This year, due to the differences between the Nepali lunar calendar and the western solar one, the holidays seem to be coming earlier.  The festival of Indra Jatra, generally heralds the end of the monsoon in the Valley, but this year, that would be too early, it feels.  Perhaps the monsoon is waning a little, but we still get some heavy rainfalls, which is good, because the rice was not planted so long ago.  Kathmandu is probably the ony place I've been in where I welcome the rain, because it's supposed to rain, everywhere else it's an inconvenience.
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Indra
                                       (Jimmy Thapa)


 The origins of this colorful festival were long ago, when Indra, the king of the Gods (not of the Great Gods, like Brahma/Vishnu/Shiva and the Goddess), who is also the God of Rain, descended into this valley in a cloud of mist.  He was disguised as an ordinary mortal, and came here at the behest of his mother, who needed some Parijat flowers for her Teej rites.  It just so happened that there was a dearth of those heavenly flowers in heaven, but an abundance of them in this heavenly valley.  Indra, unfortunately, was caught stealing the flowers, and he was bound up and put in a cage on public display.  His mother got worried when he didn't return with her flowers, and she came down in search of her son.  When she found him imprisoned, she explained to the people the mistake they had made.  Indra was immediately released, and both he and his mother were worshipped and showered with flowers by the abashed Kathmanduites, who instituted a yearly festival in Indra's honor, in order to make it up to him.
Indra Jatra begins six days before the official inauguration of the festival, with the search for a pine tree in a special forests east of Bhaktapur.  The tree, found worthy of the task of being Indra's  victorious standard  (dhvaja) is stripped of its bark and dragged for several days to Kathmandu by men of the various towns along the way.
Finally, the pole is raised in Hanuman Dhoka by men of the Manadhar caste (oil pressers).  From that moment on, Indra Jatra has officially begun.  This year it was on Sep 1.
sep-1
 A spirit of worshipful revelry reigns thereafter in the streets of the old city.  Masked dancers, dressed as various mythological characters, fierce and mischievous run through the streets, taunting and teasing the crowd. General inebriation is the rule of the days, and rakshi flows from the mouth the White Bhairav in Hanuman Dhoka -
indrajatra
At this point, the Kumari joins the fray, and the two festivals combine.  The Kumari, aka the Living (Virgin) Goddess is a Kathmandu cult which goes back to the 10th century, or earlier.  It took it's final shape in the 18th century, under the rule of the last Newari King of Kathmandu, Jaya Prakash Malla.  The family deity of the Mallas was Goddesss Taleju Bhavani, a form of the Great Mother Goddess of many names.  The king was blessed by regular visitations of the Goddess, during which they spent a lot of time gambling.  At some point, the king, overwhelmed by Taleju's beauty, entertained some lustful thoughts about Her.  The Goddess instantly vanished, never to come back 'in person' again.  The king was despondent.  That night he had a dream in which the Goddess told him that his reign was going to be short, and he would never be blessed by the sight of Her again.  He could still commune with her by selecting a young girl in the Newari jewellers' caste in whose body the Goddess would dwell.  The king could worship Taleju Bhavani by worshipping the young 'Kumari'.
And so it came to pass.  A young girl was selected and installed in a palace on Darbar Square to a sequestered life of luxury.  The Kumari is selected from the Shakya caste, by a secret process which, among other things, involves trying to frighten the child with horrific sights and sounds.  Only a little girl who his completely unperturbed by all of this can become the Kumari.  Another attribute of the Kumari is that she must never shed blood.  If she gets any sort of wound, or eventually menstruates, she is immediately retired, and another Kumari is selected.  Usually the Kumari is retired before this happens.  During her reign, each Kumari is treated like a living goddess.  People come daily to worship her and offer flowers and gifts.  Her intercession in all difficulties is sought.  All her moves and gestures are interpreted as good or bad omens, and the royal family consults her on all important occasions.   At the end of the Kumari festival, her blessing and the vermilion tika she places on the royal brow validates and ensures his reign for the next year.
oct-7

The new reigning Kumari

The most famous instance of this occurred in 1768, when the present king's ancestor, Prithvi Narayan Shah of Gorkha, invaded the valley.  King Jaya Prakash Malla was unable to muster his forces to counter the invaders, since everybody was stinko celebrating the twin festivals of Indra and the Kumari.  The Newari king fled across the river to Patan (That's what you get for hitting on the Goddess...) , while the victorious Prithvi Narayan Shah ordered the Jatra to proceed, leading the procession himself.  Needless to say, he wound up at the Kumari's palace, got the first tika, and ruled from there on.
There's another story about the Kumari.  In 1955, King Tribhuvan, the present king's grandfather went to receive tika from the Kumari on the appointed day.  The Kumari seemed sleepy, and when she was roused by her attendant to give the tika, she mistakenly placed the sacred mark on crown prince Mahendra's forehead.  It was an omen, and before the year was out, King Tribhuvan had passed away, and Mahendra ascended the throne.
Back to the festival.  On the third day, this year it's the second (Sep 3), the Kumari comes out of her abode in a chariot for the first time, accompanied by two little boys in their own smaller chariots, as Ganesha and Bhairav.  In previous times, the king and royal family would watch the proceedings, throwing purses of coins to the dancers.  Now it will probably be the president.
People watch nearby temples and rooftops as the chariot is pulled through the streets and squares.
indra3     kumari jatra band


The revelry continues for several more days.  The Kumari rides her chariot three times over the next few days, visiting different Toles (neighborhoods) of old Kathmandu.
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akasha
 She comes out on full moon day (Sep 4), and on the last day of Indra Jatra (Sep 7), when  everybody receives tika from the Kumari.  The next day the pole goes down and its all over, until next year...
        Have a joyous time, everybody!


Love and Pranams,

Billy

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