Festivals of Nepal

Nepal is a land of Festivals. For the Nepalese, festivals are not merely the annual spectacles, but also are a living part of their rich cultural heritage. Festivals effectively bind together the Nepalese people of diverse cultural backgrounds and beliefs into one nation. Most Nepalese festivals are related to different Hindu and Buddhist gods and goddesses and they are celebrated on such days consecrated for them by religion and tradition. 
 
Others are observed in honour of personal relatives such as festivals of Matatirtha and Gaijatra. Yet other are held to herald the different seasons or to mark the beginning or end of agricultural cycle. Some festivals are of national significance such as Dashain or Tihar; some are confined to the Kathmandu Valley, while still others are celebrated only within one or two villages or cities.

It is known as “Navavarsha” in Nepal. The Nepalese festivals follow round the traditional, religious’ Lunar Calendar in the same sequence. An exception is New Year Day, which always falls in the middle of April, observed throughout Nepal as the first day of the official Nepalese solar Calendar, i.e., the first day of Baisakh. This day is an official holiday for Nepal. The most important New Year festival in the Valley is held at Bhaktapur City, located fourteen kilometers on east of Kathmandu. This festival is known as Bisket Jatra meaning the festival after the death of serpent. The main attraction of the festival is the erection of the 'lingo', a ceremonial pole and a thick, shorn tree-trunk some eighty feet in length. This is an exciting operation, for the pole, supported by bamboos and pulled by heavy ropes, must be made to rest in the center hole of a large pile of cemented rocks. A large crowd from other town of the Valley assembles to watch this festival. During the week Bhairav, Bhadrakaii and other goddesses are dragged in chariots in the town. This is the biggest festival of Bhaktapur.

Loshar Festival is the new year of the Tibetans usually falls in the month of February. It is an important festival in the Tibetan calendar year and its celebration continues for a week. It is celebrated with great enthusiasm and spirit by the youthful Tibetans. The youths take to the streets performing the traditional Yak dance dressed in multi colored clothes. They walk down the street singing and dancing with sacred folk lures that fill the air that makes the atmosphere electrifying. It is a colorful event that continues for about a week. In the course of celebration they dance and distribute Sampa all along as greetings to herald the New Year with shouts of Tashi Delek. During the exhaustive weeklong celebration they deck themselves in colorful clothes and jewelry singing songs and dancing to the tune of music. 
 
This is one of the most happening times when a wide array of Tibetan food is cooked and distributed among all exchanging great joy, mirth and merriment. Loshar Festival can be traced back to the 6th century BC when the Tibetans practiced the Bon religion. This religious festival has developed into a Buddhist Festival and is continued since the time of Pude Gungyal, the ninth King of Tibet.

Saraswati Puja, the ritual worship of the goddess Saraswati, is done on Vasant Panchami day every year. The festival is celebrated to pay obeisance to Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge and learning. Hindus, celebrate this festival with great enthusiasm and Hindu temples and households are full of activity on this day. The festival is celebrated every year on the fifth day of the bright fortnight of the Magha month of the Nepali calendar, on the day called 'Vasant Panchami'. It is believed that on this day, goddess Saraswati was born. Saraswati is the consort of Lord Brahma and is the Goddess of Wisdom and Knowledge. She is the personification of knowledge - arts, science, and crafts. She represents Shakti, creativity and inspiration and presents herself when the weather is pleasant and Nature is in its full grandeur. It is a season of inspiration and passion. This day is regarded very auspicious for marriages too as it is believed that Goddess Saraswati herself blesses the couples. Normally it is the astrologers who fix the marriage date and time in Nepal.

Holi is an annual festival celebrated on the day after the full moon in the Hindu month of Phalgun (early March). It celebrates during the month of spring, which commemorates various events in Hindu mythology and is time of disregarding social norms and indulging in general merrymaking. Holi is probably the least religious of Hindu holidays. The day is observed to rejoice the extermination of female demon Holika who together with her King brother conspired to kill his son Pralhad, an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu. This day, playful people especially the young ones wander through the streets in groups on foot or vehicles with various colors smeared all over them and the people in houses make merry throwing colors and water balloons at each other and also to these people on the streets.

Ghode Jatra, the Horse Racing Day falls on the month of mid March or early April. A grand horse parade takes place at Tundikhel, the central point of the city reputed to have been in the former days the largest parade ground in Asia. It is said that in the olden days the Kings of Kathmandu use to go to worship the Bhadrakali temple in a courtly cavalcade following the Living Goddess Kumari. This visit could have been modified into the parade of horses and finally the horse athletics and racing contest as it is today, held by the army in the presence of the Prime Minister and the dignitaries.

Buddha Jayanti or also known as Buddha Purnima is the most sacred festivals of Buddhist. This day, which falls on the full moon of the month of Baisakh, commemorates three important events of Buddha's life, his birth, his enlightenment and his attainment of Nirvana, the founder preacher of Buddhism, more than 2500 years ago. Prayers are sung and the Buddhists offer worship in all the major Buddhist shrines such as Swayambhu and Boudhanath. At Swayambhunath, for example millions of devout Buddhists gather to chant prayers and to burn butter lamps. The next morning a giant figure of Lord Buddha is displayed to all the followers and hundreds of small shrines are visited and worshipped. Large groups of people parade through the streets praising the Lord and his teachings. Special flags, usually red, blue; yellow and white can be seen flying high above all the Buddhist households.

This is the birthday of Lord Krishna, the eighth Divine Incarnation. It falls on the 8th day of the dark half of the month of Bhadaw (August-September). This is one of the greatest of all Hindu festivals. Lord Krishna was born at midnight. A twenty-four hour fast is observed on this day, which is broken at midnight. Temples are decorated for the occasion. Kirtans are sung, bells are rung, the conch is blown, and Sanskrit hymns are recited in praise of Lord Krishna. People decorate their houses beautifully, ready to welcome the Lord. They prepare various sweetmeats and offer them to the Lord. Butter was Krishna's favorite, and this is also offered. There is recitation of the Bhagavatam, singing and praying everywhere. Numerous devotees flock to the ancient Krishna temple in old Patan Durbar Square to keep vigil through the glorious night of his birth. As they sit huddled together their bodies rocking in humble obeisance, the women chant the many names of the Lord,'Narayan, Narayan' and Gopal, Gopal'. Some sing ancient hymns, others clap their hands, while some pray. Crowds of men and women edge their way slowly up narrow steps through the seated devotees to the temple's dark interior to where the main idol stands. There they offer flowers, coins and food and wait for a glimpse of Krishna Janmastami festival at Krishna Mandir the idol. After the temple priest gives them 'prasad' they make their way down to join the multitude of devotees in the streets.

Teej is a fasting festival for Hindu women. It takes place in August or early September. It is celebrated for marital bliss, well-being of spouse and children and purification of own body and soul. The festival is a three-day-long celebration that combines sumptuous feasts as well as rigid fasting. Falling on the Hindu month of Shravan (August), it also celebrates the arrival of monsoon after a season of oppressive heat. Traditionally, the ritual of Teej is obligatory for all Hindu married women and girls who have reached puberty. Exception is made for the ones who are ill or physically unfit. In such circumstances a priest performs the rites. According to the holy books, the Goddess Parbati fasted and prayed fervently for the great Lord Shiva to become her spouse. Touched by her devotion, he took her for his wife. Goddess Parbati, in gratitude sent her emissary to preach and disseminate this religious fasting among mortal women, promising prosperity and longevity with their family. Thus was born the festival of Teej.

The festival of Indra Jatra is intimately linked to the harvest season as devotees give thanks to the god of rain Indra for good crops. One of Nepal's most vibrant festivals, processions with masked dancers takes place in the capital, Kathmandu. The celebrations usually last for eight days and the festival is celebrated by both Hindus and Buddhists. This festival goes on with singing, mask dancing and rejoicing. The chariot of Kumari – the Living Goddess is taken through the main streets of Kathmandu with much fanfare. On the first day, the King of Nepal also pays homage to Goddess Kumari. The crowd of excited people from performers to spectators engulfs the streets of Kathmandu during this festival. People get to enjoy various classical dances like elephant dance, Lakhe – a very popular dance of a man with a mask.

Tihar is a five-day Nepalese festival celebrated in late autumn, which comes soon after Dashain. One of these days incorporates the Hindu festival Deepwali. All the Hindus celebrate this festival and it is a very big even in Nepal. The festival is celebrated from Trayodashi of Kartik Krishna to Katrik Shukla Dwitiya every year. The name Tihar means the festival of lights, explaining the many candles lighted. The five day festival is considered to be of great importance as it shows reverence to not just the humans and the Gods, but also to the animals like crow, cow and dog, who maintain an intense relationship with the humans. 
 
People worship Laxmi – the Goddess of Wealth. All the houses are cleaned and decorated with the belief that Goddess Laxmi will enter the house that is the cleanest and people lit candles, oil lamps and other lights and the whole place looks illuminating. Crows, dogs and cows are worshipped and honoured with vermilion, garland and delicious food for what they have done in the lives of humans. Crows are regarded as the messenger that brought news even during the times when there were no postmen and no postal services. Dogs are the most obedient animals and they guard our house as true guardians. Cow is also a symbol of wealth in Hinduism and she is also the national animal of Nepal. During Tihar, the Newari community in Nepal also observes Mha puja – a ritual of worshipping one’s own body and life. The festival ends with Bhai Tika – brothers’ day when his sisters worship him for his long and healthy life to safeguard the lives of his sisters. This is also a gambling time in Nepal as gambling is not illegal during this festival.

This festival, taking place at Pashupati temple on the outskirts of Kathmandu, is dedicated to the god Shiva. On the morning of Shivaratri day and also on proceeding days, thousands of worshippers make their way to the ancient and revered temple of Shiva, many of them undergoing one or more days of fasting. It is customary to offer gifts both in the temple itself and to the temple priests. The priests in turn, give back a small portion, which is considered a gift from Lord Shiva and a sign of his blessing. While these religious rites continue until the evening, there is a along military gun salute at Tundikhel parade ground in central Kathmandu to acknowledge the important occasion. In the evening, the dignitaries also pay homage at Pashupati Temple.
As darkness falls, hundreds of wick lamps are lit around the temple vicinity while on the surrounding hills, bonfires are lit. Throughout the night, prayers, singing and chanting continue; many worshippers also take holy baths at three hourly intervals. Bonfires are also lit at important crossroads and in village and town courtyards throughout the valley.

According to tradition dating back since time immemorial, every family who has lost one relative during the past year must participate in a procession through, the streets of Kathmandu leading a cow. If a cow is unavailable then a young boy dressed up as a cow is considered to be a fair substitute. It is believed that the symbol of a cow, revered as a holy animal by all devout Hindus, will assist the deceased relatives heavenward journey. Later in the afternoon, nearly everyone takes part in another age-old tradition in which all participants dress up and wear masks; jokes, mockery and humor of every kind become that order of the day until the late evening.

Dashain is Nepal’s most important and lavishly celebrated festival. Every Nepali is stirred by the prospects of the joy this festival is supposed to bring with it. The first day of the festival is known as Ghatasthapana, the placing of the sacred vessel. According to the tradition, all devout Hindus should take an early morning bath in the holy river and return carrying some sand from the riverbed. At the same time, a small clay pot is filled with water from the same river and placed by the sand. Barley seeds are planted in this pot and nurtured for nine days. As with other Nepalese festivals, this ritual has also a specific meaning. In this case, the river water represents the mother goddess Durga, who according to legend crushed many powerful demon hordes in an epic battle. For the next nine days, devotees go to different prescribed sites for early morning bathes. Every home is cleansed and beautifully decorated, painted as an invitation to the mother goddess, so that she may visit and bless the house with good fortune. During the festival the reunion of distant and nearby relatives occur in every household. The market is filled with shoppers seeking new clothing, gifts, luxuries and enormous supplies of temple offering for the gods, as well as foodstuffs for the family feasting. 
 
The first nine days of Dashain are called Nawa Tatri when tantric rites are conducted. During these nine days people pay their homage to the goddess Durga. If she is properly worshiped and pleased good fortunes will knock the door and if neglected and be done it improperly then misfortunes will hail. Mother goddess is the source of life and everything. 
 
The peak of Dashain celebration is reached on the tenth day known as Vijaya Dashami, or the Day of Victory. ON this day, all the Hindus are supposed to visit their elders or superior relatives, starting with their parents. The main purpose of this visit is to receive tike and shoots of the barley known as jamara. Tika is a red dot or smear placed on the visitor’s forehead by the senior relative. Also frequently used in other festivals and even in daily worship, the tika consists of vermilion powder, rice and curd. As all visits cannot be completed one day, they continue until the end of the festival.