Yerthung the Ancient Horse Festival

Overview of Yerthung the Ancient Horse Festival

The bond between men and horses in the Himalayan region of Nepal and elsewhere in places like Tibet and central Asia is a special one. This relationship is a throwback to the days when the next village or the next country were an enemy and wars were frequent. In those days, the most trusted friend of the warrior was his sword and his faithful steed.

Horses are an important part of the culture and landscape in Manang and though the wars have ended, the relation between the two have endured. Every year, people in different villages in Manang district celebrate this bond in a colorful and exhilarating festival called Yertung.

The scenario is thus - the horses have been left to graze on their own in the forests and grasslands of the mountains for nearly four months as the fields are taken up by the crops. After the harvest is brought in, it is time to bring the horses back into the village. Yertung marks this renewal of tie between men and horses in a blazing test of courage, endurance and trust.

The villagers, now transformed into warriors again, compete against each other and though there are no prizes to be won, there is a unspoken acknowledgement of the best man and his best horse.

Yertung is a ritual steeped in customs and traditions and beside the actual running of the horses, the festivities at first take on a somber air of warriors going to battle and then change to one of gaiety with traditional singing and dancing at the end.

There are still places and festivals in the mountains of Asia that transports visitors back to the ancient days when life was less complicated. Manang is one such place - it is old, it is rugged and it is very beautiful. In this backdrop the Yertung horse festival inspires visions of Central Asian hordes as they rampaged and plundered through half the world under the thundering hooves of their trusted horses many centuries ago.

Be a part of it.