 |
|
| Kathmandu, Friday March 07, 2003 Falgun 23, 2059. |
|
Sherpas observe Lhosar in
capital
By Tejasuee Rajbhandari
KATHMANDU, March 6 : They may be the famed
mountaineers popular among alpinists the world over. Originally hailing from the foot of
eastern Himalayas, thousands of Sherpas who have migrated to the Kathmandu Valley today
gathered near the Bouddhanath stupa to celebrate Lhosar, or New Year 2130.
Around 7,000 Sherpas coming from 2,500 families
residing in different parts of the Valley, gathered at the premises of the Sherpa Sewa
Kendra (Sherpa Welfare Centre) at Bouddha for the annual festivities. Children, youth and
elderly alike were attired in their colourful traditional costumes as Angi and Chuwa with
Shyamung, wished for each other’s happiness to mark the year of ‘Water
Sheep’ which, they say, comes after 96 years.
Speaking to The Kathmandu Post, Ang Kaji Sherpa,
treasurer of the Sherpa Sewa Kendra said, "The festival holds a great importance for
all the Sherpas and it is the best opportunity for the younger ones to take blessings from
elders".
"All the Sherpas visit their elders and
their relatives to extend their best wishes and take blessings from their elders, from the
first day of New Year till Purnima (full moon)", he added.
Sherpas, originally known as ‘Shar-wa’
- meaning person from the east, migrated to Nepal from Kham in eastern Tibet in 1600 AD.
And the ‘Shar-wa’ people developed a unique Nyingma (Tibetan) Buddhist culture
based on trade, animal herding, and subsistence agriculture.
However, with the passage of time, Sherpas have
migrated to different parts of the country – and even abroad. Although Solukhumbu and
the adjoining areas are considered to be their real home, about 2,500 families are living
in the Kathmandu Valley alone.
Nevertheless, Sherpas all over the world
celebrate Lhosar, their main festival which also coincides with the Lhosar of the
Tibetans.
Sherpas follow Chinese calendar, and it has a
cycle of twelve years, each represented by an animal such as sheep, horse, tiger and so
on. At the same time, the cycle of twelve years represent, both the male and the female
alternatively. Meanwhile, there are four elements representing each cycle and each cycle
has one element as its property.
And Lamas at the Gumba (monastery) did their
usual ritual of performing puja for the best wishes of all the people and also hoisted the
Lahpsu, flag for happiness and prosperity of the entire world.
The other important festivals of Sherpas apart
from Lhosar are Dumji, Mani Rimdu and Sakadawa, popularly known as Buddha Jayanti. Pema
Sherpa, a schoolgirl, pointing to the group of foreigners, said that the day not only
helps us to expose their culture and tradition to the people of other community but also
helps to introduce the rich culture of Nepal to foreigners.
On the occasion, the Lamas also performed a
traditional and religious dance Chyam, which attracted the huge crowd. After Chyam, men
and women together performed the traditional Sherpa dance, which went on for hours. Nima
Lama Sherpa,73, dancing with his old friend said that the programme like this helps all
the Sherpas to get together at least once in a year.
The day for the Sherpas started with religious
pujas. However, they spent the other half of the day by feasting, eating special
delicacies like Khapse and Dehsil, and youths drinking Chyang, an alcoholic drink.
Whatever the manner, the main purpose of the day
was to share the joy and happiness and clearing oneself from all evil components and
wishing each other a better life. The Sherpa Welfare Centre also organised various other
programmes like rally, magazine release and distribution of prizes to mark this special
day.
Other Stories
|
