Tibetan Buddhists perform sacred dances in India

A novice Buddhist monk of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage enters a temple for prayers during the annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 12, 2012.

Buddhist monks of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage wait to perform a "bone dance" ritual during the annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 12. The sacred dances are a purification ritual that Tibetan Buddhists believe will rid the world of negative obstacles.

Buddhist monks of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage perform a dance ritual during the annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 12. The sacred dances are a purification ritual that Tibetan Buddhists believe will rid the world of negative obstacles.

A Buddhist monk of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage yawns as he sits with other monks during a break at an annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 11.

Buddhist monks of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage blow traditional horns during the annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 12.

Buddhist monks of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage play instruments during the annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 12.

Buddhist monks of the Drukpa Tibetan Buddhist lineage perform prayers before the annual festival of sacred dances at the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, northern India, Nov. 12.