A story has it that Neypo (A Local Deity) was originated from Tshokar and Tshonag at Singye Dzong. In olden days khando Machig Labdon stole a son (Sasung) from Tibet and brought to Bhutan to make him the guardian deity of Bhutan. When they reached Tshonag at Singye Dzong, Khando told his son not to open his eyes but the son was eager to know why his mother did not allow him to open his eyes; hiding he opened his eyes and he saw a huge Snake (neypo) in front of him and he got shocked and died on the spot. Khando really got angry and she chased the Neypo from Tshonag; Neypo fled toward south and he reached at a place called Tsango, there he told villagers, “I will look after your wellbeing, if you offer me one people in a year. Villagers did not agree and they said “we will give one sheep every year instead of people; Neypo thought it won’t be sufficient to fill his stomach, so he disagreed and he fled towards south and reached Khoma, and the same thing he told to people of Khoma but there people offered one ox in a year, still then he was not satisfied, he ran down and reached Thingling where Neypo said “I will look after your village wellbeing, what will you give me in return?’’ People replied, we will give a hen every year; Neypo compared three offerings of the people and the best offering was made by Khoma people, so he agreed to settle in Khoma. This is how Neypo Invocation ritual came into existence.

Hoen-tey is a special Haa Valley dish that is usually prepared during Lomba celebrations, the indigenous New Year, which are held on the 29th day of the 10th lunar month. Normally, the ingredients for Hoen-tey are prepared and cooked on the evening of the 28th day. When Hoen-tey needs to be made in large quantities, it is prepared either on the 26th, 27th or 28th day, and then on the 29th day it is cooked. Long ago, Hoen-tey was only made during Lomba celebration. Nowadays it is prepared all year round. To prepare Hoen-tey, you need the following basic ingredients. -\tBuckwheat flour -\tBunches of beet leaves -\tTurnips -\tLocal butter -\tFermented local cheese -\tGinger -\tClove of garlic -\tWild black pepper -\tChili powder -\tWalnut (optional) -\tA few stalks of green onion -\tSalt to taste

The name for this festival brings together two words, Lha means god and Soel means offering or prayer. The tradition in Sangbekha is primarily a Bon practice. Bon was a diverse body of localized ritual practices flourishing in Tibet before Buddhism expanded into the region. According to Sam Van Schaik (2013), Bon or the Bonpo religion, only emerged as a unified body of practices when put in contrast to Buddhist practice as the “othered” alternative to Buddha’s teachings. Following the eleventh century, the diverse practices organized and formalized in conversation with contemporary practices. Scriptures emerged, mainly through Terma hidden treasures, and visions of Tertons who discover the treasures such as Loden Nyingpo. Although Bon Terma contain legends that Bon existed before the introduction of Buddhism to Tibet, Van Shaik notes "the 'old religion' was in fact a new religion." Following these developments and reforms of the practices to eliminate animal sacrifices, some scholars consider Bon to be a distinct sub-school within Tibetan Buddhism. Over time, Buddhism became more popular and Bon practice waned. The Bon tradition also existed in Bhutan before Buddhism took hold. Although the Bon tradition is not as strongly recognized by the people of Bhutan, it still existed in every corner of the country, making this tradition one of the oldest in Bhutan. The Bon tradition takes refuge in the earth, rocks, cliffs, trees, sun, moon, stars, etc. are the protectors, and formerly involved offering animals in sacrifice. The Bon practitioners in Wangdiphodrang Dzongkhag or district, such as the communities of Gaseng Tshogom, Khatoekha and Lhashing Tsawa, performed a common ritual known as Lha-soel every three years. The ritual is organized by one of the Pawo male shamen, and Neljorm or Pamo female shaman, of each village. They alternate hosting the program every three years. The organizer of the year prepares for the rituals, tents are pitched near the organizer's house and the Lha-soel ritual takes two whole days. In an interview with 68-year-old female shaman Aum, elder, Kencho Om has been a Pamo for 25 years in Nakey-kha village in Sangbekha gewog, Haa Dzongkhag a district of eastern Bhutan. She said that the Pamos are the same as Nyeljoms and are common throughout central and eastern Bhutan. They are the female mediums who are possessed by local deities. Their job is to diagnose and cure diseases through divination and rituals. It is believed that the abilities of Pamo continuously persist through the family line. When a practitioner dies, the spirit passes to her daughter. However, it depends on the decision of the deity to choose the legitimate “wife” to inherit the role among the daughters or granddaughters. Aum Kencho has no formal education, but learned the and rituals transmitted through their family line. According to her, Pamo play an important psychological and healing role in a rural society where the supernatural is a part of life. They do what others cannot, such as mediate through the mind. The Bhutanese believe that illnesses are due to an imbalance in the various elements that make up the body, and that they are often caused by one of the numerous vengeful spirits associated with certain symptoms that consist of Tsa energy channels, the Lung wind channel, and the Thig-le seed channel in the human body. When these channels unbalance each other, it causes illness. The Lha-soel is held at the beginning of the 6th month (July) and another in the 12th month (January) according to the Bhutanese calendar. It is performed twice a year (summer and winter). In summer, they perform a shortened ritual (Due-pa) in the evening, while in winter they perform a grand ritual (Gye-pa) that usually lasts from evening to the next morning. Although there is no specific time, the ritual is performed either on the 8th, 10th, 15th, 25th and 30th of the month.

In earlier times, Bhutanese traveled as far south as possible to buy salt, spices, and other basic products in the nearest border towns. Pasakha (formerly the southern gateway) was an important business center for the people of western Bhutan because of its proximity to the nearest Indian towns. After an arduous journey of more than 20 days through the high mountains and after nights spent in the cold, dense jungle, the villagers then reached their home, bringing their daily supplies. A young man from the village of Bja-wo once set out for Pasakha to buy supplies. Upon his return, as he prepared to spend the night in the forest, he lay down under a large tree, placed the heavy basket under his head to rest, and stared up at the sky. He saw the bright moon almost smiling at him and the stars twinkling around him. He thought about the number of nights he would have to spend like this, and wondered if the stars and moon would keep him company during his journey home. He continued his journey home during the day, spending each exhausting night under bushes and trees. Each evening he looked up at the sky and noticed that the brightest star seemed to get closer and closer to the moon each night. When he returned home a few days later, the young man, suspecting an interesting observation in the sky, wanted to know how close the star had come to the moon. The following night, he looked up at the sky and found that the star had come so close to the moon that it almost looked like it was interacting with the moon (this was the narrator's exact interpretation). It was a unique discovery that symbolized a happy moment. Incidentally, the day he made this discovery was the 15th of the 10th month, one of the most auspicious holy days in the Bhutanese lunar calendar. Therefore, the festival of Bja-wo Karma Nya-ru (conjunction of the Pleiades and the full moon) is believed to have originated in Bja-wo village and is still celebrated with great enthusiasm. Nowadays, it is also popularly known as Dogar Nya-ru. Nya-ru is celebrated on the 15th day of the 10th month of the Bhutanese lunar calendar and is considered a special occasion where family and friends scattered all over Bhutan gather on this day and celebrate the auspicious day in each and every home with festivity and joy. On the 13th and 14th day of the 10th month, people who work in the cities, students, businessmen, relatives and basically all people who are from the village gather to celebrate Nya-ru. In this village of Nyo-yue dhuen (old name) or Khamda Sali Chiwog (sub-block) as it is commonly known today, people prepare for the big event by washing their clothes, cleaning themselves, tidying their houses and the men discuss archery that will take place during Nya-ru while the women prepare the menu for the special day in the house and make preparations for Ara (locally brewed wine) and other drinks.