Lama Tsongkhapa day
Saturday 13th & Sunday 14th of December 2025
Avalokiteshvara, great treasure of non-objectifying compassion;
Manjushri, master of stainless wisdom;
Vajrapani, destroyer of the entire host of maras;
Tsongkhapa, crown jewel of the sages of the land of snows,
To Losang Drakpa, at your feet I make requests.
Ganden Ngamchoe - Lama Tsongkhapa's parinirvana
Je Tsongkhapa or Lama Tsongkhapa (1357 – 1419) of his ordained name Losang Drakpa was a tibetan monk and teacher, founder of the tibetan Gelug school.
Every year on the 25th day of the 10th month of the lunar calendar we celebrate Ganden Ngamchoe – Lama Tsongkhapa’s parinirvana. In 2025 this holiday occurs on the 14th of December.
You can read more about this auspicious day here.
This year in particular, Nalanda Monastery is happy to welcome members of the French Kalmyk community represented by the ADKF (Association des Kalmouks de France). Based on their historical ties with the Gelug school, in the Kalmyk tradition, Lama Tsongkhapa’s parinirvana – Zul – is the most important day in the year as it represents new beginnigs and a New Year.
In order to present our brothers and sisters’ culture and traditions we organize the festivities on the whole weekend of the 13-14 december 2025:
- Saturday 13th : presentation of the culture of the Kalmyk people
- Sunday 14th : Lama Tsongkhapa Day (tib. Ganden Ngamchoe, kal. Zul)
| Saturday 13/12/2025 | |
| 12:30 | Lunch |
| 13:50 | |
| 14:00 | Presentation on the kalmyk people and their culture |
| 16:00 | |
| 16:00 | Traditional kalmyk tea party |
| 16:30 | |
| 16:30 | Lama Tsongkhapa’s Guru Yoga (Ganden Lhagyama) |
| 18:15 | |
| 18:30 | Dinner |
| 19:00 | Buddha Medicine Puja |
| Sunday 14/12/2025 | |
| 06:30 | 8 Precepts of Mahayana |
| 07:00 | |
| 11:30 | Chanting the names of Manjushri & King of prayers (in english) |
| 12:15 | |
| 12:30 | Kalmyk lunch |
| 13:50 | |
| 14:00 | Movie projection on the life of Geshe Ngawang Wangyal – “Geshe Wangyal, With Blessing of the Three Jewels” |
| 15:30 | |
| 15:30 | Traditional kalmyk tea party |
| 16:00 | |
| 16:00 | Guru Puja |
| 17:30 | |
| 17:30 | Traditional Kalmyk light offering ceremony |
| 18:15 | |
How to accumulate merits on this special occasion?
“It is best to offer as many light offerings as you can. It is very common to offer lights on Lama Tsongkhapa Day… The center’s students can hang up as many Christmas lights as possible. By offering lights, we create the cause of enlightenment, of liberation from samsara, and of the happiness of future lives.”
Kyabje Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche
You can offer a Tibetan led lamp for €10.
Your name will be mentioned with the light you will sponsor.
This way, you make a light offering in order to dispel ignorance and Nalanda monastery can use your generosity for Dharma purposes.
Kalmyks also practice light offering, but for them it bears an additional meaning – traditionally they didn’t celebrate individual birthdays but on this day, each added one more ghee lamp representing an additional year to their age.
Live Stream - Special Guru Puja and Tsog
Video below is from previous edition of Lama Tsongkhapa Day (25/12/2024).
This year’s livestream and video will be available soon.
