Indra Jatra festival begins

BY A STAFF REPORTER

Kathmandu, Sept 8 : The annual eight-day festival of Indra Jatra has officially begun after erecting a 32-hand-long wooden pole at the Hanumandhoka Durbar Square on Wednesday.  

The ritual to erect the pole brought from Nala in Kavre, which is called Indradhwojothan, took place in the presence of Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Jeevan Ram Shrestha, Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah and others. 

The Indradhwaja has been erected in front of the Kaal Bhairav. The pole is also called Yaashin in Newari language. 

Leading figures of the Manandhar community erected the wooden pole or ‘lingo’ at the auspicious hour of 7:17 am amid the gathering of devotees today. The Gurujyu Paltan, a group of musicians, played musical instruments and classical dancers performed dance during the ceremony.   

The idol of Lord Indra is placed at the bottom of the pole, and it will remain there for eight days.  

The festival is devoted to the Lord Indra and is marked by singing and performing mask dance (Lakhe) and other joyous cultural shows. 

Indrajatra falls on the fourth day of the waxing moon in the month of Bhadra every year as per the lunar calendar. It is celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm in all three districts of the Kathmandu Valley.

Indra, the god of rain and good harvest, is worshipped during the festival by both the Hindus and Buddhists. 

Minister Shrestha said that Indra Jatra has been the major attraction for the promotion of cultural tourism in the country.

Speaking at the Indradhwojothan programme on Wednesday, he said that promotion of cultures and heritages could attract a lot of tourists.  

Likewise, Mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) Balendra Shah said that KMC has a plan to promote Indra Jatra around the world, not limiting it to the Kathmandu Valley.    

Mayor Shah said that tangible and intangible heritages of the country should be made known around the world.   

Sunita Dangol, Deputy Mayor of KMC, said that Indra Jatra needs to be promoted at international level. 

KMC has invited leaders from 18 sister cities and 25 cities including seven capital cities from South Asian countries to observe the unique cultural festival. The international guests will start arriving in Nepal from Thursday, she said.  

A large image of Akash Bhairab’s head is put on display in the open directly facing his temple at Indra Chowk for eight days.  

Masked dance, known as Mahakali and Ramchandra Pyakha, have also begun from Wednesday, and they are performed every evening at Haunumandhoka accompanied by loud drums and other musical instruments. The festival also highlights the classical dances. 

Swet Bhairav, the most dangerous face of Lord Shiva at Hanumandhoka, which is mostly kept hidden inside a wooden curtain throughout the year, has also been shown on the occasion of the festival. It is believed that the age-old Indra Jatra festival started from Lichchhavi era. 

Similarly, 21 poles measuring 20 to 30 hand were erected at different places of Bhaktapur to mark the Indra Jatra. The locals of Bhaktapur jointly erected the poles at places like Suryamadi, Datatreya, Golmadi, Sukuldhoka and Chasukhel.