Throughout the Festival, Lama Khedup will create a stunningly beautiful sand mandala. Millions of grains of brightly coloured sand are placed with great skill and patience using a metal funnel called a chak phur to form intricate geometric designs.

Beautifully detailed and highly symbolic, the sand mandala can take many days to complete, with the process culminating in the spiritually charged dissolution ceremony on the final day, Sun 24 April at 12pm. Only in the last few decades has this ancient sacred art been brought out of the monasteries for all to witness.