Sindoor: a fading entity

By Jyotsna Rai

Being predominantly a Hindu nation, everybody in Nepal is aware with the tradition of streaking Sindoor at the bride’s hair by her groom during the marriage ceremony. Unless this activity is carried out, the entire ceremony is considered to remain incomplete. Hence, Sindoor is taken as an emblem of fortune for Hindu woman. She is blessed by her elders while being greeted saying ‘Sada Saubhagyawati Bhawa (be fortunate for ever). This blessing has a metaphoric connotation: ‘May the married woman get the company of her husband longer. A woman is deprived of the rights of using Sindoor and her colorful head turns starkly washed when she is bereaved of her husband. Accordingly, she has to undergo through arduous widowhood curtailing many rights and privileges what she used to get access with earlier. Hence, Sindoor is of immense value for women in Hinduism.

Earlier, Sindoor was widely used by the married women. Even today, it is in vogue in the everyday life of many Hindu women. Generally, it is compulsory in joint families as well as in traditional societies. In many parts of Nepal, if a woman is without Sindoor after marriage, this is considered as a gross disrespect to her husband and other elders as well as a great breach of social norms and values. In the tradition-ridden society, it is difficult to make understand that only a red vermilion smeared head can’t exhibit the extreme faith towards her husband and high regard towards the elders.

In the modern world, women also have come out of their home and are involved in jobs, business and other professions. In a male chauvinistic society like ours, there is no dearth of people who exploit women in many ways. Even in many private organisations, many women are deprived of job opportunity despite their efficiency and qualification merely being married. In such condition, women have no other option than keeping their unmarried status hidden. Hence, it is quite understandable why Sindoor is losing existence these days.

With the swift pace of modernisation and onslaught of alien culture, women have felt that dragging the bygone rituals as the use of Sindoor, Pote and Chura is cumbersome. Modern women are much concerned with aesthetic aspect of life. Thus, being increasingly obsessed by fad and fashion as well as aware with the bizarre outlook, use of Sindoor is being eclipsed now-a-days.

Women of this new era have growing concern over their health. They seem excessively involved to employ many means to keep their health intact. At this juncture, it is quite rational if they have discarded its use being conscious towards the health hazard it may bring since there are many harmful chemicals mixed in it.

Sociologically, with the decline of polygamy, polyandry, child marriage and other social anomalies, family has drastically shrunk into nuclear type day by day. As a result, conservative beliefs and traditions have been replaced by understandings and compatibility. Obviously, many strait-laced attitudes have been dropped. That’s why, strict adherence to Sindoor is no longer in place.

However the number of women using Sindoor has greatly fallen as compared to earlier in this new era, fair chunk of women still adopt this practice and many women keep their head entirely red. Some of them use Sindoor only in the form of Tika in their head. Hence, it’s up to an individual woman whether to adopt this practice or not. Societal parameter of fathoming women’s faith and high regard only with the indicator of Sindoor should be altered.

Unsuccessful dream

By Shova Adhikari

Gaggles of young people from outside throng to the capital city with their iron will to make their career, but a teen-age girl who hails from the capital itself is eking out her living in a dusty and smoky roadside of this land of opportunities.

If any dream 15-year-old Sangita Lama weaves, it is none other than how to earn Rs 100 a day. Despite knowing about all pros and cons of a "civilized" society, Sangita still does not know both Nepali and English Alphabets.

Hundreds, if not a thousands of young girls - most of them students of Boarding schools - walk past Sangita’s mini shop and so do the suited and booted gentlemen, but she goes on frying maize and soybean. When you go closer to her and ask something about her past, she starts vomiting out her bleak stories with watery eyes and frequent pauses. But Sangita hates those who gaze at her with greedy eyes.

Sangita keeps her mini shop at different thoroughfares of this city - sometimes in Gausala and at other times in Ratna Park and Sundhara. In all, she hardly manages to make Rs 50 a day. It is the city police who disturb her business. "Once the municipal police caught me and more than anything else, I was sad to miss a stove, which I used for frying up maize and soybeans." But these days she buys also things in advance and needs no more frying pans and stoves. "These days it has been only to escape the police," she says with some color in her face.

Daughter of a drug addict father and housewife mother, Sangita now lives with her mother along with her brother and a sister in a rented room. She laments that her father by now has turned out to be a complete mad man. "My father used to drink a lot in the beginning and later on he started consuming illicit drugs," she said with the early colours fading away from her face. She is further worried about her mother’s deteriorating health.

Sangita believes that her parents do everything for their children’s need - they hold and build a family. But she cannot believe her parents would return to look after her. She does as she feels her deed, but she doesn’t know about the law and order of this country. Merely, milk of human kindness makes sense to her. She condemns a girl in the street can move heaven and earth or rather do everything she likes but she cannot fight for a paternal right.

She prefers to be a boy, as she should not fear for evening. Perhaps the most revealing insight that can be seen in is about her imagination superlative of nature. She said condition in the evening is fearful. "I wish for the day where I could do my business without any fear."

If a girl fears of her beauty and youth, what can she do about her feminism? If people are really selfish, as she put it, who will give her human kindness that Sangita, a young girl can believe.

Arjundhara’s account

By Puran P Bista

Many historians defend that Mahabharat is not an epic but a text of historical accounts that really happened in ancient times. The Bhandarkar Institute of Indology, Pune, has brought out a series of publications on Mahabharat to ascertain its historical accounts — including the Tele-serial called Mahabharat — since this Institute was established six decades ago. But what has stunned many orientalogists is its "narrative technique" that really reveals more about the reality of human civilization of the Gangetic plains than the bone of contention between the historians and the epic writers.

Arjundhara, located in the heart of Jhapa district, is one such account that has got due recognition. But orientalogists have not done any historical researches, nor have many Hindu devotees know about this holy centre in the subcontinent. "Arjundhara may have got a place in Mahabharat. Unfortunately, it is we who have overlooked its significance", says Brijmohan Ghattani, the president of Arjundhara Temple Construction Committee. Ghattani has been a key person to develop this centre not only as a holy place but also as an oriental learning centre.

According to Ghattani, the five Pandav brothers during their twelve-year long exile is believed to have spent sometime at this holy centre. King Birat had stolen cows from this village. When Arjun came to know about this incident during his exile, he fought against King Birat and returned those stolen cows to their respective owners. He used prajnya astra and even brought water to quench the thirst of those cows. Symbolically, the temple built in 1974 today has a pond and five spouts.

Local inhabitants of Arjundhara realised this historical account in the early 70s only. It was in December 1972, a hermit called Khadebaba came down to this holy place from Ilam. He was a hermit naked meditating at this place, says 77year-old Hem Bahadur Thapa, the vice-president of the temple construction committee. The local inhabitants laid a foundation stone when they came to know that Arjun had rescued the sacred cows during his twelve year long exile through this Khadebaba, adds Thapa. "But Baba unexpectedly disappeared after disclosing this account. No one knows where he went after laying the foundation stone for a temple at this place."

In 1980, a construction committee was formed under the chairmanship of the late Durga Kharel. Kharel brought a spiritual and physical change among the local people. He built the main temple and organised recitation of Puran for eighteen years that ended on the day of every Balachaturdashi. Today, the temple, which is called Arjundhara Jaleswor Dham, houses a secondary Sanskrit school, Surya, Nag, Ganesh and Hanuman temples, besides a guest house for devotees who visit this temple from different parts of the subcontinent.

"At this school we teach Vedic rites, Sanskrit grammar and oriental astrology to our students", says the headmaster. Of the forty students, six are from India. The students hotel was inaugurated by former Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai in 1990. P L Pradhan, a resident of Darjeeling, donated more than eight hundred thousand rupees for the construction of a guest house and a temple meant to perform religious rites has been built by Joshi families. Laxmi Kharel has also set up a Library in the name of his father Durga Kharel.

Temple of Manjushree
Buddhist interpretation of Saraswati

By Razen Manandhar

People, tired of chilly winter long for some fresh winds and warmer sun as the Spring approaches. All over the world, people worship the god of spring in different ways. In Nepal, the fifth day of lunar Magha (17th February this year) is celebrated as Sri Panchami, is the day of Spring festival. On this day, people worship Manjushree and Saraswati, the god and goddess of education, wisdom and intelligence. Among the most visited Saraswati Shrines in the Kathmandu Valley, one lies at the western knoll of the Swayambhu hill, that is known as the shrine of Manjushree.

The temple is in the form of a white-washed Buddhist stupa. Guarded by stones on both front and rear sides, the temple has now fenced with iron bar. On the top of the stupa, there is a metal crown with eyes on four sides and thirteen-circular plates. The whole stupa-temple is covered by an open metal roof (Ilaan or Chanduwa) in the form of a Mandala that is hung over the stupa, which gives the shrine an appearance of a temple.

On the eastern side of the stupa, there is an artistic stone gate. And it has a stone torana which has images of Bagishwar, the form of Manjusri, flanked by Ganesh and Buddha on both of his sides. It is an unique example of the combination of Buddhism and Hinduism in one Torana which is rare among the thousands of Toranas scattered in the Kathmandu Valley.

A stone lotus on a small platform, possesses two relief feet with eyes on them. These two feet are the centre of devotion of thousands of Buddhists and Hindus. The eyes are believed to be of Dharma Shri, a disciple of Manjusri. One day, he neglected Manjushree in a religious gathering as the guru was in filthy dresses. Later, as he bent down to greet the guru, his eyes fell on Manjushree’s feet, as a punishment to the sin he committed.

The legends say that the Manjushree came to the Kathmandu Valley from China thousands of years before the Buddha was born. He worshipped the Swayambhu on a thousand-petaled lotus and drained away the water from the lake and make the valley suitable for human habitation. Another legend states that that Kind Prachanda Dev of Gaud (Bengal) came to Nepal and built the stupa of Swayambhu and Manjushree in the date beyond the history can trace. The shrine is now covered with painted iron roof that also has clumsy fringes around it.

Behind the main stupa there are several small stone stupas, which has also been surrounded by iron bar with praying wheels. A score of small and big idols are pasted on a wall with stone texture.

A recently renovated sattal is there opposite of the temple which is now filled with graffiti. Writing holy name of the Manjusri and Saraswati on the temple wall on the day of Sri Panchami is a popular tradition among the young students that is believed to help people obtain sharp mind.

Due to its legendary origin, the date of the temple’s construction and its original shape is unknown. But the temple in the present form is said to be established in the 17th century. The oldest found inscription shows that the temple has been there since the year 1784 AD. A Buddhist monk named Jayapatidev renovated the temple in the present form of a Buddhist Stupa.

The hill of Manjusri is a part on the hill of Swayambhu. It is surrounded by green trees and a naked cliff in northern side. Stone steps from Kimdol Bazaar leads directly to the shrine but can be reached from the top of the hill also.

Manjushree was a prehistoric saint but was given a god’s form as the tantraism gripped the Buddhism of the Kathamndu Valley. He is more commonly depicted as a god of transcendental wisdom and lord of speech, Bagishwor or Dharmadhatu Bagishwor. In his simplest form, he carries a book of Pragyaparamita and the divine sword with which he drives away ignorance and illiteracy.

In the shrine of Manjushree at Swayambhu, his identity and cult are merged with that of Saraswati a Hindu goddess, whose attributes are similar to Manjushree. The merge can also be interpreted as a confusion. Another reason of the confusion is their names., Dharmadhatu-Bagishwor, with Saraswati’s alternate, Bagiswari.

The heritage of the Kathmandu Valley remains live until both the Hindu and Buddhists worship the god or goddess without asking about whether a particular shrine belongs to a Buddhist or Hindu theology. And looking at the mass of people on the day of Sri Panchami, we can proudly say that the tradition of merge, confusion or harmony between Manjushree and Saraswati will continue forever.

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