Prayer flag

A Tibetan prayer flag is a colorful rectangular cloth, often found strung along trails and peaks high in the Himalayas.

Nepal Sutras, originally written on cloth banners, were transmitted to other regions of the world as prayer flags.

Lung ta (horizontal) prayer flags are of square or rectangular shape, and are connected along their top edges to a long string or thread.

Darchog are commonly planted in the ground, mountains, cairns, and on rooftops, and are iconographically and symbolically related to the Dhvaja.

[2] The center of a prayer flag traditionally features a lung ta (powerful or strong horse) bearing three flaming jewels (specifically ratna) on its back.

In addition to mantras, prayers for a long life of good fortune are often included for the person who mounts the flags.

Images or the names of four powerful animals, also known as the Four Dignities, adorn each corner of a flag: the dragon, the garuda, the tiger, and the snow lion.

According to traditional belief, because the symbols and mantras on prayer flags are sacred, they should be treated with respect.

Some believe that if the flags are hung on inauspicious astrological dates, they may bring negative results for as long as they are flying.

Lung ta prayer flags hang along a mountain path in Nepal .
Close-up of a Lung ta ("Wind Horse") prayer flag, Ladakh , India
A Darchog prayer flag in northern India
Five colors of prayer flag on a mountain in Sikkim
A Tibetan "lung ta" or " wind horse " from an 1895 book by Laurence Austine Waddell
Faded prayer flags in the wind between the two peaks of the Peak of Victory over Leh , Ladakh, India. The Namgyal Tsemo Gompa can be seen on the peak.