FESTIVALS OF NEPAL

As Nepal is a country of rich culture, there are lots of colorful festivals throughout the year. Please find details and dates for 2007/2008.

The Nepalese New Year’s Day- 14th April 2007
Bisket Jatra- 13th & 14th April 2007
On this day, a popular festival takes place in the 3rd city of Kathmandu valley, Bhaktapur where a gigantic pole installed with two long flags hanged on the top will be laid down (rooted out) in a great pomp and show. This will last for a week, many chariot festivals of Gods and Goddesses will be celebrated with open joys and cheers.

Rato Machhendranath Jatra – 21st April 2007
This festival is the biggest socio-cultural event for the town of Patan. It begins with the chariot journeys of the most widely venerated deity of the Nepal Valley who resides in his twin shrines of Patan and Bungamati. His popular name is Bunga Deo, but, non-Newars call him also by the name of Red Machhendranath. The wheeled chariot is prepared at Pulchowk and pulled through the town of Patan in several stages until several months later, it reaches Jawalakhel for the final celebration of this festival called the Bhoto Dekhaune. The two Machhendranath of Patan and Kathmandu form part of same cult of Avalokiteswara in the Mahayana religion.

Buddha Jayanti – 02nd May 2007
This day which falls on the full moon day of the month of Baisakh is celebrated to commemorate the birth attainment of enlightenment and the death of Gautam Buddha, the founder preacher of Buddhism more than 2500 years ago. Prayers are sung and worship is offered by the Buddhists in leading Buddhist shrines throughout the country including Lumbini in the Rupandehi district, the birth place of Lord Buddha. There is a great fare held at Lumbini on this day.

Janai Purnima (Raksha Bandhan) – 28 August 2007
The full moon of the month of Shrawan, the day when this festival is observed is considered sacred all over Nepal. However, the most widely accepted mode of celebration is that, on this day all the twice-born caster take ritual bath and they change their sacred thread. Everyone gets strings of thread on his wrist from the Brahmins, a protective mark for the whole year. This day is also held sacred for bathing in Gosainkunda.

One can also see a paegentry of the Jhankris attired in their traditional costume as they come to bathe at Kumbheshwor at Patan. These Jhankris also visit the temple of Kailinchowk Bhagwati in Dolkha district where they go to bet their healing powers as they are the traditional healers of the Nepalese villages.

Gai Jatra (The Cow Festival) –29th August 2007
In this festival, teen-aged boys dressed up as cows, parade the streets of the town. This costume springs from the belief that cows help the members of the family who died within that year to travel to heaven smoothly. Some are also dressed up as an ascetic or a fool for achieving the same objective for their dead family members. Groups of mimics improvise short satirical enactment on the current social scenes of the town for the entertainment of the public. The week beginning from Janai Purnima actually unfolds a season of many good religious and cultural activities. All the Buddhist monasteries open their gates to the visitors to view their bronze sculptures and collections of painting for a week. At Patan, one observes the festival of Mataya at this time. The festivity of Gai Jatra itself lasts for a week enlivened by the performance of dance and drama in different localities of the town. The spirit of the old festival is being increasingly adapted by cultural centres, newspapers and magazines to fling humour and satire on the Nepalese Social and Political life.

Krishnashtami – 04th September 2007
The day is celebrated as the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna, one of the incarnations of Lord Vishnu. Religious fast is observed and Krishna’s temple visited by the devotees on this day. A procession goes around the town displaying the pictures of Lord Krishna, a practice which was started in the recent years by a social organization known as Sanatan Dharma Sewa Samiti.

Teej – 14th September 2007
This is the festival for the ladies. On this day, the Nepalese women go to Shiva temple in colourful dresses to worship Lord Shiva. In Kathmandu Valley, they go to Pashupatinath and then worship Lord Shiva (Hindu God of Destruction) and whatever they wish that will be fulfilled.

Indra Jatra – 25th September 2007
Like Gai Jatra, this also heralds a week of religious and cultural festivity in Kathmandu. There are several faces of this festival. On the night, when this festival begins, members of the family in which death has taken place within one year, go
around the town limits of Kathmandu burning incense and putting lamps along the route.

The same morning, a tall wooden pole representing the statue of Indra and large wooden masks of Bhairav are put on display in the bazar. Several groups of religious dance like the Devinaach, Bhairava and Bhakku as well as Mahankalinach come into life during this week. The week also commences with pulling of chariot of Ganesh, Bhairav and Kumari in Kathmandu. On this historical day, King Prithvi Narayan Shah made a victorious march with his troops into the town and ascended the throne of Kantipur the old name of Kathmandu displacing the Malla King Jaya Prakash Malla.


Ghatasthapana – 12th October 2007
Bada Dashain (Vijaya Dashami) or Durga Puja – 18th October till 25st October, 2007
It is truly the national festival of Nepal. Every Nepali is stirred by the prospects of joy that this festival is supposed to bring with it. The change of mood is also induced psychologically by the turn of autumn season after a long spell of monsoon, introducing clear and brilliant days, an azure blue sky and a green carpet of fields, the climate is also just ideal at this time, it is neither too cold nor too warm. The Nepalese cherish their Dashain as time for eating well and dressing well. Each house sets up a shrine to worship the Goddess at this time. Barley seeds are planted on the first day in every household and nurtured for nine days. During this period, Goddess Durga Bhawani is worshipped and offered a lot of blood sacrifices. Buffaloes, goats, chickens and ducks are killed by the thousands at the temples at military posts and in every household. One of the main center that witnesses the animal sacrifice in a large scale at this time is the Hanuman Dhoka Palace on the ninth day. On the concluding day of the festival called the Tika, the elders of the family give Tika to their junior members and to other relatives who may also come to seek their blessings. The fresh shoots of the barleys are also given. Family feasting and feting of guests is a common practice at this time.

Tihar – (09th- Nov,- 11th Nov 2007)
This festival lasts for five days and is marked by worship to different animals such as crow, the dog and the cow, five various days. The most important day is Laxmi Puja. The most endearing sight of this festival is presented by the illumination of the entire town with rows of tiny flickering lamps on Laxmi Puja. In the evening of this day, the Goddess of Wealth, Laxmi, is worshipped at every household and it is on her welcome that myriad of lamps are burnt. On the fifth day, sisters show their affection towards their brothers with puja and feed them with delectable food. They pray for their brothers’ long life to Yama, the Hindu God of death.

Bala Chaturdasi – 08th December 2007
For one year after the death, the soul of the dead wanders around awaiting entrance to the under world and it is the inescapable duty of living relatives to provide it with substance, comfort and peace once or twice each year and Bala Chaturdasi is one of them. The relatives pay homage to Pashupatinath and offer grains while taking a round of the temple.

Shree Panch Prithvi Jayanti - 11th January 2008
The day is celebrated as the birth anniversary of the great conqueror of Nepal, the first Shah King of United Nepal. The great festivity celebrates particularly around the bronze life statue of the great monarch in front of the magnificient unique Lion Palace, “Singha Durbar”, in Kathmandu. On that day, a large procession will be marching in its front with a big life size photo of the King Prithvi Narayan Shah in a well-decorated chariot from Basantapur in the ancient Royal Palace square and ends in front of Lion Palace. On the same day evening, the ritual bath of White Machendra takes place at Kel Tole, Kathmandu.

Magh Sankranti - 15th January 2008
A Sanskriti signifies the first day of any month in the Nepali calendar year. The first day of the month of Magh which falls in January is sacred day in Nepal because the sun, on this day, is believed to be astrologically in a good position. It starts on its northward journey in its heavenly course on this day, thus announcing the commencement of the Uttarayana. In the Nepalese belief this day marks the division of the Winter and Summer Solstics. Bathing in rivers is prescribed from this day especially at the river confluence and feasting with rich foods of special preparation is common in the family.

Madhav Narayan Mela – 07th February 2008
A religious procession of the devotees fasting for a month ago with a silver statue of Lord Vishnu to Aryaghat, Pashupati, Deopatan, Kathmandu. Thousands of people get together there to take holy bath in the Bagmati river at the time of the submergence of the statue of Lord Vishnu in the Bagmati.

Basanta Panchami – 11th Fenruary 2008
On this day, Nepalese people bid farewell to the winter season and look forward to the spring season. Most of the people of Nepal worship Goddess of learning called “SARASWATI”. The people of Kathmandu valley go to a little shrine near Swayambhunath to worship this Goddess.

Maha Shivaratri – 6th March 2008
This is the most famous and celebrated festival of Nepal which attracts large crowds from far flung places both in India and Nepal. The festival is considered in honour of Lord Shiva. It is observed by bathing and holding of a religious fast. All Shiva shrines become the places of visit for “Darshan”, but, the greatest attraction of all is held by the temple of Pashupatinath in Kathmandu. One gets to see thousands of Hindu devotees coming to visit the temple of Pashupati.

Among them are a large number of Sadhus and naked ascetics. Many people like to keep awake for the whole night keeping vigilance over an oil lamp burnt to please Lord Shiva. Children are seen keeping awake similarly over a bonfire in many localities. In the afternoon, an official function is held to celebrate this festival at Tundikhel. The Royal Nepal Army organizes a show in which series of gun fire are sounded. The ceremony is witnessed by His Majesty the King.

Fagu Purnima – 21st March, 2008
This is known as Holi. Holi is the festival of colours. It is observed for eight days just before the full moon of Phalgun and during this time, people indulge in colour throwing at each other. This festival does not have any religious flavour as it is practised in hills of Nepal. Nevertheless, the festival has got some official status because the colour festival is always heralded by the sticking of a wooden pole with colourful streamers beside the old Royal Palace at Basantapur by the arrangements of the Government Religious Endowment Office.

Ghoda Jatra – 04th April, 2008
The festival has two sides of its celebration. Its cultural side involves the Newars of Kathmandu who celebrate it for several days, the idols of the Gods of many localities are taken in a procession in their area in portable chariots. Every household will be feasting at this time. A demon called “Gurumapa” is also propitiated at Tundikhel. The other aspects of the festival is provided by the function organized by the Royal Nepalese Army at Tundikhel in the afternoon of the main day. Horse race and acrobatic shows are presented at this time in which His Majesty the King will be present. A meeting of Kumari, Bhadrakali, Kankeshori and Bhairab at Asan on the second day of the main celebration is another highlight of the festival.

Seto Machhendranath Jatra – 13th April, 2008
On this day, a popular festival held in honour of the white Machhendranath who is actually the Padmapani Lokeswara whose permanent shrine is situated at Matsyendra Bahal in Kel Tole in the middle of the bazaar in Kathmandu. A huge chariot of wood supported on four large wheels and carrying tall spire covered with green foilage is made ready for receiving the image of the divinity on this occasion and for dragging in the old town. There is such a spontaneous and heavy turnout of the devotees to pay homage to this God who is also said to be “Embodiment of Compassion” at this time.

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