Khata

(खता)

Literal Meaning

White ceremonial scarf

Etymology & Sanskrit Root

Tibetan kha btags: the ceremonial offering scarf.

Spiritual Insight & Context

A white silk scarf offered in greeting, at altars and to teachers; at Losar it is given with the wish "Tashi Delek".

Where Khata Comes Up

Losar, the Tibetan New Year

The three-day Tibetan New Year of purification, renewal, and monastery ceremony, rooted in pre-Buddhist Bon tradition and reshaped over centuries into a central festival of Himalayan Buddhism.

Topics

Losar Customs: How the Tibetan New Year Is Kept

How Losar, the Tibetan New Year, is kept: Gutor cleaning, guthuk soup, altar offerings, prayer flags and Chotrul Duchen, and how customs differ by region.

Topics