Nepal's Indra Jatra Festival

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Nepal's Indra Jatra Festival

Sept. 6 celebrated by both Hindus and Buddhists

 

Bhuwan Thapaliya (Bhuwan)

 

Published 2006-09-06 07:04 (KST)

 

 

 

Nepal is indeed unique for its nearly continuous festivals. It is

thus regarded as a treasury of culture and is famous throughout the

world for its cultural heritage. Foreigners visiting Nepal are often

fascinated by the Nepalese festivals and jokingly say that in a year

with 365 days, the Nepalese celebrate 366 festivals.

 

In the Kathmandu Valley during September, the Nepalese celebrate one

of the truly great festivals -- Indra Jatra -- for eight days,

beginning on Sept. 6. Like most Nepalese festivals, it also has a

legend connected with God, in this case the story of the Lord Indra,

god of rain and the king of heaven.

 

According to legend, the Lord Indra descended to this valley in the

guise of a simple man to obtain a special flower for his mother's

fasting day -- the Parijat, or coral tree flower, which abounded

there but was not to be found in heaven.

 

Indra, meanwhile, was caught red-handed by the people of the valley,

who were unaware of his divinity and punished him for the act of

stealing their flowers, by binding his arms and feet with ropes, much

as they would a thief.

 

They held him prisoner in the locality of Maru Hiti in old Kathmandu,

according to legend.

 

Meanwhile, in heaven, his mother, Basundhara, came to know that her

son was in trouble in the valley. Furious, she sent down a troop of

heavenly gods to fight against his captors. These gods, masquerading

as Bhairabs, the terrible and bloodthirsty ones, set Indra free by

winning the war against the people.

 

Then a banner was hoisted as a symbol of victory over the valley.

Meanwhile, the valley's people learned the true identity of their

visitors and prisoner, whereupon they fell down before the gods with

profuse offerings of food and flowers.

 

The people of the valley held a lavish feast and reception in their

honor and invited the guests to stay in the valley for a week, which

Indra agreed to.

 

As he was accustomed to enjoying glamorously voluptuous dances by

celestial women, a dance was arranged in the square for his pleasure

every evening for a whole week. A lake was dug for him to bathe in,

situated on a hilltop eight miles west of the square, according to

the mythological sources.

 

A few days later, Basundhara promised to furnish the valley with fog

and dew during autumn and winter as moisture for ripening their crops

in compensation for her son's release. She further agreed to lead

back to heaven the souls of all who had died during the year. As she

left the valley, she took all the souls to heaven.

 

Since then, the festival of Indra Jatra is celebrated every year in

Kathmandu.

 

On the first day of this festival, a banner with various inscriptions

and painted with permanent colors is elevated on a tall pole about

fifty feet high. This takes place in the morning and signifies the

commencement of the festival.

 

The sacred flag is known as "Indra Dhoja," or "Yosin," and is hoisted

in front of the old palace at Hanuman Dhoka in Kathmandu as a sign of

Indra's victory. This flag signifies that Lord Indra has come to the

valley; and, when it flies, peace, prosperity, and unity are assured

there.

 

Mythology says that such a flagpole was presented by Lord Vishnu to

Indra, which unifies their forces and gave him divine strength to

overcome the demons.

 

During this festival, idols of Indra, his hands and feet bound

together, are displayed on high scaffolds around the city. The bronze

figures of Indra are displayed in two places in the city at Maru and

Indrachowk, with outstretched arms bound like a thief's on high

platforms supported by long posts.

 

Moreover, the masks of Bhairab, the god of wrath, are displayed

throughout the week on a small wooden platform supported by posts and

offered wine and "Jaand," a local rice beer, in the evenings.

 

As already mentioned, Indra's mother sent gods to the valley in order

to release him; the gods were lodged in different places of the city,

mostly on the outskirts. Perhaps that is why people visit these

places during the evening of the first day, to pay homage to the

gods' lodgings, according to the sources.

 

At dusk, on this day, thousands of people, in whose family a death

has occurred during the year, proceed in a long march, all carrying

burning incense in the name of the deceased, and follow a prescribed

route, which is believed to be an ancient road that once ringed the

town.

 

Some offer lighted oil wicks in small clay dishes, known as "Pala,"

to shrines and gods as they proceed, while others chant hymns for

those souls who have departed.

 

On the third day, before the full moon, ecstatic mobs gather near

Hanuman Dhoka for the long awaited procession of the living goddess

Kumari, considered the guardian and ruling deity of Nepal. After the

king tosses a handful of coins, the chariot of the Living Goddess,

along with her two attendants, Ganesha and Bhairav, is pulled through

the city along the ancient, prescribed routes. The procession

continues for three days.

 

On the last day, as the Kumari procession returns to Hanuman Dhoka,

it pauses twice, once at Indrachowk in front of the Akash Bhairab and

again at the twelve-foot mask of Swet (white) Bhairab, recessed in

the wall of Hanuman Dhoka.

 

Behind each mask, big jars of rice beer are set up, with tubes

leading out of Bhairab's mouth. When this sacred liquor is made to

run through the tube, people jostle one another to catch a few drops

of beer in their mouths or cupped hands, because the recipient is

believed to receive powerful blessings from Bhairab.

 

Moreover, each person hopes to catch a tiny, live fish, earlier

placed in the beer, when it passes through the Bhairab's mouth; for,

according to legend, that would make him/her the luckiest person in

the valley.

 

Meanwhile, when the chariot of Kumari, along with Ganesha and Bhairav

s chariots, reaches the front of Kumari House, an ancient tableau is

reenacted -- the ten earthly incarnations of Lord Vishnu, known

as "Dasha Avatara."

 

Thousands of people throng to see the elaborate costumes and

realistic, painted masks and hear the beloved stories of Lord

Vishnu's marvelous visits to earth, followed by ancient dances, like

the "Lakhe Dance,Sawo Bhaku Dance" and "Elephant Dance" in the

city streets, lit by flaming torches.

 

Everything that starts must end, however, and after a weeklong

venture, on the final evening the "Yosin," bearing Indra's flag, is

lowered amidst religious ceremonies, thus signifying the end of the

Indra Jatra festival.

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