A once-in-12-years festival of Buddhist spirituality, culture and tradition began on 16 September 2016 at the Hemis monastery of Drukpa lineage in Ladakh region of India. The festival will conclude on 22 September 2016.Hundreds of thousands of monks, devotees and tourists have reached Ladakh for the Naropa Festival, which is also called as the Kumbh Mela of the Himalayas.