Dashain: One of The Most Important Holidays in Nepal

The festival of Dashain is the most celebrated Hindu festival and symbolizes the victory of good over evil and falls in the month of September or October. The festival is celebrated for fifteen days and begins on the bright lunar moon and ends on full moon day.

The first day is the Ghatasthapana, the day barley seeds are planted amidst special puja which symbolizes Goddess Durga. The seeds will grow into five or six inches long grass of yellow-green color and is known as ‘jamara’ which is used during religious worship as well as offered during ‘tika’ (putting the red vermilion paste on the forehead). The seventh day is ‘Phulpati’ the day the royal kalash along with jamara from Gorkha is brought to Hanuman Dhoka Durbar marked with the celebratory firing of canons. The eighth day is, the day Goddess Durga manifests as the bloodthirsty deity and is worshipped with sacrifice of buffaloes, goats, hens and ducks in the temples of Durga or Kali throughout the country. (Need to mention we do not support such act of violence). The ninth day is Maha Navami, the last day of Navaratri and animals are sacrificed for vehicles and also tools, equipment and machinery to be blessed for better days and avoid accidents. The tenth day is ‘Vijaya Dashami’ the most important day of the festival when all elders are visited by younger family members for ‘tika’. The elders bless the younger ones with ‘tika’ on the forehead and ‘jamara’ and bless them with good health and prosperity along with ‘dakshina’ – a small amount of cash as a blessing.

The last day is ‘Kojagrat Purnima’ which falls on the full moon day and people worship ‘Goddess Laxmi’ – goddess of wealth and the night is spent feasting and gambling among family and friends. Dashain festival is also time for buying new clothes and visiting family members for tika hence the garment shops are crowded with customers buying new clothes for every member of the family. The festival is also celebrated by the older male family members indulging in gambling with cards while younger children spend days on rooftops flying kites amidst loud music and merrymaking. 

To conclude, Dashain is the longest holiday given by the government and all offices and businesses is closed for the festival for the longest time of the year. It is one of the most important holidays in Nepal.