Tibetans gather for sacred ritual

Thousands flock to hear Panchen Lama teach on 'propitious' day

From across the country and overseas, thousands gathered on Thursday for a sacred festival as the highly respected Panchen Lama began one of Tibetan Buddhism's most important rituals, held for the first time in more than half a century.

An estimated 50,000 monks, nuns and devotees showed up in the rain in Xigaze, the second-largest city of the Tibet autonomous region, to hear Panchen Lama Bainqen Erdini Qoigyijabu give the Kalachakra initiation, regarded as Tibetan Buddhism's highest teachings.