Sakewa at Mankhim

Sakewa (also written Sakela or Sakenwa) is the main festival of the Khambu Rai, one of the Kirati peoples of eastern Nepal, Sikkim, Darjeeling and Kalimpong. The year in the Kirat tradition has two halves: Ubhauli, the going up, when birds and herders move uphill at the start of summer, and Udhauli, the coming down, before winter. Sakewa marks both. In Sikkim the spring festival begins on the Baisakh full moon and is a nine-day bhumi puja, a worship of the earth for good harvests and protection from storms and drought.

The Mangkhim at Aritar is a temple of the Kirat Rai: in the Rai language mang means deity and khim means house. Wikipedia's article on Mankhim notes that the community assembles here twice a year for Sakewa. A ritual leader, the nakchhong, recites the Mundhum, the oral scripture that tells how the ancestors came into the world, while dancers move in a wide circle to drums and brass cymbals. Many of the Sili movements copy animals, birds and the stages of rice farming, from sowing to harvest.

Sakewa has grown from a family and clan observance into a public festival in Sikkim, and the state now marks it with a holiday. Celebrations take place at Mangkhim temples across Sikkim, and the one on Mankhim hill is the best placed for travellers on the Silk Route. Exact dates follow the lunar calendar, so ask us in advance, and check current status before you travel.