Circumambulation around Holy Mountains is a pure Tibetan Buddhism religious practice. It is usually held in summer or autumn every year, especially on 15th of July or August in lunar calendar. Rest of the time, it will only be held at the foot of these holy mountains.

The circumambulation can be divided into two types: prostration and trekking. In trekking, pilgrims will bring cypress incense, sutra streamers, barley wine, food with them and some will bring wooden weapons to set upon Mani stones. At the path to the top of the mountain, they will take a shower in the waterfall to show they have been purified and absorbed nimbus; when they reach the top of the mountain, they will burn incense and prostrate to sacrifice to the Buddha. They will also circumambulate the cypress incense pile for three times and set sutra streamers upon it. Then they will sit down on the ground and toast each other with barley wine and take food that they bring. The trekking is the best chance for young men and women to get to know each other and fall in love.

While for the way of prostration, it is the hardest but the most authoritative way of circumambulation. The pilgrim must spread his body to the earth to measure the pathway from the exact beginning till the final end. Though it is the hardest, it is also regarded by Tibetan Buddhists as the most pious praying practice to realize one’s belief, to pray for blessing and to avoid misfortune.