A glimpse of the Festivals of Nepal

Nepal is popularly known as the Land of Festivals and Temples. I have included some of the main festivals which are celebrated by different ethnic groups of Nepal. I will continue to upload more information about other festivals in the days to come.

Nepal is one of the very few diverse destinations with much variation in nature, culture, religion, lifestyle and so on. Each community in Nepal enjoy their traditions in unique manner. Most of these traditions are several centuries old and are celebrated for specific reasons and with color.

There is a reason to why Nepal  is the Land of Festival. Due to the concentration of numerous communities, the number of festivals in the calendar is numerous. Each community respect and enjoy the culture of the other communities for centuries. This is the main reason for harmonious lifestyle among the Nepali people.

Dashain – Most Auspicious Festival

 Dashain is the longest and most auspicious festival of Nepal. It is celebrated according to the Nepalese lunar calendar, usually between the beginning of October and end of November. It is the festival of reunions as people tend to return home to meet up with their families on this special occasion. The name Dashain, according to the Nepalese language, suggests that it is celebrated for ten days. The last day of Dashain is called Vijayadashami; People receive tika (a mixture of red colour and rice grains), Jamara and blessings from their elders on this day. People buy and wear new clothes and children even fly kites during this festive month.

  Tihar (Festival of lights)

This festival takes place right after Dashain. Tihar is celebrated for five days. The first two days are celebrated by worshiping crows and dogs for good omen. The third day is celebrated by worshiping cows. During the evening of the third day, people burst crackers and light small earthen lamps in their house,

 Losar

Although the entire country celebrates Losar as New Year, the date of Losar varies with each community. Sonam Losar is celebrated in Yolmo and Tamang communities, Tola Losar is celebrated in Gurung communities and the Sherpa and native Tibetan communities of the hills celebrate Gyalba Losar.

Chhath

This is a four-day celebration, which takes place in November or October, based on the lunar calendar. This festival is celebrated by the Mithila natives and it is the iconic celebration of Terai community. The celebrations of this festival are focused on paying tribute to the Sun God for his mercy and light over the people. The locals fast during the daytime, praying for prosperity and wealth.

Fagu Purnima (Festival of colours)

Fagu Purnima is celebrated in February or March. This festival is enjoyed by spraying color water on each other. According to mythology, Prahalad, a devotee of Lord Vishnu was commission to be killed in a fire, by his own demon-king father. His aunt, demoness Holika took him in her lap and set herself on fire, assuming that the fire will kill Prahalad and leave her unaffected because of her powers. However, at the end, Holika burnt to death, while Prahalad walked out of the fire, without a scratch. To save the kid, the locals sprayed water on him. As a tradition, today, locals spray each other with color water, celebrating the victory of good over evil.

Buddha Jayanthi

This is the birth anniversary or Lord Buddha. Born into a royal family in 563 BC, Lord Buddha became the founder of Buddhism. On this auspicious day, devotees visit Lumbini (birthplace of Buddha), Boudhanath, Swayambhunath and other religious sites to lit butter lamps. Lumbini is the main destination to visit during this festival. Nearly 2.5 million tourists visited Lumbini to spot the birthplace of Lord Buddha in 2017 and it is increasing every year.

Source: https://trekroute.com/festivals-in-nepal/