Newar religious culture is rich in ceremony and is marked by frequent festivals throughout the year many festivals are tied to hindu and Buddhist holidays and the harvest cycle.
Street celebrations include pageants, jatras or processions in which a car or portable shrine is paraded through the streets and sacred masked dances. Other festivals are marked by family feasts and worship. The celebrations are held according to the lunar calendar, so the dates are changeable.
During Swanti (Tihar), Newars celebrate New Year's Day of Nepal Sambat by doing Mha Puja, a ritual in which a mandala is worshipped, that purifies and strengthens one spiritually for the coming year. Mohani (Dashain) is one of the greatest annual celebrations which is observed for several days with feasts and religious services. Another major festival is Sā Pāru (Gai Jatra) when people who have lost a family member in the past year dress up as cows and parade through town.In Kathmandu, the biggest street festival is Yanyā Punhi (Indra Jatra) when three cars bearing the living goddess Kumari and two other child deities are pulled through the streets and masked dance performances are held. During the festival of Jana Baha Dyah Jatra, a temple car with an image of Karunamaya is drawn through central Kathmandu for three days. A similar procession is held in Lalitpur known as Bungadyah Jatra which continues for a month and climaxes with Bhoto Jatra, the display of the sacred vest. The biggest outdoor celebration in Bhaktapur is Biska Jatra which is marked by chariot processions and lasts for nine days. Sithi Nakha is another big festival when worship is offered and natural water sources are cleaned. In addition, all Newar towns and villages have their particular festival which is celebrated by holding a chariot or palanquin procession
Newari Festival refers to the festivals that are celebrated by the Newars. Newars are well known for their lavish festivals. The word Jatra is used for carnivals.
Newari Culture and It's Festivals
Newar culture is very rich in pageantry and ritual throughout the year. Many festivals are tied to Hindu holidays, Buddha’s birth and the harvest cycle. For instance, an important Newar high holiday is Gunhu Punhi. During this nine-day festival, Newar men and women drink a bowl of sprouted mixed cereals, receive doro (a ritual protection cord tied on the wrist by a Brahman priest) and then offer food to frogs in the farmers’ fields. On the second day, Sā Pāru (Gai Jatra), people who have lost a family member in the past year dress up as cows and parade through town, in the belief that cows help souls enter heaven.
The last day of Gunhu Punhi is Krishnastami, birthday of lord Krishna, an incarnation of lord Vishnu.Yanyā Punhi (Indra Jatra) is a holiday related to Hindu god king of heaven, Indra. The festival begins with the carnival-like erection of Yosin, a ceremonial pole, accompanied by the rare display of the deity Aakash Bhairab, represented by a massive mask spouting beer and liquor. Households throughout Kathmandu display images and sculptures of Indra and Bhairab only at this time of year. Finally, the Kumari, or virgin goddess(living goddess), leaves the seclusion of her temple in a palanquin and leads a procession through the streets of Kathmandu to thank Indra the rain god.Many rituals are related to the stages of life stages from birth, first rice-feeding, childhood, puberty, marriage, seniority and death. The complexity and all-encompassing nature of these rituals cannot be exaggerated. For instance, Newar girls undergo a Bahra ceremony when they reach menarche. Because menstruation is considered ritually impure, girls undergo ritual confinement for 12 days. Girls are separated from all males and from sunlight for 12 days while they are doted upon by female relatives.
On 12th day the girl must pay homage to the sun.Should a Newar man or women live long enough, there are five rituals, known as "janku,"—which can be confusing, as the first rice feeding ceremony is referred to as "janku" as well—performed between the age of 77 and 106. These at the age 77 years, 7 months, 7 days; 83 years, 4 months, 4 days (after one has seen 1000 full moons in one's life); 88 years, 8 months, 8 days; 99 years, 9 months, 9 days; and, finally, at 105 years, 8 months, 8 days. After these rituals are performed, the person will be regarded as a god. Husband and wife will perform their rituals together, as the events occur for the husband.Afterwards, the full complement of life cycle rituals will have been completed, until the death ceremony.List of festivals
