The Opening of the Yushu Horse Racing Festival and the 3rd Snow-land Gesar Arts Festival & Sanjiangyuan Water Culture Festival

Bring Yushu to the World and the World to Yushu

YUSHU, China, July 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Yushu Horse Racing Festival & the 3rd Snow-land Gesar Arts Festival & Sanjiangyuan Water Culture Festival will be held at the racecourse in Zaxike, Qinghai on July 25th, 2018. Yushu is a miraculous land, a source of Yangtze River, Yellow River and Lancang River; birthplace of world natural heritage Hoh Xil; and a cradle of the earliest mountain, Kunlun Mountain. The industrious and honest people from all the local ethnic groups have no lack of vigor in this quake-affected area, as the waters of life flow from the sky to nourish the land.

The opening ceremony will commence with the greeting ceremony where the pure white Hada will be presented by the Khampas for the guests from afar. By making toasts, singing propitious songs and performing the traditional "Guowa" dance, guests from all over the world will be welcomed. The opening ceremony will include four sections: delivery of Sanjiangyuan holy water, songs about heroes, horse racing, and the Chinese dream. With "carrying, inheriting, harmony, advancing" as its theme, the opening ceremony will attract the attention of tens of thousands from at home and abroad. According to the organizer, the tickets for this opening ceremony, intended to be shared widely by the locals, will be directly distributed to the villages around Yushu City to attract their participation and create an immersive tourist activity to experience the local conditions and customs of Yushu.

During the opening performance, the Dharma instruments will sound simultaneously in the Sang smoke and the solemn water ritual gives weight to the sacredness of "water is the source of life". The Yushu people guard the source of the three mother rivers of China with pride and confidence, wishing everlasting prosperity to the people of all ethnic groups in China and the entire human race. Then, Gesar rap artists will relate the heroic story of King Gesar in their own unique style, and a dazzling athletic performance where horse racers will vividly evoke the tale of King Gesar's birth. At the Grand Ceremony of King Gesar, stunning dances such as the Hada dance, jubilant "Yi" dance, soldiers' dance, and "Guowa" dance, will be on display alongside impressive songs, such as "Ridge Domain of Yushu", sung by QiongXueZhuoMa and many other famous Tibetan singers, to bring the festive atmosphere to its climax. The last scene will be grand performance by ten thousand people performing a Zaxi dance. Additionally, the Volunteer Action Proposal for "Care for Mountains and Rivers and Protecting the Source of Three Rivers" will be read out, calling on the whole world to contribute to the protection of the Sanjiangyuan's sound ecology and the construction of global ecological resources.

The "three-in-one" series of activities celebrates the cultural characteristics of Gesar, highlighting the concept of water ecological culture, integrating elements of traditional Yushu festivals, and displaying the national culture of Yushu in all directions, enriching and enhancing the cultural tourism brand connotation of "Source of Three Rivers, Source in Yushu" and "King Gesar, Soul in Yushu". At the event, there will also be the "Zhi Ga Dai" Strong Man Competition, the "Banjue Knight Competition of Honor", the Gesar rap performance, the Gesar Culture Forum, a costume show, the "Zum" beauty pageant, the horse race, the yak race, the Dharma dance, the "Shi Jie Gong Sang" chorus, the bonfire party, and many other exciting activities. The event is planned to last until July 28.

Singing the songs about the charm of the "Source of Three Rivers" to welcome guests from all over the world. Under blue skies and white clouds, the beautiful Yushu celebrates the holidays with its new visitors with song and dance.

SOURCE Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture Tourism Bureau