Every year the Tibetan people celebrate Saga Dawa, which marks the enlightenment of Sakyamuni. The pole of Tarboche, close to the sacred Mount Kailiash in Tibet, is covered with thousands of prayer flags. Hundreds of pìlgrims gather at this sacred place to ritually take down the pole and replace the prayer flags with the new ones. Highlight of the festival is raising the pole supported by the prayers of a lama. If the pole is straight up, next year will be prosperous with no diseases and good harvests. Pilgrims walk a kora around Mount Kailiash to complete the festival.
This serie is also published in my book “Tibet”.