On the full moon of Saun high caste Hindus replace their Janai - a sacred thread placed around the body - and bathe, a festival known as Janai Purnima. The main place of pilgrimage during Nepal is called Gosainkund, deep in the mountains to the north of Kathmandu. Legend has it that Shiva, one of the trinity of Hindu gods, drank poisoned water to save the world, and created a crater with his trident before spitting out the poisoned water to form the lakes. So every year thousands of faithful make their way up to the mountains to effectively bathe in Shiva's spit. Several people die visiting the lakes as it is around 4500m high, an altitude where acute mountain sickness can kick in.
Also on this day everyone is given raksha bandhan, a yellow and orange protective band that is tied around the wrist. This is then worn until Tihar (Diwali) where it is tied to the tail of a cow. From India, a tradition has emerged that sisters tie another more decorative raksha on their brothers, giving them further protection. The brother in turn gives the sister a present, usually money.
My raksha (notice the tan/recovering sunburn)
During this time, there is a big fair, or jatra, in Patan in the grounds of Kumbeshwor Mandir - temple. So I went down to have a look with Buwa, Aama and Bhanja. As we approached Patan Durbar Square, the large number of people milling about the UNESCO world heritage site was an indication of what was to come. We were still a good 5 minutes walk from the mandir when the crowd got so thick it became like swimming through people. So, I grabbed Bhanja's hand and started to swim. I floated on a sea of Nepalis, using my height advantage to good effect, and making sure Bhanja was still in tow we reached to the mandir complex.
On the surrounding streets there were people selling offerings to give at the temple, dark skinned Indians selling Chinese tat, bahuun priests sitting cross-legged on the ground tying rakshas on people, giving them a tika and blessing for a few rupees. Stood out from the crowd were a handful of foreigners trying to get a grasp of the situation. As we circumnavigated the complex, there was music, dancing and preaching, causing crowds to form circles, blocking the pathway through.
Outside Kumbeshwor are several public water tanks where people bathe during Janai Purnima, an alternative to the gruelling trek to Gosainkund. In these, people were washing the dirt away, and several young boys were diving and splashing about. Something that Bhanja had said earlier came to mind, that this was his favourite festival after Dasain and Tihar - the Christmas of the Nepali Hindu year. I could see why now. Water, food, parties and a day off school - what more does a eight-year old boy want?
I wanted to go in. Mostly out of tourist nosiness/curiosity, but it seemed quite a big party was inside. I looked down at Bhanja. He obviously wasn't enjoying this as much as I was. The crowd was knocking him about a lot, stepping on his feet and generally making life unpleasantly irritating. He was also rather tired, a fact I noticed by the amount he had started to pull on my hand as we walked. I turned to try and find Aama and Buwa, finding them after a minute of searching heads. Aama didn't look to happy either. I resigned myself that we weren't going to go in. I tried to console myself that I probably wouldn't be allowed in, not being a Hindu. However, the scant consolation was swiftly broken by 3 or 4 foreigners I spotted inside the temple posing for photographs with the sadhus. So we completed our circumambulation and headed home. For me, an enjoyable little walk.
We've still been flying kites, and I managed to get it up in the air finally. After 2 or 3 minutes of good control, I panicked as the kite plunged towards the nearby army barracks, and had to be rescued by a quick thinking Achut.
Bhanja flying the kite
We had a very beautiful moon rise the other day, so I thought I would show you that as well.
The moon rise over Lalitpur
And just to mention that not only is Nepal looking at 2.5 million starving people in the west of country, the same as the population of Kathmandu, but now floods have ravaged the south east, with monsoon rains causing a large river to burst its banks. Reports vary on how many people are actually affected by this, but it easily in the tens of thousands. (A recent newspaper headline in one of the English dailies said "Flood aid continues to pour in". Oh, the choice of words...). Things aren't getting any easier for the Nepali. The new government has a lot to contend with.
SAM
Also on this day everyone is given raksha bandhan, a yellow and orange protective band that is tied around the wrist. This is then worn until Tihar (Diwali) where it is tied to the tail of a cow. From India, a tradition has emerged that sisters tie another more decorative raksha on their brothers, giving them further protection. The brother in turn gives the sister a present, usually money.
During this time, there is a big fair, or jatra, in Patan in the grounds of Kumbeshwor Mandir - temple. So I went down to have a look with Buwa, Aama and Bhanja. As we approached Patan Durbar Square, the large number of people milling about the UNESCO world heritage site was an indication of what was to come. We were still a good 5 minutes walk from the mandir when the crowd got so thick it became like swimming through people. So, I grabbed Bhanja's hand and started to swim. I floated on a sea of Nepalis, using my height advantage to good effect, and making sure Bhanja was still in tow we reached to the mandir complex.
On the surrounding streets there were people selling offerings to give at the temple, dark skinned Indians selling Chinese tat, bahuun priests sitting cross-legged on the ground tying rakshas on people, giving them a tika and blessing for a few rupees. Stood out from the crowd were a handful of foreigners trying to get a grasp of the situation. As we circumnavigated the complex, there was music, dancing and preaching, causing crowds to form circles, blocking the pathway through.
Outside Kumbeshwor are several public water tanks where people bathe during Janai Purnima, an alternative to the gruelling trek to Gosainkund. In these, people were washing the dirt away, and several young boys were diving and splashing about. Something that Bhanja had said earlier came to mind, that this was his favourite festival after Dasain and Tihar - the Christmas of the Nepali Hindu year. I could see why now. Water, food, parties and a day off school - what more does a eight-year old boy want?
I wanted to go in. Mostly out of tourist nosiness/curiosity, but it seemed quite a big party was inside. I looked down at Bhanja. He obviously wasn't enjoying this as much as I was. The crowd was knocking him about a lot, stepping on his feet and generally making life unpleasantly irritating. He was also rather tired, a fact I noticed by the amount he had started to pull on my hand as we walked. I turned to try and find Aama and Buwa, finding them after a minute of searching heads. Aama didn't look to happy either. I resigned myself that we weren't going to go in. I tried to console myself that I probably wouldn't be allowed in, not being a Hindu. However, the scant consolation was swiftly broken by 3 or 4 foreigners I spotted inside the temple posing for photographs with the sadhus. So we completed our circumambulation and headed home. For me, an enjoyable little walk.
We've still been flying kites, and I managed to get it up in the air finally. After 2 or 3 minutes of good control, I panicked as the kite plunged towards the nearby army barracks, and had to be rescued by a quick thinking Achut.
We had a very beautiful moon rise the other day, so I thought I would show you that as well.
And just to mention that not only is Nepal looking at 2.5 million starving people in the west of country, the same as the population of Kathmandu, but now floods have ravaged the south east, with monsoon rains causing a large river to burst its banks. Reports vary on how many people are actually affected by this, but it easily in the tens of thousands. (A recent newspaper headline in one of the English dailies said "Flood aid continues to pour in". Oh, the choice of words...). Things aren't getting any easier for the Nepali. The new government has a lot to contend with.
SAM
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