This post is dedicated to Nepali festival Gaijatra. As all know that Gai Jatra Festival is the typical festival of Nepal.
If you are planning to visit Nepal during this Nepali Festival Gai Jatra, you’ll get pleasure. You feel the excitement during this festival. You are planning to make holidays trip to Nepal during August, you will get the pleasure of Nepali Festival Gai Jatra.
Nepali Festival Gai Jatra: Gaijatra (Cow Festival) Nepal
Table of Contents
- Introduction about Gai Jatra Festival of Nepal
- Importance of GaiJatra
- Who Started Gai Jatra In Nepal
- Essay on Gai Jatra
- Bhaktapur Gaijatra
- Nepali Comedy Gai Jatra
- Why is gai Jatra celebrated?
- When is Gai Jatra Celebrated?
- Famous Gai Jatra Video
I am so proud to say Gai Jatra is the one festival celebrated only in Nepal. It is not shared by any of our neighboring countries. Only Nepal has the copyright of this festival which is famous for its uniqueness as well. Here Gai is the Nepali word for cow. Jatra means carnival of people.
In simple words Gai jatra is said to be the day of worshipping cows in which lots of carnivals are shown on the streets by the people according to their culture and tradition.
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In ancient times it was considered to be the festival only of Newars residing in Kathmandu valley. But now the festival has spread it’s unity and joy all over to Nepal regardless of anyCasts and ethnicity.
Literally, the meaning of Gai Jatra is Cow Festival where Gai means Cow and Jatra mean festival. Cow Festival is a jovial Nepalese festival that lasts for eight days. Gai Jatra is 8 days festival in Nepal. It is a typical Nepali festival.
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There are lots of fun in this festival like dancing, singing, caricature, comedy, play, data, nach, drama, pantomime, anything that causes mirth and laughter are part of the festival’s highlight.
On the first day of the Gai Jatra festival, people whose family members have died during that year, parade a decorated cow around the city (especially in Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, Lalitpur) together with their young ones dressed as cows or hermits.
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Gaijatra is the festival of cows. For you, kind information gai means cow and data mean festival in Nepali. Gai Jatra is celebrated in Nepal, mainly in Kathmandu valley by the Newar and Tharu community of Terai or Madhesh. The festival Gai Jatra commemorates the death of people during the year. During the Gai Jatra festival, cows are marched in the streets.
Gai Jatra is one of the most lively and widely liked festivals of Nepal. The traditional Gai Jatra (cow festival or cow procession) is observed in around different locations and vicinities of the three cities of the valley amid fun, gaiety, humor, satire, and entertainment.
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The festivities of Gai Jatra, beginning on the 1st day of the waning moon in the month of Bhadra and does fast for a week. It is generally celebrated in the Nepalese month of Bhadra (August–September). Peoples also distributes food to others. The festival of cows, Gaijatra is one of the most popular festivals of Nepal.
Gai Jatra (Gaijatra) is a typical Nepali festival. Gai Jatra (Gaijatra) festival held in the early August month. This festival is akin to a carnival. Nepali Festival Gai Jatra takes place in Kathmandu, Patan, and Bhaktapur with only slight variations on a central theme.
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Gai Jatra festival Bhaktapur, Gai Jatra festival Kathmandu and Gai Jatra festival Patan have similar features. For your kind information, the Gai Jatra festival of Nepal is also known as Gai Jatra festival of cows. According to the mythology of Gaijatra tradition, the sacred animal of Gai Jatra festival helps departed souls cross the cosmic ocean in their journey into the after-world.
Nepali Festival Gai Jatra is a kind of Hindu ritual or procession. Gaijatra festival is a kind Hindu ritual process. Gaijatra is a kind of Nepalese belief. Families in which deaths have occurred during the previous year will send a cow, or a young child masquerading as a cow, in procession around the streets of the city as a tribute to the deceased and to assist their entry into heaven.
This procession takes place during their entry into heaven. This process masquerading takes place during the mornings and is followed in the afternoon by a furthermore carnival-like procession when participants mimic the social and political scene of the day.
The processions staged in Bhaktapur, a one of the ancient city of Kathmandu valley, are perhaps the most extensive and amusing, with a wide range of tableaus typifying all aspects of the people’s culture.
This Nepali Festival Gai Jatra is celebrated long 8 days. Although it lasts about eight days, the first and second day of this-this festival Gai Jatra is supposed the most important. On the second day of Gaijatra festival, Mataya festival (an important Buddhist festival) takes place when all the Viharas. Buddhist monasteries or temples of Patan are visited in sequence.
As there are as many as 150 Vihara, this is a formidable undertaking. Offerings are made by the pilgrims and butter lamps are lit along the route.
During this festival, people of all ages in the guise of cows and lunatics go round the thoroughfare, wearing odd costumes to commemorate those who died during the yesteryear. There is a tradition among the Newar community that whoever has lost a family member must participate in the parade.
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The family members, their kith, and kin offer fruits, bread, beaten rice, curd, and money to those participating in the procession including the real cows. It is widely believed that the cow, a revered animal For Hindus, will aid the deceased ones with a safe and uninterrupted journey to heaven. Hence, the festival derives its very name Gai Jatra from its religious aspect.
Here is a historical event related to the celebration of Gai Jatra or cow procession. King Pratap Malla a powerful King of Kathmandu lost his beloved son untimely, which left his queen inconsolable. Despite his best endeavor, she remained forlorn. To lessen her unaccountable sorrows, the king ordered that every family, which lost its member, should participate in the Gai Jatra, or the cow rally.
When the queen watched the rows upon rows of people dressed up in weird attire and masks parading in front of her window laughing, joking and merrymaking of even the elite family, she came to realize that grief and loss were common to all human kinds.
Finally, the lively and humorous enactments of the people made her burst into laughter. Since then the incident came into being as an annual fiesta.
Gaijatra 2019 was on the date of 19 August. It means Gaijatra 2076 was on the date 2 Bhadra. Now Nepali festival Gaijatra 2019 lies in the … 30th August. This typical Nepali festival Gaijatra 2076 lies in the date … 2nd of Bhadra. If you want to know more about the Gaijatra festival of Nepal, then you can watch some videos on YouTube.
There are many uploaded Gaijatra videos as well as Gai Jatra songs on YouTube. Here is this blog, you can also watch some Gai Jatra videos. You can listen to some comedian Gaijatra songs or Gaijatra Mp3 Songs. Some of the topics about Gaijatra are posted here in this blog. You can visit.
With the period, the festivities of Gai Jatra have also harnessed modern outlook. Even the newspapers, magazines, tabloids and TV channels fling humorous texts, satirical skits, cartoons and photographs on the contemporary socio-political life among other idiosyncrasies. Even the theaters do serve satirical and humorous dramas or performances during this occasion.
To sum up, Gai Jatra is a festival, which helps people to acknowledge the reality of death. It is a universal truth. Furthermore, it is also a nice opportunity when social and political injustice and other evils are attacked and lampooned upon freely and brought to light in many imaginatively humorous ways.
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