night sky. It is believed that when the sacred planet Venus appears in the sky, the water in the river becomes purest and cures diseases. During its appearance for one week, all Tibetan people would go into the river to wash away the grime of the previous year and invite good luck to the following one year.The festival activities have practical, religious and social purposes. Along with taking a bath, the Tibetans also wash their clothes. They set up tents on the banks of the rivers and streams and wash before the winter comes. It is thought that bathing at this time brings good luck, washes away evil omens or illnesses, and brings healing. It was traditionally believed that people should not bathe casually. It is a religious purification ritual. After the holy bath, everyone enjoy a “lingka” or picnic since social life is a very important part of festivals in Tibet. Most festivals were in the past meant to teach the illiterate people through dance, theater and chants their religious teachings and their society’s history. So the festivals are important religious occasions, but they are also seen as a way to socialize with each other. During this festival, the Tibetans turn bathing and washing clothes into a social activity and a time to meet people.