Hindu-Buddhist Festivals of Nepal

Description

Hindu-Buddhist Festival of Nepal documents a vibrant spectrum of the lucent moments of festivity and fraternity in the lives of Nepalese people. The author Hemanta K. Jha is a well known Nepalese culture critic. Not a day passes in Nepal without observing some festival. Considering festivals as great unifying factor in a culturally diverse Nepal, Jha explores the origin and evolution of the festivals and points out a syncretism of Hinduism and Buddhism in the celebrations. Employing mythological tales, Nepalese folklore, historical chronicles, mythological tales, popular legends and personal experiences from the day to day involvement in the Nepalese society, Jha narrates the awe-inspiring accounts of the festivals of Nepal where gods and demons interact with humans in their daily drudge to make them aware of the celestial and ‘just’ sources of existence. The book includes not just major Nepalese festivals celebrated in the Kathmandu valley like Ghode Jatra, Machchendranath Jatra, Ghantakarna, Gai Jatra and national festivals like Nepalese New Year, Mata Tritha Day Buddha Jayanti, Nag Panchami, Janai Purnima, Teej, Vijaya Dashmi and Tihar, it also focuses on the festival like Chhatha and Shree Panchami celebrated with special reverence in the Nepal Terai. Hemanta K. Jha’s Festivals of Nepal comes at a time when the traditional ritualized mode of Nepalese life is under the lethal threat of senseless modernization and globalization. “Dr. Hemant Jha’s book has refreshed my memories. In his simple and lucid language, Dr. Jha has briefly described nineteen main festivals of Nepal… a very valuable book on Nepalese festivals.” –Dr Shaphalya Amatya, Author of Art and Culture of Nepal and Rana Rule in Nepal