Written by: Pratik Dangol - 27009, Grade VIII
Posted on: 21 June, 2022
I was born as a Newar with my surname Dangol. At first it was just a surname and a caste to me but later I knew how lucky I was to be a Newar and born in Kathmandu valley. I don’t discriminate against others but I do feel proud of my Culture.
Now to talk about why I love my culture then there are many reasons to say. First of all, there are various types of dishes that are only prepared in this culture like bara, yamari, haku choila, bhutan, etc. The language spoken by the Newars is called Newari generally but actually it is also known as Nepal vasa. The main thing I like about my culture are the varieties of festivals and jatras celebrated in Kathmandu. The festivals that are celebrated by Newars are Yamari Punhe, Mha puja swanti, Vintuna (Newar’s new year), Jyapu pucha (jyapu means newa farmers), Sithi nakha,etc. Gai jatra, Bungdo jatra (rato machindranath jatra), Pahan charhe, bisket jatra, jana baha dya jatra (seto machindranath jatra), bhoto jatra, yenya (indra jatra), etc.
When I celebrate our festivals, I forget all my problems and enjoy being with my friends, family, relatives, etc. These are only the times when I meet most of my friends, otherwise we are always busy in our own world. All year I just think when pahanchare jatra will come. This is a jatra celebrated in different places of Kathmandu with their own god/goddesses. In my place we have Bachleshwori mai. We have a jatra for 3 days and I completely forget my other works during it. I just enjoy and love to play dhime baja(a traditional music played by newars). As I am living in my ancestral land and I have many relatives all over Kathmandu valley, attending many rituals, festivals and having fun makes me really feel great about my culture.
