Janai Purnima

Janai Purnima is one of the festival of hindus, it is taken as a day when the men from the Brahmin community undertake the annual changing of their holy thread that marks their coming of age ceremony. Early morning, they take a bath, visit nearby temple and from the hands of a Pundit, they change the holy thread or Janai. Besides, it is also the day when pundits tie ‘Raksha Bandhan Doro’ in the hands of the Brahmin and Chhetri community. The doro or the thread is symbolic of the well wishes of the loved ones for safety and happiness.

The thread that is tied on this day is supposed to be worn all throughout the day and until a few months later which is then tied to the tail of the cow in Tihar or Diwali. This is supposed to bring good fortunes and safeguard the person further in his/her life. Janai Purnima is also the day when good food is prepared and eaten by the members of the family together. There is a special dish prepared on this day which is known as ‘Quati’. It is the mixture of nine different kinds of lentils that are collected and soaked a night before the Janai Purnima day.

These soaked lentils are then prepared on the day of Janai Purnima to make it taste delicious. This delicious treat is not only good for the tongue but also for the health as well. It has been said that eating Quati on this day prepares the body for the cold against the rainfall that has been happening in the monsoon prior to it. Also, the farmers who have been planting rice all monsoon will be tired and in bad health by the end of it.

So, this Quati is supposed to give them extra energy and bring them back to good physical health. Also, psychologically also, it is the day when they forget about the work and all the woes and spend some time with the loved ones so as to be happy.

Raksha Bandhan

Raksha Bandhan, one of the main Hindu festivals, is celebrated to strengthen the brother sister bond. On this day, the sisters tie a sacred thread, rakhi on their brothers’ wrist wishing good health and long life for them. The bothers, on the other hand, bless their sisters and pledge to take care of them all through their lives.

The brother-sister relationship is extremely special. The way they care for each other is beyond compare. One can never love or care for their friends as much as they love their siblings. The connection and bond one shares with brothers and sisters is simply matchless. No matter how much they fight with each other over trivial things when the time comes they stand by one another and extend their support.

The bond grows stronger as they age and go through various stages of life. They are there for each other in thick and thin. Elder brothers are highly protective of their sisters and the younger ones look up to their elder sisters for guidance. Likewise, elder sisters are extremely caring for their younger brothers and the younger ones seek their elder brother’s help and advice on various matters. A day to celebrate this beautiful bond has thus rightly been established. Raksha Bandhan is special for every brother and sister in the country. It is a symbol of their love, togetherness and faith in each other.

Raksha Bandhan is a time for the ladies to pamper themselves. They also receive a lot of love and pampering from their brothers. Since it is time for family gatherings the ladies especially want to look their best. Ethnic clothing is preferred by most as it adds to the fervour of the Hindu festivals. The markets are filled with beautiful kurtis, suits and other ethic wear. Women are seen hoping from shop to shop to buy a piece that matches their taste. They also go on to purchase matching accessories and footwear.

On the day of the festival, girls take a good amount of time dressing up. Besides the dress and accessories, they also go for special hair-dos to look different on this day. Their brothers also pamper them by showering their love and blessings and also by giving gifts.

Raksha Bandhan is known by different names in different parts of the country however the essence of the festival remains the same and that is to celebrate the sacred brother-sister bond.

Gai Jatra

Gai is cow and Jatra is Procession (Festival).

Gai Jatra festival, the procession of cows, generally falls in the month of Bhadra, which correspond to English calendar months of  August/September. 

This year Gai Jatra is on August 27, 2018. That is on Bhadra 11, 2075 BS. 

The festival of cows is one of the most popular festivals in Nepal. It is said people in ancient time started worshiping Yamaraj,"the god of death" on this day. 

However, the modern form of celebration of Gai Jatra came into existence in the medieval period of Nepal during the reign of Malla Kings. The present form of Gai Jatra with humorous acts, parody, comedy and was started by then King of Kathmandu Pratap Malla. He made Rani Pokhari (Pond) in the heart of Kathmandu and build a temple in the middle of the same pond.

Traditionally every family who had death in the family during the preceding year must participate in a procession through the streets of Kathmandu leading a cow.  If a cow is unavailable then a young kids dressed as cow is considered a fair substitute. However, there started tradition of leading a cow with kids in funny costumes. Pratap Malla, lost his very young son. His wife, the queen was in great misery. The king was very disappointed to see the condition of his queen. King after millions try could not make queen smile. Pratap announced that anyone who could make the queen laugh would be rewarded adequately.  Pratap Malla asked to bring the cow procession before the sad queen.  Then people tried their best with different costumes and humorous acts. The dance and procession finally gave queen smile on her face. The smile at the moment was temporary but the procession gave queen a big relief. She knew that there are several death in the city during the period and she is not alone. Death is the natural phenomenon and no one has control on it. Hence, from the day King Pratap Malla started the tradition of cow procession with boys with different funny make ups in funny costumes. The boys even put tails and make up like monkeys and Hunuman walk though the city road to show people that the death is the truth in the life and every one has to face it one day. The Gai Jatra tradition slowly developed into doing humorous acts including jokes, satires, mockery and lampoon in the Gai Jatra days. After the cow procession is over, in the afternoon, everyone takes part in another tradition in which the participants dress up and wear masks. There also people enjoy the moments with songs, jokes, mockery and humors until late evening. Gai Jatra is a festival which enables people to accept the reality of death and to prepare oneself for the life after death. It heals the grief and sorrow, at least a little, when people see the cow possession and realize people die, and we are not alone in the country who lost our loved ones.