Chhath Puja

Chhath the festival of Bihar is not about celebrations but a ritual carried down since time immemorial. Although its unique to Bihar it as been observed in some parts of West Bengal, Orissa, Assam, Mauritius, mainly among the Bhojpuri and Maithili peaking people. Chhath is also important for Nepalese worshippers of the Sun god as well as in eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Chhath is a way to be grateful to the Sun for giving the bounties of life on earth and for the fulfillment of wishes of believers. It is a festival of reverence to the solar deity, the only festival in the world where devotees offer salutations to the setting sun. Unlike Holi or Diwali, Chhath is a festival of prayer and appeasement observed with somberness, a festival that should not be missed. It is held in high esteem and regard.

Chhath is the festival of truth, non-violence, forgiveness and compassion. It is a festival celebrated by the Biharis on the sixth day of the lunar month after Diwali every year usually a 4 day long celebration accompanied by rituals or “Suryashashthi'. The rituals usually consist of fasting, folklores, hymns, together with the somber hues on the banks of the celestial Ganga or any fresh watery body. For example “Chhat Maiya” is celebrated on the banks of the river Ganga in Patna and on Yamuna in Delhi. A million lit lamps with thousands hands offering ‘Arghya’ to the sun makes it a delightful sight. The enormous faith in Chhat Puja has made it one of the most popular festivals this region

Maghe Sankranti

Maghe Sankranti is a major Nepali festival celebrated all over Nepal. It is celebrated on the first day of the month of Magh (mid January). The day signifies the end of the Nepali month of Poush when all religious ceremonies are forbidden. On this day, the sun leaves its southernmost position and enters the northern hemisphere, and the days begin to grow longer and warmer. On this day people enjoy a hearty and delicious meal comprising of rice cooked with lentils (khichadi), yams, laddoo (sweets), ghee and sweet potatoes.

Devghat in Chitwan to take a dip in the confluence of the rivers Kali Gandaki and Trisuli. It is believed that doing this will free the devotees from sins. It is also believed that people who die on this day achieve Moksha, a release from the rebirth cycle.
Tharus, an ethnic group residing mainly in the southern plains, also celebrate this day as Maghi Festival – the first day of their annual calendar. A public holiday is given on this day.

Yomari Purnima

yomari-one of the popular Newar festivals is observed every year during the full moon of December.A yomari is a confection of rice-flour (from the new harvest)dough shaped like fig and filled with brown cane sugar and sesame seeds, which is then steamed. This delicacy is the chief item on the menu during the post-harvest celebration of Yomari Punhi. On this full moon day, people of the Kathmandu Valley offer worship to Annapurna, the goddess of grains, for the rice harvest. Groups of kids go neighborhood to beg yomari cakes from housewives in the evening. Sacred masked dances are performed in the villages of Hari Siddhi and Thecho at the southern end of the Valley to mark the festival.The Newars, upon munching a mouthful of yomari, a sweet dish, await the end of their four days of devotion of god, following which they will be blessed with wealth, according to their belief. The people prepare yomaris, in the form of gods and goddesses such as Kumar, Ganesh, Laxmi and Kuber. In keeping with the culture, parents bless children from two to twelve years who are then offered yomaris. The children on the other hand perform the customary song and dance and ask for food and other gifts from the elders during the festival.
The festival is said to have started from panchal nagar(present day Panauti). Myth has it that Suchandra and Krita, a married couple, first experimented with fresh yield of rice from their field. And what took shape turned out came to be known as yomari. The new delicacy was eventually distributed among the villagers. As the food was liked by all, the bread was named yomari, which literally means 'tasty bread'. The myth further states that on the same day the couple offered the god of wealth, Kuber, the new delicacy, who was passing by in a disguise. Following this Kuber disclosed , his real identity and blessed the couple with wealth. He also declared that whoever will prepare yomari in the form of gods and goddesses on the full moon of December and observe four days of devotion to god, will get rid of poverty. The festival is celebrated on the second day when prayers are offered during which the yomaris are stored and not eaten on that very day. On the fourth and the final day the people belonging to the Newar community consume the sweet bread as a gift from gods and this practise also marks the end of the festival

Janai Purnima

Janai Purnima is known as the Sacred Thread Festival. On this day Hindu men, especially the Brahmans and Chettris perform their annual change of Janai, a yellow cotton string worn across the chest or tied around the wrist of the right hand. This thread is only given to males during a lengthy and impressive religious ceremony called the 'Bratabandhan'. This cord initiates them into manhood and commands them to faithfuly the follow the relegion. The Janai must be worn everyday of their lives from this day onwards. The 'triple cord' is a symbol of body, speech and mind, and when the knots are tied the wearer is supposed to gain complete control over each. This cord is changed if it becomes frayed or defiled, for example, when the wearer touches a woman in menstruation, during which she is considered 'unclean'. But according to Hindu rules the cord must be changed without fail by a Brahman on this day, Janai meaning sacred thread, and purni meaning Purnima or the full moon, thus pointing to the change of the thread on the auspicious full moon day. On Janai Purnima, there is a big mela (fair) at Kumbeshwor in Lalitpur. Devotees come here to worship Lord Mahadev and to tie a knot around their wrists. On the preceding day the wearer makes himself 'clean' by shaving, cutting the hair and bathing. He undergoes a partial fast, taking only one meal of foods considered to be 'clean' - no meat, onions or garlic. The next morning the family priest comes to the house. The entire family gathers around him as he reads from a holy book, performs a ceremony, which sanctifies the new thread, and places it about the recipient's neck across the chest. In payment the priest is given foodstuffs and some money

Losar

A major festival of the Tibetan Buddhists is the Losar Festival or Monpa Festival. Losar is, itself a compounded form of two root words in Tibetan language; where LO means 'New' and SAR means 'Year'. It is celebrated to avert any negativity of the Old Year and to welcome the arrival of a New Year.

The beginning of celebration of Buddhist Losar Festival can be traced back to Pre-Buddhist Tibet when People practiced 'Bon' religion and in spiritual ceremonies every winter, large amount of incense was offered to appease the deities and protectors. Ultimately, this religious festival evolved into an annual Buddhist festival during the reign of Pude Gungyal, the ninth King of Tibet.

Also said that in ancient times, Ladakh experienced turbulent periods due to starvation, diseases, drought and other problems. People assumed that the King Jamiang Namgyal (1555- 1610) had a 'donkey toe' and could not rule. Fortune favoured the Lamas. They decided to take over and the King was thus brutally killed. The Lamas unveiled it as the victory of good over evil and the beginning of a new era.
 

Ghode Jatra

Ghode Jatra, the Horse Racing Day falls on the month of mid March or early April. A grand horse parade takes place at Tundikhel, the central point of the city reputed to have been in the former days the largest parade ground in Asia. It is said that in the olden days the Kings of Kathmandu use to go to worship the Bhadrakali temple in a courtly cavalcade following the Living Goddess Kumari. This visit could have been modified into the parade of horses and finally the horse athletics and racing contest as it is today, held by the army in the presence of the King
There was a time when the festival was considered only for the residents of Kathmandu. But today it's popularity has attracted people from all over Nepal. It's said to be a propitious day for consuming a large amount of garlic and meat, some even consider it a day when citizen in the streets may inebriate themselves.
Legend reveals that this festival was held to celebrate the victory over a demon named Tundi who resided over the meadow, today known as Tundikhel. Tundi was a terror, so when he met with his death people rejoiced by dancing on his body with horses. So it's believed that the clamor of horses' hooves on Ghode Jatra at Tundikhel keeps the demon's sprit at bay as it still threatens to ruin the city. It's said, the faster the horses run quicker will Tundi's spirit be dispelled. The swift running of the horses on this day is also considered to be a good omen for the Nepalese people.

Bisket Jatra

Bisket Jatra heralds the start of the Nepali New Year and is celebrated with the most aplomb in Bhaktapur. In one of the most exciting annual events in the Kathmandu valley, a huge and ponderous chariot carrying images of the god Bhairab is hauled by dozens of villagers to Khalna Tole. The creaking and swaying chariot lumbers around town, pausing for a huge tug of war between the eastern and western sides of town. After the battle the chariots head to Khalna Tole, where a huge 25m-high lingam (phallic symbol) is erected in the stone yoni (female genital symbol) base.
In the evening of the following day (New Year’s Day), the pole is pulled down, again in an often-violent tug-of-war. As the pole crashes to the ground, the New Year offi cially commences. Variations on the Bisket Jatra theme can also be seen in the villages of Timi and Bode. In the former there’s a parade of images of the gods, with villagers throwing red powder over them. In the latter, there’s a tonguepiercing ceremony, with one villager spending the day with an iron spike piercing his tongue