Tibetan monasteries welcome New Year pilgrims

LHASA - Monasteries in Southwest China's Tibet autonomous region have seen increasing numbers of visitors ahead of the upcoming Tibetan New Year, which falls on February 11.

Sonam Norbu, deputy director of the management committee of Sera Monastery in the regional capital of Lhasa said more than 3,000 worshippers have come to pray every day since the monastery began a Tantric Buddhism assembly on January 3.

The number of visitors multiplies during the weeklong assembly, Sonam Norbu said, adding that lines will stretch to nearly 1 km in length outside a sacred hall built for Hayagriva, a horse-headed incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu.

"I come here to pray to Hayagriva to bless my family," said local resident Gyaltsen.

Increasing numbers of worshippers have also been seen at the Potala Palace, Barkhor Street and other well-known Buddhist sites in Lhasa.