Nepalese welcomes Nepali new year with sindoor, drumbeats

Apr 15, 2024

Bhaktapur (Nepal), April 15 (ANI): The beat of traditional Dhime (drum) go high as the ceremonial palanquins circumambulate the Balkumari Temple of Thimi with an atmosphere filled with the smell of Sindoor (vermilion powders) as the town welcomes Nepali New Year 2081 following the Lunar calendar. The annual festival of Sindoor Jatra paints the town with orange Sindoor which is observed on the 2nd of Baisakh or the first month of the year as per the Lunar calendar. A total of 19 ceremonial palanquins are brought to the temple square by devotees soaked in Sindoor accompanied by singing and dancing troupes. Celebrated on the second day of the Nepali month Baisakh by the Newar community in Madhyapur, Thimi, the festival also marks the advent of the spring season. A day before the observance of Sindoor Jatra, the locals of Thimi perform Gunsin Chhoyekegu, which means the firing of forest wood. The next day, palanquins locally called "Khat" are taken to Vishnuvir during the day. On New Year's Day, devotees present offerings and pray to Goddess Balkumari. They flock in masses to her temple in old Thimi. Through time immemorial, she is the consort of Bhairab. They both are the guardian deities of Kathmandu Valley. During the evening, devotees perform righteous acts such as lighting oil lamps. Some even place them on their legs, chest, forehead, and arms and lie static for hours.