Nepali New Year, Nepal New Year

Happy Nepali New Year 2074 for all brothers and sisters !!

Nepalis celebrate New Year in mid-April with great fanfare and rejoicing. Different communities celebrate New Year in different ways. But the celebration by the Newar community in Bhaktapur is very spectacular. They celebrate a special festival named Bisket Jatra to welcome the New Year.
Though the festival is celebrated at the start of the New Year on the Bikram Sambat calendar, it is not related to the Bikram Sambat. Major celebrations take place in Bhaktapur Durbar Square and Balkumari, Thimi. In Bhaktapur, Bisket Jatra is basically a chariot procession. A huge chariot carrying statue of God Bhairav is pulled by hundreds of devotees to the Khalna Tol. The chariot is built near the Nyatapole Temple – the famous five-storied temple. The tug of war between the eastern and western parts of the two is the major attraction of this festival. But the chariot is ultimately taken toward the Khalna Tol. A huge lingo, approximately 25 meters high, is erected in a stone called yoni (female genital base). The lingo is brought down in the evening of the New Year day as the New Year officially commences. A huge crowd of spectators reaches the durbar square to observe the celebrations.
Bisket Jatra is Balkumari Thimi is observed with a very spectacular Sindure Jatra or the color festival. People from various parts of the Thimi town gather in a place called Layeku Thimi carrying their own chariots. People greet others by throwing simrik – red color powder – amid beating of traditional Dhimey drum. A jaw-dropping tongue-piercing ceremony is carried out in Bode. One of the residents of the settlement pierces his tongue with a metal spike and roams different part of city by carrying multiple fire torches on his shoulder.
If you are in Nepal at this time of year, Bisket Jatra is something not to be missed. Join the local community in welcoming the New Year !