The Rato Machchhendra Nath
The God of Rain and Foodgrain
Thereare many fascinating legends and lores woven around Rato Machchhendra, a Buddhist deity variously known as Karunamaya, Bodhisattwa Padmapani, Awalokiteswara, Lokeswara, Lok Nath, Bunga Dyo, etc. One of the strongest supporting elements in the composition of his popularity is that it has been a long tradition to worship him as the all compassionate ' God of Rain and Foodgrain'., So this essay will dwell simply on this aspect.
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| Rato Machchendra Naath |
Nepal is an agricultural country where more than ninety percent of the people heavily depend on agriculture. As rain is main source of water to irrigate their fields, it is quite natural for them to look forward for the coming of the monsoons.
Monsoon in Nepal generally begins sometime in the middle of June and continues until the end of August. But the Newa: farmers long before the monsoon commences start thinking about the weather wondering whether they are going to have enough rain for that year. The only way to free them from this worry and stay relaxed is to pray to the rain god for the better crops.
In addition, the Jyapus also have a great zeal and fervor for music. No festival in Nepal (in Newa: cultural ) is considered complete without their musical performance. They produce such an enthusiastic music by beating the drum locally known as dhimey and clanging a pair of big brass cymbals called bhushya that it immediately fills the entire neighborhood with fun, ecstasy and merry making.
Then the deity is enthroned in the festival chariot and taken around Patan. The inhabitants of Patan wait with great excitement for the chariot to arrive at their respective locality so that they can make the gratitude offerings and celebrate the occasion with big feast and fun. There are four different destination points where the festival chariot comes to half and stays overnight right there for the benefit of the local people. These point are said to symbolize the four different worlds situated in the four different directions that Rato Machchhendra rules over. His annual visit to these four different places are associated with his anxiety to see if his people have enough to eat and if they have been doing well.It is interesting to note that the main offering to this deity in the ceremonial worship is the rice. The devotes never forget to use the best and the most beautiful brass plantes they have which they use every day for their regular meals. The main purpose (of taking the regular meal-plates filled with rice) is to let their food father know that it is by his grace that they have enough to eat and so are happy and grateful to him for all his kindness.
-Niraj Man Singhwilliam.newrose@gmail.com
facebook ID: https://www.facebook.com/niraj.m.singh
Kirtipur-3, Kathmandu Nepal
CHAKUWA DYO
A FAITHFUL COMPANION OF RATO MACHCHHENDRA NAATH
One of the most fascinating features of the chariot festival of Rato Machchhendra is the greatful company of Chakuwa dya during the entire period of the festival . The chariot of Rato Machchhendra will never be pulled until the chariot of Chakuwa Dyo arrives at the ceremonial spot. When the chariots move , Chakuwa Dyo is always behind Rato Machchhendra Naath.
The Beginning and the ending of the chariot festival of the deeity always corresponds to that of Rato Machchhendra. This festival begins on the first day of the bright fortnight of Baishakh (April-May) and ends after about a month. But it all depends on the number of the chariot-pullers and their enthusiasm as well on when the temple astrologers will announce the right time to end it.
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| Making Chariot |
Chakuwa Dyo is the most faithful and favorite companion of Rato Machchhendra Nath. Chakuwa Dyo, Like Rato Machchhendra is also a Budhhist deity and has many names such as Meen Nath, Dharma Raj, Jatadhari Lokeswara, Padmapani Awaloketeswara and so on. But Chakuwa Dyo is widely worshipped as an all compassionate god of dharma (righteousness). Therefore, he is also known as Dharma Raj. The Buddhist believe that he is the final judge of life and death. He illiminates the deep meaning of dharma through his expression karuna (compassion). So his main function is to care of all the suffering souls from all three worlds, But he seems to take greater care of those suffering in the purgatory (nether land)whereas Rato Machchhendra watches over those suffering in this very world. Even Yama Raj , the god of death, is said to fear this deity. According to a Vamsavali (chronicle), once a Lichhavi king Vrisa dev, a great devotee of Dharma Raj, against whom it is said that Yama Raj always nursed a big grudge, died suddenly. His tragic death shocked and surprised everybody. When Dharma Raj heard of this, he immediately rushed to the Yama Lok (The realm of Death God) to make an enquiry which made Yama Raj very uneasy and it did not take him long to realise his stupidity. Ashamed of his unjust act, Yama Raj apologized to Dharma Raj for the blunder he had committed and immediately sent the deceased king back to the world of mortals with great respect. Thus, he is shown to be master of Yama Raj and so the true arbiter of life and death.
Chakuwa Dyo is also said to represent a great yogi. Gorkha Nath, who is the top-ranking disciple of Rato Machchhendra. As a popilar legend has it, once Rato Machchhendra felt terribly sorry for a beautiful young queen whose husband had just died. Being lonely , she had, all of a sudden, a wild sexual desire. This moved
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| Chariot |
This worried Gorakh Nath very much. He felt an urge to go at any cost and remind Rato machchhendra of his great responsibility to the world. So, for the sake of his guru's prestige, he changed into the form of a damsel even more beautiful than the one Rato Machchhendra was staying with and walked straight into the private room where Rato Machchhendra was engrossed with the lady, Gorakhnath, by his skillful act, immediatelt won his master's mind and led him out soon to the world of reality. It is therefore said that ever since Rato Machchhendra always preferred to be accompanied by his most devoted disciple no matter where he goes. This story explains the interesting custom of the chariot of Chakuwa Dyo folowing that of Rato Machchhendra, even blocking its way when the chariots are stoped at four destination points.
Another fascinating feature of the chariot festival of Chakuwa Dyo is the children.. Chakuwa Dyo is the favourite god of children and they pull his festival chariot. This also reminds of this deity's being only an humble disciple of his great guru Rato Machchhendra because are always like children to their great masters.
There is also a reason why this god is called Chakuwa Dyo. An old tradition says that this deity has his temple built at the place a sparrow chose for him to be the best. The phraseology in Newar means the god residing in the area the sparrow chose for him. The noteworthy thing here is that soon after the chariot festival of this deity comes to the end, a pair of sparrows must be released in the air. This custom is prevalent even today. And those are believed to go straight to heaven and deliver the message to Indra, the king of Heaven, saying that the chariot festival of Chakuwa Dyo was a grand success on the earth. Besides, there is another custom according to which the temple priests let go a pair of fish in a pond. The fish are said to go deep down into the underworld and deliver the same message but this time to the Lord of Nagas.
-Niraj Man Singh
william.newrose@gmail.com
facebook ID: https://www.facebook.com/niraj.m.singh
Kirtipur-3, Kathmandu Nepal
Gatha-Muga: The Festival to Honor Demon
Gatha-Muga or Ghantakarna is one of the most ancient festivals of Nepal, which comes every year on the fourteenth day of dark fornight of Shrawan (July-August). This festival comes first in the series of other festivals to follow round the year. It is interesting to note that this day is marked as a big day for the boys.Hence it is also know as the "Festival of Boys". As a matter of fact, it is always the boys who take the most active part on this occasion.
On this day the effigy of the monster made of reeds is set up at every crossroad. As a legend goes, long time ago, a monster called Ghantakarna came to the Kathmandu Valley to devour people. But before he could endanger the inhabitants of the city they killed him. Ever since the Newar community have been celebrating this day as a big festival. Every neighborhood has thus one of these monster effigies and a group of boys to look after that. From the very early morning on this day quite a number of them are seen standing round the effigy in the street and collecting jagats (a kind of ceremonial toll) from the passersby and vehicles. With the collection the boys buy things necessary for the funeral of Ghantakarna
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When the evening falls they tie up the effigy with a strong rope, kick it several times and then drag it.away shouting wild slogans until they reach a riverbank where they burn it and then throw it away into the water. Then they all come all the way home singing a kind of victory song.
It is said that after Ghantakarna is dragged down to the river nobody is supposed to be hanging around outside lest the dead monster should come back and avenge his humiliation. So, many elderly people never forget to lock up their doors soon after they see the Ghantakarna off. Women sweep the house and throw away the dust suspecting that some evil spirits might be still lingering around it. Some people drive the iron nails on the lintels of their doorways to check the devils from entering their house. Iron nails are considered very good at checking the advent of evil spirits. People also wear iron rings on their fingers
on this day to safeguard against the attack of the evil spirits.
Although this festival is celebrated all over Nepal, people belonging to different parts celebrate it in different ways following their own local tradition. For example, in Bhadgaon they celebrate it in a manner of mourning whereas Kathmanduites do it with great feelings and fun. The kathmanduites pick up a boy (from lower class) who is quite strong and skillful. He is dressed like one in mourning and his face painted to make him look like descendent of Ghantakarna. Then he goes around the neighbourhood to beg for alms for the funeral of 'his grandfather' Ghantakarna . When it gets dark, the funeral rites of the effigy is performed by that boy before finally setting it on fire and throwing it into the water. This marks the end of the festival.
-Niraj Man Singhwilliam.newrose@gmail.com
# 5,Aug 2013
NAGAPANCHAMI
The Serpent's Day
Nepalese people have great respect for Nagapanchami Day, which falls every year on the fifth day of bright fortnight od Shrawan (July-August). They celebrate it by posting colourful portraits of nagas (serpents) on the walls above the main doorways.
Nagapanchami has a very ancient origin. The tradition of serpent-worship seems to have originated from the Dravidian culture. So this tradition is in its basic form very non-vedic. The Aryans did not initially worship the snakes. They were always afraid of the snakes and tried by all means to keep them away. The Vedas have very little to say in praise of serpent- gods.(There is a reference about an interesting method of neutralising snake venom in the Rigveda. Taittiriya Samhita prescribes snake sacrifice for one's peace,protection and prosperity.) It was only in the purnic period that the Aryans made some rooms for the snakes in their religious functions. But later, the Puranas started speaking very highy of the significance of the serpent-worship. And thus the tradition of serpent worship came to be recognized as an integral part of the Vedic religion.
The Puranas have plenty of Verses devoted to the nagas. To illustrate, the Garuda Purana says that worshipping of the nagas on the Nagapanchami Day brings peace and prosperity to the devotees. The Skanda Purana also speaks almost in the same tone.The Narad Puran says that if one offers cow milk to the snakes on this day one is sure to be safe from snakebites for the whole year.
The Bhavishya Puran says that one who worships the nagas with single minded devotion will always be able to keep the thunder away.
Nepalese people have been maintaining this tradition from time immemorial. Snakes in Nepal are generally believe to roam about in disguise of a certain god or goddess. So when they see a serpent crawling in or around their houses they never forget to burn some incense in its honour. However, the Nepalese people seem to worship the snakes more as rain-god than as any other gods. One possible reason is that Nepal has long been as agricultural country. More than ninety percent of the people here still depend on agriculture for their livelihood and monsoon rain is still the main source of irrigation for farming. And the legend has it that the nagas are the sole agents of the monsoon and drought. It also talks about Naunaga (nine very important snakes) seated on which Yogi Gorkhnaath performed deep penance to stop the rain for twelve long years all over Nepal. So Nepalese farmers always regard nagas as the most powerful water spirits.
Another reason is that the Kathmandu valley has long been regarded as the legendary lake home of the nagas. Karkotak, their king, is still believed to be living in Taudaha lake, about seven miles south of the Kathmandu city. Kathmandu Valley was also called Nagarhida, which means the ancient abode of the nagas.
In any case, the Nagapanchami Day reminds us that many snakes by nature are poisonous and dangerous. And yet, they are very useful to the ecosystem as they keep check on pests like rats, insects, etc.
-Niraj Man Singh
william.newrose@gmail.com
# 8,Aug 2013
Kathmandu, Kirtipur, Nepal
Janai Purnima ( Rakshya Bandhan)
Janai Purnima falls on the full moon day of Shreawan (July-August). Celebrated by the entire population of Nepal, Hindus and Buddhists, this festival is variously known as Gunhipunhi, Kwantipunhi, Rishitarpani etc. On this day one can see several Hindus going to the Buddhist temples and vice versa.
The Brahmins and Chhetris wear a new janai across their shoulders on this occasion. It is a sacred three-stringed thread symbolizing the three basic qualities of nature: sattwik (creative), rajasik (preservative) and tamasik (destructive). It is also said Shiva) The custom of changing sacred thread every year symbolizes the purification of one's body and mind.(It is like recharging the battery of the human brain)
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| Changing Janai |
Hundreds of pious people throng to different places of pilgrimages and take the bath or dip in the holy rivers and sacred lakes and purify themselves, One of the most popular pilgrimages is Gosainkund, which is situated at an altitude of 14,324 feet in the north of Kathmandu. Many devotees also visit the Kumbheswar temple in patan. There in the courtyard is a spring locally known as Kumbheswar Kunda which is believed to be the replica of Gosainkund,
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| Gosainkund |
People also wear strings of golden coloured thread called Rakha Bandhan (literally) "safety band") round one's wrist. This ritual band is believed to protect those whos wear it from all kinds of ills and evils. One is supposed to wear it until the Laxmi Puja, which falls in Kartik (October-November). Traditionally, the Brahmins tie up this holy protective band round one's wrist with the chantings of mantras. These days, Terai ans some hilly people have colourfull rakhis tied by their sisters. There is a very famous puranic episode about the significance of Rakshya Bandhan:
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| Rakshya Bandhan "safety band"(Rakhi ) |
Once there broke out a big battle between Indra ,the god king of heaven, and Bali, the demon king of the underworld, Bali won the fight. Indra was terribly upset. So he rushed to his guru Brihaspati for help. The guru tied up the Rakshya Bandhan round to wrist of Indra with the chanting of sacred mantras and blessed him. Next time when he fought with Bali, he won .
However, the Buddhist celebrate the festival to mark Lord Buddha's victory over the maras (the devils of temptations). The maras symbolically means all those difficulties and drawbacks Buddha had to face on his way to nirvana. Lalitvistar, an ancient Buddhist text,extolls the significance of the day.
The day is also called Kwantipunhi. Kwanti in Newar means hot cermonial soup made of several kinds of cereals, beans and peas rich in protein. It is really delicious and hygienic. Sipping plenty of kwanti soup on this day is believed to relieve one's stomach trouble and warm him during the monsoon cold.
The festival is marked also with exhibiting religious art treasure at every Buddhist monastery in the Kathmandu Valley. They display life-size statues of the Buddhas and Bodhisattwas, and the traditional thangkas and tapestries depicting the life history of Lord Buddha. Devout Buddhists visit nine different Buddhist monasteries changing nine different dress, and celebrate the day by having nine different dishes.
In the evening , some people organize musical performance of the Naubaja, meaning nine different kinds of traditional Nepalese musical instruments, at the Kumbheswara Temple, Patan. In addition, people stage the dramatic performance of the Jhankre Damphu. It is a kind of typical Nepalese drum which the Nepalese witch doctors or shamans use as a healing instrument. Its nerve-racking sound is believed to drive away the evil spirits. On this day many witch doctors gather at Kumbheswar to pay tribute to heir patron god, Lord Shiva.
One of the interesting names of this festival is Rishi Purnima or Tarpani. Earlier, the saints and seers used to come down to the riversides and preach the sermon on the significance of the studies of Shastras (Holy Hindu Scriptures) and their values for common welfare, Indeed, our ancestors are said to have great intention to hold their knowledge of Holy Scriptures in high esteem.
-Niraj Man Singhwilliam.newrose@gmail.com
# 11,Aug 2013
Kathmandu, Kirtipur, Nepal
Gaijatra
The Festival of Holy Cows
Festivals, feasting and fun have always been an integral part of Newari's life. And now here is this better highlighted than in the month of Shrawan (July- August) when over eight different festivals take place. The most fascinating one in the series is Gaijatra, or the 'Festival of Holy Cows'. It falls exactly on the first day of the dark fortnight.
The festival is marked with the parade of the people wearing head-dress with the portrait of the cowpinned up on them. Such dressing is said to represent the holy cows on their way to heaven. Indeed, some affluent people even manage to send real live cows to grace the festival. What is most exciting and enjoyable however is the free show of street comedy. The clowns and comedians who perform the street show wear hilarious masks or have their faces painted. They take plenty of liberty to entertain the people, that is also aimed at satirizing the political, social and economical ills of the society.
Gaijatra in Kathmandu starts from Hanuman Dhoka whereas in Patan, Kirtipur and Bhadgaon it starts from their respective Durbar Squares. The parade lasts from dawn to dusk. However, the masquerading, except the ritual representation of the cow, lasts for the whole week.
The most active sponsors of such street shows are the families mourning the deceased kins of the previous year. They send out somebody to join the Gaijatra parade and to inspire the deceased to hasten to heaven, especially those whose ghostly spirits are suspected to be oscillating between heaven and earth. The customary participation of cows in this parade, or of ritual objects that represent the cows, is believed to symbolize them as divine guides. It is said that cows have (always) free access to the heaven. That is why , they are warmly worshiped by the relatives of the relatives of the deceased. They hope that the cows would push open the doorway of the heaven for all the deceased whose spirits are still hovering between heaven and earth. The cow in Hindu religion is considered a divine bridge across the river Vaitarani (mythical river of agony). It is also believed to lead religious souls to Vaikuntha , the abode of Lord Vishnu. The Hindu rite of offering a cow to a Brahimin in Charity also stands for the same belief.
Another attraction of this festival is colourful masquerades. On this day. lots of people, dressed up in the oddest possible attires, go round the city. Some of them are clad only in rags and others in straw and hay to look funny. Many of these paraders have their face painted like devils. According to a Hindu tradition, they are all regarded to represent the ghostly spirits lost and wandering around on their way to the world of the dead.
The Buddhist however believe that the masqueraders are none other than the personification of the maras set to seduce Buddha from his deep meditations. Therefore, many orthodox Buddhists hate to see these masked people on this day. The main gate of the famous Golden Temple of Buddha in Patan remains closed on this day for the fear that the devils (maras) might walk into the temple and disturb Buddha in meditation.
People also drag heavy iron rims, broken pieces of metals, cans, drums and tins, and go round the main thoroughfares of the city. The locals of Patan are very enthusiastic about this. They believe that the noise that these produce, which is loud, jarring and cacophonous, would scare away the evil spirits from the town.
Some rich families (where some member has died in the recent past) also organize Ramayana recitations for which they hire several musicians.
-Niraj Man Singh
william.newrose@gmail.com
# 15, Aug 2013
Kathmandu, Kirtipur, Nepal
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To be Continue...... the next article about "Matya" -The Buddhist Festival of Lights
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