Gumla is an important month of the rainy season, typically occurring between June and September in the Gregorian calendar in the Kathmandu Valley. Gumla is a time when Newar Buddhists spend many hours making small clay objects called stupas, or chaityas, to express their devotion and accumulate religious merit. At the end of the month, when one hundred thousand stupas are finished, the priest performs a special ritual, as depicted in the lower register. Then, these small chaityas are deposited in a river. Traditionally, a painting showing the ritual is commissioned on behalf of and in memory of the deceased family members. _________ Monsoon Ritual around the Stupa (Gumla Dharma Laksha Chaitya); Nepal; 16th century; pigments on cloth; Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art; gift of Shelley and Donald Rubin; C2006.66.36 (HAR 100004). #RubinMuseum #RubinGlobal #Monsoon #Nepal #HimalayanArt #Gumla