28/05/2025
Choekor Festival in Tawang.
Choekor, also known as the Choekhor Festival, is an important Buddhist festival celebrated with devotion and cultural vibrancy in Tawang, a region in Arunachal Pradesh with deep Tibetan Buddhist roots.
Meaning and Purpose
The term Choekor translates to “Wheel of Dharma.”
It commemorates Lord Buddha’s first teaching (the first turning of the Dharma Wheel) after attaining enlightenment.
The festival is observed to bless the land and promote peace, prosperity, and harmony.
Celebration in Tawang
The Choekor festival in Tawang is unique because it involves a community-based procession where monks, villagers, and laypeople carry sacred scriptures (Kangyur and Tengyur texts) on their backs and walk around the agricultural fields.
This ritual is meant to bless the crops, ensuring good harvests and protection from natural calamities.
The sacred texts are taken in a circumambulatory procession (kora) around the fields, often starting and ending at the local monastery.
Cultural Highlights
The procession is accompanied by the sound of chants, horns, drums, and cymbals, creating a spiritually charged atmosphere.
Villagers dress in traditional attire, and monks recite holy scriptures and perform rituals along the way.
The festival strengthens the bond between religion, nature, and the local agrarian lifestyle.
Time of Celebration
It is celebrated during the summer months, typically in July or August, based on the Tibetan lunar calendar.
The exact date varies from village to village.