Festivals in Nepal

First of all, keep in mind, Nepal is has a long and rich history of diverse cultures and religions. While this country is not the only country of high Himalayan. Nepal is the Land of Festivals with at least one part of the country celebrating a festival almost every day of the year. There are more than 50 festivals celebrated in Nepal every year. While the national festivals have fixed dates, religious festivals in Nepal are set by astrologers following the lunar calendar.

In addition, Festivals in Nepal is linked with the memory of the departed soul, to herald a different season, to mark the beginning or end of the agricultural cycle, to mark national events or for family celebrations. The best part about the festivals in Nepal is that all the occasion are celebrated with the same galore and passion the way it used to be hundreds of years ago when people had no other means of recreation. As your need and interest to see and experience the festivals with your trekking in Nepal, Please contact us. Trekking Trail Nepal will manage the Itinerary wit mix of Trekking and Tours with exciting festivals in Nepal.

While on every festival in Nepal people take their ritual bath. Consequently, worship different gods and goddesses of a different religion, visit the temple, stupas, monasteries and observe fasting and undertake to feast. The most important aspect of Nepalese culture is the religious harmony, which is why there is such a close link between Nepalese Hindus and Buddhists.

In conclusion, you will find a festival almost every day every week in Nepal. Since each of Nepal's 70plus ethnic groups has festivals celebrated in a family, relatives, temples, monasteries, public places even in narrow streets of the village. Since Nepalese festivals are scheme based on lunar calendar, which does not coexist with the solar calendar currently used in Nepal neither the Gregorian calendar.

FESTIVALS IN NEPAL

Nepal, as a multi-religious and multicultural country, observes different festivals throughout the year. As a rich country in diversity, the festivals celebrated in Nepal are also from different religious and cultural faiths prevalent in the country. Apart from being religiously and culturally important part of Nepalese life, the festivals in the country also play an important role in socialization and developing a strong bond in the community. These festivals are also the time for Nepalese to express their happiness; be in the mood of celebration and preserve their culture and tradition. Although the basic trait of Nepalese people is to stay happy, calm and friendly, festivals are the occasions to express themselves in the happier selves.

There are several different occasions and reasons why the festivals are so widely celebrated. As a country that believes in tradition and faith, people living here live by different ancient and ritual stories since their very childhood. Their life, family, society and whole lifestyle is determined by the faith that they have had for ages. So the celebration of festivals, for Nepalese, is not only happy mood booster but it is also their way of life.

Diverse ethnicity, more than 125 different ethnic groups, and culture have made Nepal so unique that boasts unique lifestyle too. From planting and harvesting crops to celebrating the change of seasons and from the religious celebration to dedication to faith, all kinds of festivals make Nepal unique. When you travel to Nepal, you are most likely to observe one of those festivals, major or local, no matter what time of the year. Here is a list of some major festivals that are widely celebrated and also some important local festivals.

Festivals in Nepal throughout the year.

Festivals	Place	Month
Maghe Sankranti	Low and Midland.	January
Losar	High and Midland	February
Shiva Ratri	Whole country	February
Fagu Purnima ( Holi )	Whole country	March
Ramnawami	Mid Land	March
Ghota Jatra Ghode Jatra, the festival of horses, is a yearly sports event taking place at the Tundikhel parade ground in central Kathmandu. Its roots go back several hundred years, though it is also associated with older religious traditions. At midnight as the parade grounds, the image of Bhadra Kali and her sister goddess are carried from their respective third sister goddess is then brought from another locality and made a bow before. The actual horse racing is conducted with great gusto and spectators come from all over the valley as well as from more distant, to witness the exciting events	Kathmandu	April
Seto macchendra Jatra	Katmandu	April
Rato macchendra Jatra	Katmandu	May
Buddha Jayanti	High and Midland	May
Nagpanchami	Midland	July- August
Janai Purnima	Low and Midland	July-August
Gaijatra	Kathmandu	August
Teej	Kathmandu and Mid-Land all Nepal	August or September
Indra Jatra This festival is commemorated by both Hindus and Buddhists with great enthusiasm. The festival continues for eight days with much rejoicing, dancing and feasting. On the first day, a long wooden pole is erected in front of the ancient Royal Palace at Hanuman Dhoka, in order to propitiate Indra; The God of Rain. Classical dancers also congregate at the spot wearing different kinds of masks and dancing around the courtyard of Hanuman Dhoka to celebrate visit of God Indra. On the third day of the festival, the living Goddess Kumari is taken out in a procession in a chariot. Chariots of Kumari, Bhairav and Ganesh are taken around the city for three days. The country Head; President also& pays homage to the Kumari during this time. The festival's many interesting dances including the Mahakali, Mahalaxmi and Dasha Avatar masked dances are staged in Kathmandu Durbar Square, near the Kumari Temple. On the last evening of the festival, the long wooden pole erected on the first day is lowered with religious ceremonies and animal sacrifices.	Kathmandu Basantapur Durbar Square AKA, Hanuman Dhaoka	September
Dashain Dashain is Nepal's most important and lavishly celebrated festival. The first day of the festival is known as Ghatasthapana- the placing of the sacred vessel. According to tradition, all devout Hindus should take an early morning bath in the holy river and return home carrying some sand from the river bed. At the time a small clay pot is filled with water from same time river and placed by the sand. Barley seeds are planted in this pot and nurtured for nine days. As with other Nepalese festivals, this ritual has a specific meaning. In this case the river water represents the mother Goddess Durga who according to legend crushed many powerful demon hordes in an epic battle. For the next nine days devotees go to different prescribed sites for early morning baths. The next major event occurs on the seventh day of the festival when sacred flowers and leaves are brought from the old palace of King Prithvi Narayan Shah at Gorkha. When the flowers reach Kathmandu, there is a large procession to Hanuman Dhoka gate where brass bands are waiting to celebrate the occasion. At the same time, guns and cannons are fired at Tundikhel parade ground. The eighth day of the festival is known as Mahaasthami and marked by a fast by all orthodox Hindus. In the morning, animals are sacrificed at temples dedicated to Goddess Durga. On the ninth day, all temples dedicated to Durga are bathed in sacrificial blood. On this day, vehicles and other mechanical items are worshipped and given sacrifices to prevent accidents during the coming year. Similarly, all instruments, weapons and implements of all professions are worshipped in the hope that Durga will bless their usefulness and accuracy. In the evening there is an elaborate sacrifice at the Taleju temple near Hanuman Dhoka. The peak of Dashain celebrations is reached on the tenth day-known as Vijaya Dashami or the day of victory. On this day, all Hindus are supposed to visit their elder relatives, starting with their parents. The main purpose of this visit to receive tika and the shoots of the barley known as Jamara. Tika is a red dot or smear placed on the visitor's forehead by the senior relative. Also used in other festivals and in daily worship, the tika consist of vermilion powder, rice and curd. As all visits cannot be completed in the day, they continue until the end of the festival.	Low and Midland	September-October
Tihar	Low and Midland	October- November
Mani Rimdu	Thyangboche	November

Ghode Jatra

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