Ladakh is a land that abounds in awesome physical features set in an enormous landscape and, therefore, it appears beautifully desolate and remote. Yet, over the centuries, it has imbibed diverse ethnic, religious and cultural influences through the many missionaries, explorers and traders who traversed its windswept plateaux and deep valleys. In the process, it has been able to evolve and inherit a rich culture, which survives even today as a living heritage of the Western Himalayas. This heritage finds manifestation in the region's monuments, monasteries, art and oral literature, fairs and festivals, and in the time-honored tradition of collective celebration of various events. Here, every occasion - marriage, birth, farming and harvesting, even the flowering of plants is celebrated with great fanfare, marked with feasting, dancing and singing of folk songs that form part of its rich culture. In summer, most villages hold colorful archery festivals and thanks giving events, while winter is the period in which most of the religious festivals and social and cultural events are held.

Phyang Tsedup takes place in July / August. Like other monasteries, monks wearing colorful brocade robes and Mask in the form of different god and goddesses perform mask dances. The huge thanka of Skyoba Giksten Gonbo is hung in the courtyard during the festival.