PHANGLHABSOL 2026 . A 20-Year Journey Comes to an End | Zikdel’s Last Cham#pemayangtsemonastry

20 Years. One Final Dance. | Zikdel’s Pang Lhabsol Journey The day began at home with Dad offering the fragrant smoke of juniper in the early morning, a simple but deeply meaningful ritual to begin this auspicious day with prayers and blessings. Pang Lhabsol is a sacred festival of Sikkim, a time to honour Mount Khangchendzonga and remember the deep connection between our people, our land and the forces of nature that protect and sustain us. This year’s Pang Lhabsol felt especially emotional for me because 2026 marks Zikdel’s final year dancing the Cham. His journey has taken him from being a Cham Zuk, the tail dancer, for three years, to dancing as a Champen for another three years. After this year, he hopes to take the next step and participate in Dhamar Cham. Watching him perform this final Cham made the day feel like the closing of a beautiful chapter.But this is not just a regular vlog. This is a documentary for keeps over an hour of conversations, traditions, memories and reflections. While witnessing the sacred dances and celebrations of Pang Lhabsol, we also take a moment to look beyond the festivities and talk about what is happening around us earthquakes, floods, landslides and natural disasters affecting communities across the world.Perhaps these are also reminders for us to pause and think about our relationship with nature. The mountains, rivers, forests and the earth are not simply resources for us to use. They are part of our existence. Pang Lhabsol teaches us to respect and revere the land, and perhaps there is no better time than now to remind ourselves that respecting nature is also a way of respecting life itself.