Dhiraj Shrestha

Celbrating Teej

dhirac — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 04:24:10 +0000

Teej is one of the greatest festivals of Nepali women. This week, Nepali women are celebrating Teej. It is believed that Parvati got Lord Shiva after a trouble fasting in Teej.In Nepalese Society, Teej starts from Shree Krishna Janmastami and ends in Rishi Panchami. Nepali women meet their friends, eat sweet food and dishes. Married women go to their parent’s home. They sing the song in the typical folk tune and express their feelings. They wear new dresses and especially red dress, with ornaments.

The Story Of Sadhu(Babas)

dhirac — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 01:33:47 +0000

A Sadhu is usually referred to as Baba by common people. The word ‘baba’ also means father, or uncle, in many hindu languages. Sometimes the respectful suffix ‘ji’ may also be added after baba, to give greater respect to the renunciate.There are many sadhus in nepal today and they are still widely respected: revered for their holiness, sometimes feared for their curses. It is also thought that the austere practices of the sadhus help to burn off their karma and that of the community at large. Thus seen as benefiting society, sadhus are supported by donations from many people.Historically and contemporarily, sadhus have often been viewed with a certain degree of suspicion, particularly amongst the urban populations of Nepal. Today, especially in popular pilgrimage cities, posing as a ‘sadhu’ can be a means of acquiring income for non-devout beggars.Sadhus are not unified in their practices. Some live in the mountains alone for years at a time, eating only a few bananas. Others walk around with one hand in the air for decades. Still others partake in the religious consumption of charas (hand-made cannabis hashish) and contemplate the cosmic nature and presence of God in the smoke patterns.There are naked Naga (Digambar, or “sky-clad”) Sadhus which are non-shaven and have thick dreadlocks, and Jata, who carry swords. Aghora sadhus may keep company with ghosts, or live in cemeteries as part of their holy path. Hindu culture tends to emphasize an infinite number of paths to God, such that sadhus, and the varieties that sadhus come in have their place.

Bel Bibaha

dhirac — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 16:29:08 +0000

In the Newar community, there is a unique tradition of marrying their girl child to the bel fruit. One must be familiar with the term bel bibaha. The marriage between a virgin Newari girl and bel fruit is held before the girl attains puberty. This ensures that the girl acquires active and healthy reproductive powers. Here the bel fruit is the bridegroom, representative of the eternal bachelor (Lord Kumar, son of Lord Shiva ). In this marriage ceremony, known as Ihi in Newari, the bel fruit must look rich and ripe and must not be damaged in any kind. If by chance the fruit turns out to be a damaged one, it is believed that the girl or the bride will be destined to spend the rest of her life with an ugly looking unfaithful husband after her real marriage. However the most significant aspect of the ‘Bel Marriage’ is that once married to Lord Kumar, the woman will remain pure and chaste and even if her husband dies after the marriage she would not be considered a widow, the case in point being that she is already married to the Lord.

Kumari – The living goddess

dhirac — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 10:36:25 +0000

Kumari, or Kumari Devi, is the tradition of worshipping young pre-pubescent girls as manifestations of the divine female energy or devi in South Asian countries. Kumari literally means virgin in Sanskrit, Nepali and other Indian languages and is a name of the goddess Durga as a child. [1]In Nepal a Kumari is a prepubescent girl selected from the Shakya clan of the Nepalese Newari community. The Kumari is revered and worshiped by some of the country’s Hindus as well as the Nepali Buddhists, though not the Tibetan Buddhists. In India a Kumari is generally chosen for one day and worshipped accordingly on certain festivals like Navaratri or Durga Puja. In the Indian state of Bengal this is a particularly prevalent practice.

While there are several Kumaris throughout Nepal, with some cities having several, the best known is the Royal Kumari of Kathmandu, and she lives in the Kumari Ghar, a palace in the center of the city. The selection process for her is especially rigorous. The current Royal Kumari, Matina Shakya, aged four, was installed in October 2008 by the Maoist government that replaced the monarchy.

A Kumari is believed to be the bodily incarnation of the goddess Taleju (the Nepalese name for Durga) until she menstruates, after which it is believed that the goddess vacates her body. Serious illness or a major loss of blood from an injury are also causes for her to revert to common status.

Desperate Mother’s

dhirac — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 10:36:02 +0000

On the day of 25th April 2009, each one celebrates the mother’s day(Mata Tirtha Aunsi) with full of enthusiasm and full of glee, giving sweets and astonishes gifts to their mother.
People of all ages celebrate the mother’s day as showing them respect by giving sweets and other delicacies, new clothes and gifts of all kinds as a show respect and love in return for their invaluable contributions in their lives.
Meanwhile, those who do not have their mothers perform puja and give presents in their mother’s name. Many such people visit the holy site of Mata Tirtha in the capital on this day and take holy bath in the pond there.
There is also another pond in Mata Tirtha where it is believed one can see his or her mother’s face upon the pond’s water. It is a popular belief that a visit to the site will please the mother’s departed soul
BUT
What about those mother’s who don’t have their home? What about those desperate mothers, who are thrown away from their own home? Why nobody is there to give them astonish gifts and sweets?
These kinds of queries plays in your mind when u see such mother’s in any of old orphanage home in Nepal - where there is no proper care, no nutritious food given and no good shelters provided .
So, let us join our hand, to make the government‘s eye put on those laid up old orphanage homes.

Eye Camp At Christa Hill

dhirac — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 05:14:48 +0000

Rotatary Club of Kahtmandu,newroad,youth eye service kathmandu,along with an assortment of volunteers, held a one-day free eye camp at the christa community healtpost,dhadgaun,nagarkot.Motive for this eye camp was to help the poor people living in rural area who cannot afford wealth for their ill eye.From the 300 patients treated during the eye camp, 30 were given glasses as prescribed by doctors and rest were given medicine. “I am so happy to see clear vision with the help of this glasses as before it was really hard to work with this ailing eyes” said by one of the patients after getting treatment.

Man Of Hope

dhirac — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 13:59:45 +0000

Dhana Bhadur Pandey, a resident of Ramechaap, has been working as a potter since 1990 in the Kathmandu Valley, to make his living.

Everybody calls him ‘Mama’ – a nickname given by his potter buddies. Mama first came to Kathmandu searching for work – to fulfill the basic needs of his family. Lacking any education, he had to start as a potter, delivering goods from one place to another. Almost 20 years of strapping the burden on his forehead and carrying loads on his back, he now gets Rs100 per job and earns Rs300 to 500 per day on days when the business is good.

He’s got a family of five and he’s the only one earning. Amazingly, he’s been able to send both of his daughter and son to a good boarding school. Recently, his son appeared for the SLC exams. Quite an achievement for Mama and his family.

Mama’s wife is back home in Ramechaap and he usually goes there in a month to meet his wife and to look after the farming.

Working day in and night in, he brings light of hope and joy to his family.

The Making Of Seto Machindranath Chariot

dhirac — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:33:46 +0000

Chariot architects work tediously to build this year’s Seto Machindranath Chariot in Kathmandu on Monday March 30, 2009. Last year’s bitterness (the Chariot collapsed and took a hard tumble at Ratnapark) does not seem to bother these crafty makers as they finish the amazing wooden structure.

Women Of Kritipur

dhirac — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 12:04:55 +0000

Smoking Kills !

dhirac — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 17:19:33 +0000