My tihar experience

Tihar is the second biggest Nepalese festival after Dashain. It is considered to be of great importance as it shows a contribution to not just the humans and the gods, but also to the animals like crows, cows, and dogs that maintain an intimate relationship with humans. People make patterns on the floor of living rooms or courtyards using several coloured flowers in ancients days nowadays they use the materials such as colored rice, dry flour, colored sand or flower petals outside their house, called Rangolihar is the second biggest Nepalese festival after Dashain. It is considered to be of great importance as it shows a contribution to not just the humans and the gods, but also to the animals like crows, cows, and dogs that maintain an intimate relationship with humans. People make patterns on the floor of living rooms or courtyards using several coloured flowers in ancients days nowadays they use the materials such as colored rice, dry flour, colored sand or flower petals outside their house, called Rangoli.

Crows and ravens are worshiped by offerings of sweets and dishes placed on the roofs of houses. The cawing of crows and ravens symbolizes sadness and griebe for nepali culture, so devotees offer crows and ravens food to avert grief and death in their homes. Tihar represents the divine attachment between humans and other animals.

Another interesting observation during Tihar days in Nepal is gambling: during the days of the festival, it's allowed to gamble, while the rest of the year it's illegal for Nepalese citizens to gamble.It is placed on the roofs of houses. The cawing of crows and ravens symbolizes sadness and grief in Nepali culture, so devotees offer crows and ravens food to avert grief and death in their homes. Tihar represents the divine attachment between humans and other animals.

Another interesting observation during Tihar days in Nepal is gambling: during the days of the festival, it's allowed to gamble, while the rest of the year it's illegal for Nepalese citizens to gamble.

Dashain

                                       

     MY DASHAIN EXPERIENCE

Dashain is greatest festival of Hindus. According to Hindu myths this festival is celebrated on the auspicious occasion of victory of truth against false, good against bad, god against monster and moral against amoral. Hindu believes goddess Durga made victory against monster in these ten days of this festival. So Hindu prays goddess Durga for her victory and making whole world free from the evil. Many stories had been written and narrated relating with Dashain in Hindus holy books.

This festival is celebrated for about ten days in Brahmin community and about fifteen days in other communities. It is started from the day of Ghatsthapana and ended at purnima. In the day of Ghatsthapana seed of maize are planted in wet mud after praying god without eating any food. Those seedlings are called as Jamara. Those seedlings are kept in shade to make them yellow color which is one of the characteristics of Jamara. These jamaras are used in Phulpati, Asthami,Nawami and Vijaya Dashami to pray god and goddess and also along with tika of dashain. Hindus, Mostly in Phlupati and some in Asthami, gives sacrifice of goat, Changrya, Buffalo, Pig, Cock,  etc. according to their own traditions followed by different casts. Those fleshes of animals were eaten during Dashain Period. Prayer of Nava- Durga (Nine Durga) is done in Nawami of Dashain. In the day of Vijaya Dashami tika and blessing is taken from elder members of family and visits relatives to take tika with blessings. Money is also given along with tika and blessing to relatives. Dashain ends with Vijaya Dashami in Brahmin community but other community put tika upto Purmina. But now-a-days in Brahmin community also tika and blessing were given and taken if some close members of family were unable to reach to their relatives in the day of Vijaya Dashami.

The time to put tika was exactly on 11:55 a.m.We received tika and garlands from our elders.My father,uncle cut the goat in the day of Asthami as everybody do.

                 

We clicked some photographs during dashain.

teej

Teej

This is a festival for girls. in this day girls wear churra and wear nice dress in red colour mainly. 

The monsoon festivals of Teej are primarily dedicated to Goddess Parvati and her union with Lord Shiva.

 Teej is celebrated on the third day of the bright half of the North Indian Lunar month of Shraavana.

 On Teej festival married daughters receive the gifts by her mother such clothes, bangles, bindi, mehandietc. "Ghewar" a special sweet is given to her on this day.

my father

 MY FATHER

My father name is krishna bahadur karki.he is 41 years old.he is police officer.he is head of my family.
He was born in dolakha. he was very hadworking.
my mother was also from dolakha.my father had 5 brothers counting himself.he had 2 elder brother and 2 younger brother.he did his job honestly in his family.he gave mother  a job.he brought us kathmandu as soon i was born.he never let our family down. he is always supporting us whenever we are in need. 
Though I have many friends I feel that my dad is my bestest friend .My dad name is Krishna Karki.I am really happy that I could call him my dad.You are a superman dad and I´ll be your super son.I am really greatful to god for giving the most sweetest dad to me. He plays with me, he scolds me and also loves me. He has always been very influential person in my life. He gets angry very soon and shouts at me and scolds me but he is the dearest one who believes in me and supports me. My dad cheerup for me and most of the time he is busy giving me councelling classes. He plays games with me when I ask him to as if we have been friends for a long term. But seeing my low grades he is usually upset with me but still he loves me a lot and I do the same. You are my super hero dad. I promise to be a great dad like you.

 my father will support me whenever we are in need.

JANAI PURNIMA

JANAI PURNIMA

Janai Purnima, the thread festival, falls on the full moon day in the month of Bhadra (August/ September) and is celebrated with great gusto, devotion and splendor by Hindus all over the country.

Janai is sacred thread and purnima is full moon day, hence, Janai Purnima points to the change of the thread on the auspicious full moon day.  On this day, the Tagadharis (Hindu men wearing the sacred thread), especially the Brahmins and Chettris performing their annual change of Janai (sacred yellow cotton thread) slung from the shoulder and also tie Tago (sacred thread) sanctified by priests chanting the Gayatri Mantra as a symbol of protection. The janai is given to Hindu men in coming-of-age ceremony called Bratabandha that initiates them into manhood and commands them to faithfully follow the religion. It must be worn everyday of their lives from this day onwards. The triple cord of janai is a symbol of body, speech and mind, and when the knots are tied the wearer is supposed to gain complete control over each. After taking bath and making offerings to the Saptarishis (seven legendary Rishis or sages) and to their departed fathers and fore-fathers, the tagadharis put new janai with a belief of having absolute control over mind.

               On this day,I woke up early in the morning.We were busy in doing house chores.My mom  and mewent to ganeshthan and put tika and Dori on our hand on this occasion.My brother changed Janai in the temple and put tika.Our school didn't provide holiday.So,we went to temple worshipped god,changed jamara,put tika,and Dori called sacred thread in our hands✋✋.I was very excited to put rakhi on mupy brothers' hand.Though I did it in haste,it was very good time to spend time with my brothers and entire family.

Rakshya bandan

Raksha Bandhan

Also Rakshabandhan, or simply Rakhi, is a Hindu festival centred around the tying of a thread or ornamental bracelet on the right wrist as a form of bond and ritual protection between brother and sister. It's celebrated on the full moon day in the lunar month of Shravana. The day signifies the mutual bond of love between siblings. The festive Hindu andJain ritual is one principally between brothers and sisters, observed both before and after she gets married thereby marking her continued relationship with her natal home and brothers. The rite is also found between priests and patrons, and sometimes by individuals to real or potential benefactors. Differing versions of the rite have been traditionally performed in northern India, western India, Nepal, and some Hindu, Jain and Sikhemigrants from the India subcontinent since the 19th-century. It is alternately referred to as Saluno, Silono, and Rakri. The rituals associated with these rites, however, have spread beyond their traditional regions to much of India and have been transformed through technology and migration, the movies, social interaction, and promotion by politicized Hinduism, as well as as a occasion of national solidarity and state tradition.

On this festival, sisters of all ages tie a cotton bracelet or amulet, called therakhi, around the wrists of their brothers, ritually affirming the bond and support of her brothers, receiving a gift from them in return, and traditionally investing the brothers with a share of the responsibility of their potential care. The expression "Raksha Bandhan," Sanskrit, literally, "the bond of protection, obligation, or care," is now principally applied to this ritual. It has also applied to a similar ritual in which a domestic priest ties string bracelets on the wrists of his patrons and receives gifts of money. A ritual associated with Saluno includes the sisters placing shoots of barley behind the ears of their brothers.

Of special significance to married women, Raksha Bandhan is rooted in the practice of territorial exogamy, in which a bride marries out of her natal village or town, and her parents, by custom, do not visit her in her married home.In rural north India, where territorial exogamy is strongly prevalent, large numbers of married Hindu women travel back to their parents' homes every year for the ceremony.Their brothers, who typically live with the parents or nearby, sometimes travel to their sisters' married home to escort them back. Many younger married women arrive a few weeks earlier at their natal homes and stay until the ceremony. The brothers serve as lifelong intermediaries between their sisters' married- and parental homes, as well as potential stewards of their security.

Gai jatra

Gai Jatra, It is a festival celebrated in Nepal, mainly in Kathmandu valley by the Newarcommunity. The festival commemorates the death of people during the year and is generally celebrated in the month of Bhadra Hindu calendar Bhadra August–September. The date is set according to the lunar Nepal Era calendar: it falls on the first day of the dark fortnight of the month of gunla.

The Festival of Cows is one of the most popular festivals of Nepal. It is celebrated to diminish the sadness from the death of family members. During the festival, cows are marched in the streets. People also distribute food to others.

The whole complex of Gai Jatra festival has its roots in the ancient ages when people feared and worshiped Yamaraj, the god of death. However, the ironic sessions synonymous with the Gai Jatra festival entered the tradition in the medieval period of Nepal during the reign of the Malla Kings. Hence, the present form of Gaijatra is a happy blending of antiquity and the medieval era.
According to the traditions 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 as a cow is considered a fair substitute.
In Hinduism, a cow is regarded the most venerated among all the domestic animals. It is believed that the cow, revered as a holy animal by Hindus, will help the deceased relative's journey to heaven.
According to the historical evidence, when King Pratap Malla lost his son, his wife, the queen, remained grief-stricken. The king was very sad to see the condition of his beloved queen. The king, in spite of several efforts, could not lessen the grief of his wife. To show his wife that death is a natural part of life, he called on people for a carnival if someone has died in their family. Many people came which showed the queen that it is not only her son had died somebody has died in every family in this festival.
I like this jatra very much.